Việt Nam among few countries totally re-opening international tourism

Foreign tourists on the express boat trip between Đà Nẵng City and Lý Sơn Island. — VNA/VNS Photo

HÀ NỘI — UNWTO’s Destination Tracker tool showed that 52 countries have fully reopened their borders to foreign tourists as of June 17, and Việt Nam is one of only four in the Asia-Pacific, said Harry Hwang, executive director of the Asia-Pacific region for UNWTO.

The executive director made the announcement at a tourism conference held in the Republic of Korea (RoK) on June 23-26, the Government Portal reported.

The Asia-Pacific region is recovering tourism slowly, because many source markets have not yet fully reopened.

Experts predict that the recovery prospects of the Asia-Pacific region would also be slower, maybe taking until 2024 to return to pre-pandemic levels.

In Việt Nam, foreign tourists do not need to submit health declarations before entry while the domestic tourism market is also witnessing a strong recovery post reopening, said Hà Văn Siêu, deputy head of the Việt Nam National Administration of Tourism.

Foreign entrants entering Việt Nam are also not required to be quarantined, present vaccination certification and negative COVID-19 test results.

Since March 15, Việt Nam has permitted quarantine-free entry and resumed its visa waiver for citizens of 24 countries in a bid to reach the goal of attracting 5 million international visitors in 2022.

Vietnamese tourists were graded as the second most optimistic in Asia-Pacific about traveling post COVID, with 85 per cent planning a trip in the next 12 months, according to Travel Confidence survey by American online travel agency Booking.com.

Việt Nam’s domestic aviation market is recovering at the fastest rate in the world with growth of 123 per cent against pre-pandemic times, according to Airbus and the International Air Transport Association. — VNS