Travel companies continue to seek more visitors

Despite a significant increase in foreign travelers to Vietnam, domestic travel firms are still struggling to attract visitors, creating a paradox in the Vietnamese hospitality sector.

Tourism experts have noted that many foreign visitors do not book package tours or use services provided by travel agencies, leading to low profitability for Vietnamese travel companies. For example, Saigontourist Travel Services only offers car rental services, which is considered a challenging segment.

While there has been a rise in South Korean visitors to Vietnam, local businesses have not fully benefited from this surge due to a lack of comprehensive package services. Japanese tourists are tightening their budgets, and Vietnam is not their top choice destination. Similarly, Chinese tourists are shifting away from Southeast Asian countries, including Vietnam, in their travel preferences.

To address these challenges, industry insiders have suggested that Vietnam should consider implementing more appealing visa policies for key markets, similar to Thailand, Malaysia, and Singapore. Additionally, there is a need for the development of suitable products to attract tourists and a national tourism promotion strategy to differentiate between domestic and international visitors.

Despite serving over 6.2 million foreign visitors and 40.5 million domestic tourists in the first four months of the year, the Vietnamese tourism sector still faces obstacles in fully capitalizing on the growing number of international arrivals. With the right policies and strategies in place, Vietnam has the potential to further develop its tourism industry and attract a diverse range of visitors from around the world.