South Korea has sent the highest number of visitors to Vietnam after the country reopened its borders in what is deemed a boost for hotspots heavily reliant on Chinese tourists.
In the first seven months this year, Vietnam received over 196,000 South Korean tourists, accounting for 20 percent of total foreign arrivals though the figure was only 8 percent against pre-pandemic levels, according to General Statistics Office.
South Korea was one of 10 countries with the highest number of searches on Vietnam tourism, according to data from Google’s Destination Insights.
In July alone, nearly 90,000 South Korean tourists touched down in Vietnam, up 1.7 times against the previous month and three times from May.
In popular hotspots like Nha Trang and Da Nang that used to heavily depend on Russian and Chinese tourists before the pandemic, the return of South Koreans is considered good news.
China has been sticking to its zero-Covid policy with strict entry restrictions while tourist hotspots are witnessing the absence of Russians due to impacts from the Russia-Ukraine war that resulted in flight suspensions.
“In Nha Trang, South Koreans are replacing Russian tourists, which have become one of the largest tourism markets in the beach resort town,” said Pham Ha, chairman of Lux Group, which specializes in luxury cruise tours.
Over 60 percent of customers are South Korean, Ha said.
Many Korean tourists come to Vietnam due to its close geographical location and frequent direct flights.
“South Koreans are interested in playing golf and experiencing high-end tourism products like cruise tours,” Ha added.
Travel firms specializing in serving South Korean tourists said Da Nang, home to long, sandy beaches and golf courses, is still the top favorite during the peak tourism season between October and February.
However, travel firms worried that the number of Korean visitors to Vietnam in August may decrease as the South Korean government has tightened its Covid entry and testing requirements amid rising cases.
Those returning from abroad must have proof of a negative PCR test taken within 48 hours or an antigen test taken within 24 hours before departure and take a PCR test within one day after entering South Korea.
According to Tourism Advisory Board, if Vietnam applies preferential policies to attract South Korean visitors, the tourism industry has lots of opportunities to recover because China and Japan, Vietnam’s major inbound tourism markets, have not yet reopened.
Before the pandemic, Vietnam welcomed nearly 4.3 million South Korean tourists, accounting for 24 percent of total foreign arrivals.
Source: vnexpress.net
Read more :
- Travel news 07/2022 – Vietjet starts services to Busan from 4 Vietnamese cities
- Travel news 08/2022 – Phu Quoc, Con Dao among Southeast Asia’s 10 most beautiful islands
- Travel news 08/2022 – Travel firms in trouble after Germany denies visa for Vietnam’s new passports
- Mui Ne travel guides – Best things to do in Mui Ne Vietnam 2022
- Travel news 08/2022 – US magazine selects Lan Ha Bay among Southeast Asia’s most beautiful places
- Discover 3 Hanoi cafes offer quiet escape from urban bustle
- Travel news 08/2022 – US travel company adds Da Nang, Hoi An to private luxury tour itineraries
- Discover the wild beauty of Lang Son Vietnam in 2022
- The Bay Mau nipa palm forest: war-time shelter turns tourism hotspot
- Travel news 08/2022 – Vinh, Hue among cheapest travel destinations for Australians
- Travel news 08/2022 – Ninh Binh among 12 coolest Asian filming locations: US travel magazine
- Vietnam travel news 08/2022 – Only 40 pct of international air routes have resumed: official
3 comments
Thanks for sharing. I read many of your blog posts, cool, your blog is very good.
My spouse and I absolutely love your blog and find the majority of your post’s to be what precisely I’m looking for. Would you offer guest writers to write content to suit your needs? I wouldn’t mind creating a post or elaborating on a few of the subjects you write about here. Again, awesome weblog!
I in addition to my guys were following the great things located on your site and unexpectedly developed a terrible suspicion I never expressed respect to you for those strategies. These guys came certainly excited to learn them and already have undoubtedly been having fun with those things. Thanks for being considerably accommodating and also for having this sort of terrific areas millions of individuals are really desirous to understand about. Our own sincere apologies for not expressing gratitude to you earlier.