Vietnamese tourists shift preference to Asian destinations

Domestic travel firms said affordable prices make Southeast and Northeast Asian destinations particularly appealing to Vietnamese tourists, eclipsing domestic tours as domestic flight costs soar.

According to the Japan National Tourism Organization (JNTO) in Vietnam, in the first two months of the year, the number of Vietnamese visitors to Japan reached over 107,000, a 40% increase compared to the same period of 2019.

The number of Vietnamese visitors to Japan in February was the highest ever, exceeding 60,000.

The previous highest month was February 2023, with 55,800 visitors.

A Vietnamese tourist in Fukushima, Japan, April 2024. Photo by Vinh Le

A JNTO representative explained that the sudden increase in Vietnamese visitors to Japan in February was due to the long Lunar New Year holiday, a weaker yen making tours to Japan cheaper than before the pandemic, and the growing popularity of Japan among Vietnamese tourists.

The number of Vietnamese visitors to Japan in March and April has not yet been released but is expected to rise.

Taiwan and South Korea also saw an increase in Vietnamese visitors in the first quarter. In January alone, the number of Vietnamese visitors to Taiwan reached over 17,000, ranking 10th among the top 10 key markets, according to the Taiwan Tourism Administration.

The Korea Tourism Organization (KTO) reported that nearly 120,000 Vietnamese tourists visited the country in the first quarter, a 38.9% increase compared to the same time last year and an 8.5% increase compared to the same period in 2019.

In 2023, Vietnam was the leading Southeast Asian market in terms of the number of general and business tourists visiting South Korea, with over 420,000 Vietnamese visiting the country, an increase by 140% compared to 2022 and 74% compared to 2019.

Nguyen Huy Hoang, operations director of Klook Vietnam, said the travel e-commerce platform recorded a 63% increase in Vietnamese tourists traveling to Northeast Asia in March, the peak of the cherry blossom season.

Hoang revealed that 87% of tourists surveyed said they dedicated their entire trip just to see the blossoms. Over half of Vietnamese users on the Klook platform expressed a desire to spend about two weeks on flower season tours, spending an average of up to $2,500 during that period.

Thi Quoc Duy, director of Retail Center at BenThanh Tourist, stated that for the upcoming Reunification Day and Labor Day on April 30 and May 1, as well as the summer holiday, the company's tours to Japan and South Korea have garnered the most interest and bookings.

They are followed by Southeast Asian travel programs to Thailand, Singapore, and Malaysia.

In Southeast Asia, Thailand and Singapore remain traditional markets for Vietnamese tourists.

The Tourism Authority of Thailand reported that in the first two months of the year, the number of Vietnamese visitors to Thailand reached more than 130,400, down 7% compared to the first two months of 2023.

However, the number of visitors is expected to increase in the upcoming summer months.

The authority views Vietnam as an important short-haul foreign tourism market for Thailand. In 2023, Vietnamese visitors were among the top ten markets coming to Thailand, with over one million visits, equivalent to 96% of the 2019 figure.

Vietnamese tourists attend the Songkran festival in Bangkok, April 12, 2024. Photo by Nguyen Duc Huy

Singapore also recorded growth in Vietnamese visitors in the first quarter.

As of March 24, the number of Vietnamese visitors reached 93,000, an increase of more than 2,000 compared to the first quarter of 2023, equating to 40% of the first quarter of 2019, according to the Singapore Tourism Board.

In 2023, the flow of Vietnamese tourists to and from Changi International Airport ranked ninth among the top 10 international visitor markets to the airport.

A VnExpress survey at two major tourism events in April, the Ho Chi Minh City Tourism Festival and the Vietnam International Travel Mart (VITM) in Hanoi, showed that travel companies rated international tours as overwhelming domestic tours.

Bui Thanh Tu, Marketing Director of Best Price, confirmed that at both events, customers primarily purchased tours to China and Thailand.

A representative from Hoang Viet Travel based in Hanoi said domestic products accounted for only 25% of the revenue after four days at the VITM fair, while tours to China accounted for 35%, and other markets such as Japan, Europe, and the U.S. contributed 40%.