Tourist hotpots expect summer crowds as high-end resorts near fully booked

On two major booking websites Booking.com and Agoda, over half of high-end resorts in Phu Quoc, Nha Trang, Quy Nhon and Da Nang are full on weekends from now until the end of July.

Some luxury resorts like Fleur De Lys, FLC Luxury Resort and Casa Marina in Quy Nhon where the VnExpress Marathon event will take place next Sunday with over 10,000 runners are in high demand.

In Da Nang, Pullman, TIA Wellness, Sandy Beach Non Nuoc and Premier Village Da Nang or MerPerle Hon Tam Resort and Amiana Nha Trang in the south central beach town of Nha Trang have seen a surge in daily room bookings.

Some luxury resorts near Hanoi like Serena Kim Boi and Avana Retreat in Hoa Binh Province or Flamingo Dai Lai in Vinh Phuc Province are full for June and July, the peak months of the summer holiday season.

Phu Quoc Island, Nha Trang and Da Nang are the hottest tourist destinations this summer, Bui Thanh Tu, marketing director of travel firm BestPrice Travel said.

Vinholidays Fiesta or VinOasis on Phu Quoc Island reported no rooms on weekends this month.

Travel firms also forecast to serve over 500,000 domestic tourist arrivals during the peak summer season after a gloomy year of the fourth Covid wave that hit the country in April last year with months-long lockdown measures.

Doan Thanh Tra, marketing director of Saigontourist, said her company expects to receive 280,000 visitors this summer as domestic travel demand recovers against pre-pandemic times.

Major tour operator Vietravel also estimated to serve around 280,000 tourists while travel company BestPrice Travel expected to welcome 65,000 between June and September.

Vietnam has been witnessing a boom in domestic tourism after the country put Covid pandemic under control and all Covid restrictions were lifted.

The number of domestic tourists in May surged by 243 percent year-on-year to 12 million.

In the first five months of this year, over 48 million domestic arrivals were welcomed across the country, higher than the figure of 30 million in the first half of 2021.

Last year, the tourism industry experienced an unprecedented gloomy summer travel season as the country grappled with the fourth Covid wave.