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“Usually there aren't that many people booking tours to Indonesia at this time of year, but many called our company on August 24 morning asking for price quotes,” a representative at HanoiRedtours said.
He estimated that the number of tour bookings with his firm has doubled in the last few days.
“Similar to the AFC Cup which took place in Changzhou, China earlier this year, our company foresaw that this could happen and already set up new tours to meet market demand,” a Vietrantour representative said.
Beside the surge in regular tours, tour companies are considering one day tours now.
“Not many people will be able to stay for more than one day because the (next) match will happen on Monday. At the moment, our company is looking into adding a one day tour,” a Vietravel representative said.
Vietravel estimates the one day tour to Indonesia and watch Vietnam’s quarterfinal match will cost around $515 from Saigon and $644 - 686 from Hanoi. The price will include two-way tickets, meals and tickets for the match.
A representative of Vietours in Da Nang said that if Vietnam won the quarterfinals, people can pay an additional of $429 to continue their stay and watch the next match.
Many Vietnamese football lovers are willing to pay for a one day tour to Indonesia to support the nation team in its quarterfinal match.
Nguyen Minh Vuong, a Thu Duc District resident of Saigon, said that he and his friends spent a whole night organizing an Indonesia trip before Vietnam's next match.
“We found and compared prices of tour companies, then looked to see if it would be better to travel by ourselves.”
After two hours, the group decided to book their tour with a local company for $644 per person.
“We thought of organizing a trip by ourselves since visiting Indonesia does not require a visa. However, most flights require you to transit and it would take up time to find tickets for the match. So we decided to stick with the tour.”
Not just tour companies, aviation businesses have also increased number of flights to Indonesia.
On Friday evening, Vietnam Airlines announced it would add two direct flights to Jakarta from Hanoi and Saigon. In total, there will be four direct Airbus A321 flights from Vietnam to Jakarta on August 27, when Vietnam plays Syria in the Asiad 2018 quarterfinals.
The flight schedules have not been finalized, but the likely schedule is to have flights to leave Hanoi for Jakarta at 9:50 a.m. on August 27 and return at 12:20 a.m. on August 28, arriving at the capital city’s Noi Bai Airport at 4:50 a.m.
The additional flight from Saigon to Jakarta could depart at 11:20 a.m. on August 27 and return to Saigon at 00:30 a.m. on August 28.
“We look forward to this non-stop flight from Hanoi to Jakarta,” said an official with the Hanoi Football Association.
A flight booking agency said that two-way tickets on August 27 will range from $214 to $472, depending on the airline.
Vietnamese men made Asian Games history Thursday, earning a quarterfinal debut with a 1-0 win against Bahrain. As noted earlier, the next match against Syria will be played on August 27.
Saigon's football fans watch Vietnam-Bahrain game at Asiad
