Vietnam gets 8.8 million foreign tourists in first half of 2024

South Korea continued to be the top source of tourists, with 2.28 million arrivals, followed by mainland China (1.89 million), Taiwan (630,000), the U.S. (415,000), and Japan (335,000), according to data from the General Statistics Office.

The top 10 was rounded off by Malaysia (253,000), Australia (243,000), India (239,000), Cambodia (231,000), and Thailand (226,000).

The target for full-year 2024 is 18 million visitors.

Thailand received 17 million visitors in the first half, with Chinese accounting for 3.5 million.

Its target for the year is 36.7 million, a million higher than the original target following the strong performance in the first half.

Realizing the tourism potential of the world's biggest outbound tourism market, Southeast Asian countries have scrambled to extend visa-free entry for visitors from China.

Thailand made the waiver permanent in March.

Malaysia last week agreed to extend its visa exemption for Chinese until the end of 2026.