International tourists to Vietnam in Q1 2023 increased by nearly 30%. 2023 promises to be a lively year for both domestic and international tourism markets.

The number of international tourists visiting Vietnam increased nearly 30-fold in Q1/2023

Information from the General Statistics Office shows that in March, Vietnam estimated to welcome over 895,000 international visitors. In Q1/2023, the number of international visitors to our country is estimated to reach over 2.69 million.

Therefore, the number of international tourists to Vietnam in Q1 is 29.7 times higher than the same period in 2022. Of this total, air arrivals account for 89.8%; land arrivals for 9% and sea arrivals for 1.2%. However, this figure is only 60% compared to the same period in 2019, before the COVID-19 pandemic occurred.

In the first three months of this year, Asian visitors to Vietnam led the Q1 international tourist volume. Among them, South Korea was the largest international tourist market, estimated at over 810,000 visitors, an increase of 55% compared to the same period in 2022 and 81% before the pandemic. Second was China (mainland, Taiwan and Hong Kong) with over 270,000 arrivals. Third on the top markets of international tourists to Vietnam in this quarter was the United States, with over 200,000 arrivals, an increase of more than 200% compared to the same period in 2022.

Revenue from accommodation and dining services in Q1 is estimated at VND 161 trillion. Of this, revenue from some localities has increased compared to the same period last year, such as: Da Nang increased by 73.5%, Quang Ninh by 43.1%, Can Tho by 42.4%, Ho Chi Minh City by 37.2%, Hanoi by 12.5%… Revenue from travel services in Q1 is estimated at VND 6.8 trillion, 2.2 times higher than the same period last year due to the cultural and tourism activities happening in many localities in the early months of the year.

In 2023, the tourism industry of Vietnam aims to attract 110 million visitors, including around 8 million international tourists, domestic tourists around 102 million, with total tourist revenue of about VND 650,000 billion.

According to many experts, the number of international tourists is showing more optimistic signs in the upcoming months because the Chinese tourist market has begun to operate again. Right after Vietnam was officially placed on the list of countries bussed from China, many tourism promotion activities between Vietnam and China were organized on a large scale. For domestic tourism, the upcoming holidays of April 30 and May 1, along with the summer vacation, promise a boom in the tourism industry.

Sustainable tourism development in Vietnam

In recent years, tourism has been one of the important economic sectors. Developing tourism will contribute to economic restructuring, provide revenue for the national budget, attract investment and export goods in place, and have a positive impact on related industries.

In Vietnam, tourism has always been a focus and has continuously developed, making a positive contribution to the economy. Statistics show that before the Covid-19 pandemic in 2019, the contribution rate of tourism to the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) was up to 9.2%. In 2022, total tourism revenue reached VND 495 trillion, exceeding the plan by more than 23%. With six out of 17 criteria ranked in the leading group in the world, Vietnam’s tourism is one of the three countries with the highest growth rate.

Despite achieving many positive results, objectively speaking, tourism activities in Vietnam still have existing limitations. Tourism development has not corresponded to the potential and advantages, it is not sustainable, and the competitiveness is not high. This is clearly shown, although Vietnam has opened up tourism early, the rate of international tourists in 2022 compared to 2019 in our country is lower than in other countries in the region. The tourism recovery rate after the Covid-19 pandemic has only reached 18.1%, the lowest in the region.

The tourism development strategy of Vietnam by 2030 emphasizes sustainable tourism development, truly becoming a leading economic sector, providing motivation to promote the development of other industries and fields, contributing to the formation of a modern economic structure. The 13th National Congress of the Communist Party of Vietnam identified the need to restructure the tourism industry, ensure professionalism, modernization, synchronized, sustainable and international integration. By 2030, international tourist arrivals to Vietnam are expected to reach 47-50 million, and tourism is expected to contribute about 14-15% to GDP.

To achieve these goals, we need to focus on implementing short-term and long-term solutions in a coordinated manner.

Especially in the current context, to quickly recover and effectively and sustainably accelerate tourism development, it requires ministries, sectors, localities, and businesses to maximize their achievements, experiences, valuable lessons, and unique characteristics. Tourism development must be considered a shared responsibility of the entire political system, at all levels, sectors, localities, and the whole society under the close leadership and direction of Party committees, and under the unified management of the State.

Based on the analysis of global trends, changes in tourist demand and the potential, advantages, difficulties, and challenges of Vietnam’s tourism, at the national online conference on tourism “Accelerating Recovery – Speeding up Development” held on March 15, Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh emphasized: “Consider people and businesses as the subject; tourists as the center; tourism products and infrastructure as the foundation; advanced and modern services as the driving force for tourism development”.

Recently, the Tourism Information Center (Vietnam National Administration of Tourism) launched its first video clip of 2023 in the communication program “Vietnam: Travel to Love!” with the theme “Golf Tourism – Enjoy Every Moment”, showcasing tourists the experiences of the golf tourism activity combined with services and entertainment. With a series of high-class and internationally standardized golf courses, Vietnam is confident to offer unique, challenging and exceptional golf courses for visitors.

Vietnam has been honored six times in a row by the World Golf Awards as the “Best Golf Destination in Asia”. The video clip “Golf Tourism – Enjoy Every Moment” provided tourists with stunning images and a complete experience of this popular tourism activity. This is also a prominent type of tourism with tremendous potential for Vietnam.

Before this, the tourism communication program “Vietnam: Travel to Love!” was launched by the Tourism Information Center at the beginning of 2021. On November 5, 2022, the program was awarded Second Prize – National Award for Foreign Information VIII.

According to the statistics of the Vietnam National Administration of Tourism, in 2022, international tourist arrivals to Vietnam are expected to reach 3.5 million, and the total number of domestic tourists will exceed 101.3 million. Total tourism revenue is expected to reach VND 495 trillion. At the 2022 World Tourism Awards ceremony in Asia-Pacific, Vietnam received 16 tourism awards, reaffirming the brand, role, and position of Vietnam’s tourism in the region and the world, creating a colorful and attractive picture of Vietnam’s tourism as it concludes its operations in 2022. This is the premise that motivates Vietnam’s tourism to take off and develop even stronger in 2023.

Our country has a stable political system; magnificent, beautiful, diverse and abundant nature; owns Ha Long Bay – one of the New 7 Wonders of Nature, 3 world natural heritages, 15 representative intangible cultural heritages of humanity; over 41,000 monuments, scenic spots, and landscapes; rich products and lower price levels than the region. When the government, ministries, localities, people and businesses work together to recover and accelerate tourism development; people and businesses become the subject; tourists are the center, surely our country’s tourism will develop sustainably, making an increasingly significant contribution to the national economy. At the same time, Vietnam will be placed among the top 30 countries with leading tourism competitiveness, as required by the Prime Minister.

Source: Tap chi dien tu Nguoi dua tin