HCMC, Da Nang eye return of foreign tourists in 2022

By Nguyen Quy January 6, 2022 | 10:34 pm PT

Foreign tourists drink beer on Bui Vien Street in HCMC on December 22, 2019. Photo by VnExpress/Quynh Tran

Tourist hubs HCMC and Da Nang have unveiled two scenarios for tourism recovery this year, both focused on receiving foreign tourists under a trial vaccine passport program.

Under the first, when the pandemic is under better control, HCMC hopes to receive 25 million domestic tourists and 3.5 million foreign tourists.

Its tourism sector has a revenue target of VND97.7 trillion ($4.3 billion).

Under the second scenario, if the pandemic remains uncontrolled, the numbers fall to 18 million domestic tourists and revenues of VND67.6 trillion.

With over five months of lockdowns, HCMC received only 15 million domestic tourists last year, down 54.3 percent from 2019, according to its Department of Tourism.

In 2019 it had received over 8.6 million foreign visitors, or nearly half the total foreign arrivals in Vietnam.

It has got the green light from the government to allow in fully immunized foreign tourists under the trial program starting this month.

Da Nang, with its beautiful beaches and other stunning tourist sights, targets 3.32 million domestic tourists and 180,000 foreign visitors this year under one scenario and two million and 100,000 under the other.

Da Nang received 1.17 million domestic tourists last year, down 55.8 percent from 2019.

HCMC and Da Nang are among seven places where the government has started to allow tourists besides Binh Dinh, Khanh Hoa, Kien Giang, Quang Nam, and Quang Ninh.