The number of foreign visitors to Vietnam in August rose by 38 percent over the same period of last year, reaching more than 430,000 despite the off-season.

According to the General Statistic Office, most of Vietnam’s major tourist markets still maintain high growth, including Cambodia, topping the list with a growth of 247 percent, followed by China 101 percent, Australia over 77 percent and Thailand over 74 percent.

Since the beginning of the year, Vietnam has welcomed 3.3 million international visitors, representing a year-on-year increase of 35 percent.

The experts forecast that the number of foreign tourists to Vietnam would continue to increase from now to the end of the year due to various important celebrations in the country including the 1000 th anniversary of Thang Long-Hanoi and the 2010 International Yacht Festival in Mui Ne, the southern province of Binh Thuan .

Besides, as part of the tourism stimulus programme which will be held in Ho Chi Minh City in November, the sale campaign for tourists with discounts from 10-50 percent is also considered attractive for tourists./.