With a population of over 600 million people, along with a relatively close geographical distance, favourable traffic and entry conditions, ASEAN is really a potential market for Vietnam. However, Vietnam's tourism seems to be leaving this market open.
The first 6 months of 2019 saw a record of Thai tourists visiting Vietnam. Thailand has now surpassed the Republic of Korea in terms of growth of visitors to Vietnam with 245,000 visitors, an increase of nearly 50%. However, this figure is only 1/3 of the number of Vietnamese tourists visiting Thailand.
Previously, ASEAN market often accounted for about 20% of the total number of international visitors to Vietnam but now the number has decreased. According to many businesses, there are many reasons for this decline, including products, human resources and prices ... There are fewer marketing programs and product promotion for ASEAN market compared to other markets.
Besides, many countries in the region such as Thailand, Singapore and Malaysia have seen Vietnam as the main market and for many years established travel representative offices to implement marketing programs and business support to attract customers. Therefore, the number of Vietnamese visitors to regional markets has increased every year.
It’s obvious that for many countries in the region, ASEAN is becoming a source market for large numbers of visitors. Many people said that with over 660 million people, accounting for more than 8.5% of the world population, along with a relatively close geographical distance, favourable traffic and entry conditions, it’s a pity that Vietnamese tourism seems to ignore the market.-VNA
