Vietnamese tourists stranded as strongest typhoon in decades blows into Shanghai

Minh An, a guide leading a group of 22 Vietnamese on a tour of Shanghai, Hangzhou and Wuzhen since Sept. 11, said their flight to Hanoi, scheduled for Sunday, was postponed to Tuesday.

Typhoon Bebinca made landfall over the Shanghai coast early Monday morning with winds of around 150 kph, according to media reports.

The strongest storm to hit the city since 1949 disrupted transportation and left thousands of people without power.

Hundreds of flights have been canceled at Shanghai's two main airports, Hongqiao and Pudong, since Sunday.

A Hanoi travel agency said its group of 24 tourists, who reached Shanghai on Sunday, were confined to their hotel until Monday afternoon.

While everyone is safe, their experience has been limited as all tourist attractions in Shanghai are temporarily closed.

 

 

Vietnamese tourists stranded as strongest typhoon in decades blows into Shanghai

Đoàn khách Việt kẹt ở Thượng Hải vì bão Bebinca

The group was initially scheduled to visit Hangzhou on Monday, but the trip was canceled.

Do Minh Tu, who took a group of 52 tourists, said their return flight to Hanoi on Monday was delayed by two hours.

Luckily for them, their schedule was not significantly affected by the storm since they landed in Shanghai last Thursday.

Giant tour operator Vietravel currently has five groups with around 100 guests on a tour package of Shanghai, Hangzhou and Suzhou.

Nguyen Nguyet Van Khanh, director of its marketing department, said the company is coordinating with partners and local authorities to arrange their early return to Vietnam.

The groups are temporarily suspending their tours and staying in their hotels until the situation stabilizes.

Vietravel has 19 more groups scheduled to depart for China this week and is monitoring developments there.