Hanoi welcomed 2.58 million foreign tourists in 2013, a year-on-year increase of 12.2 percent, according to estimated figures released by the municipal Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism.

Foreign travelers to the city were mainly from China, Japan, the Republic of Korea and the US.

The city has become one of the most attractive destinations in the region thanks to its efforts in boosting tourism promotion, building new tourism products and upgrading tourism facilities.

The Hong Kong-based Smart Travel Asia magazine has recently selected Hanoi as one of the top ten attractive destinations in Asia this year. The city was ranked 8th among top 10 rising travel destinations around the world by Website Tripadvisor.

Hanoi this year also received around 14 million domestic visitors, an increase of 11.3 percent as compared with 2012.-VNA