Suoi Tien Theme Park in HCM City is packed with visitors this summer. (Photo: VNA) It is followed by Da Nang,Hanoi, Vung Tau, Da Lat, Nha Trang, Phu Quoc, Ha Long, Hoi An, and Phan Thiet.
Beach destinationsgenerally dominate the list as the country swelters through a heatwave.
The study was based onAgoda booking data collated for the May-August period.
HCM City reported 11million domestic visitor arrivals in the first half of this year, up 43.15%year-on-year, according to the city's Department of Tourism.
Tourism spending wasworth an estimated 2.15 billion USD, up 30% and meeting 73.5% of the full-yeartarget.
It also received 478,000foreign visitors, twice the number last year when the country was closed due toCOVID.
Visitors’ top activitiesincluded sightseeing, mostly of historic sites and museums, and shopping, said NguyenThi Anh Hoa, Director of the city’s Department of Tourism.
New tourism offeringshelped attract visitors, she said.
To revive tourismpost-COVID, the department has been coordinating with travel firms to developintra-city tours and river-based activities.
The city is offeringincentives to boost MICE tourism (meeting, incentive, convention, exhibition).
Tourism stimulusprogrammes will continue for the rest of the year.
More than 70% of travelbusinesses have fully resumed operations and around 20 others have applied fora new licence.
The average occupancyrate at four- and five-star hotels in the city was 70% during the summerholiday season.
Park Hyatt Saigonreported an 80-85% rate while Sheraton Saigon reported 85-90%.
Crowded touristattractions
Popular entertainmentsites and tourist attractions such as Suoi Tien Theme Park, Saigon BotanicalGarden, Dam Sen Cultural Park, Ao Dai Museum, and Cu Chi [guerrilla warfare]Tunnels have seen a major influx of visitors.
Bui Thi To Trinh, DeputyGeneral Director of Suoi Tien Theme Park, said at least 8,000 visitors had beencoming every day and around 10,000 during weekends.
Suoi Tien had investedin upgrades to infrastructure, planted more trees and launched a farm whichoffers hands-on experience in farming and high-tech planting technologies, shesaid.
Around 170,000 people,including 146,000 locals, visited the Cu Chi Tunnels.
In recent days anaverage of 500 foreigners have been visiting during weekends.
The Sai Gon Zoo andBotanical Gardens reported a turnover of more than 75 billion VND (3.2 million USD)in the first half of the year and more than 1.23 million visitors.
During the summerholidays, families with children from the city and outside have flocked to thezoo at weekends.
Foreign tourists
Korean travellers arevery eager to return to Vietnam, the Agoda study found.
Vietnam also featuredprominently as a summer getaway on the destination wish lists for people inJapan, Thailand and Malaysia.
Meanwhile, Vietnamesealso have their eyes on the skies, with Thailand topping the list ofinternational destinations ahead of Singapore, France, the Republic of Korea,and Indonesia.
“Worldwide, we areseeing international travel coming back this year as travel restrictions haveeased, proving people have been looking forward to travelling internationallyagain for the past two years,” said Omri Morgenshtern, CEO of Agoda.
“Travellers are makingthe most of the holidays and are keen to visit both domestic and internationaldestinations in Asia.
“Reliving memories aswell as going back to places they once enjoyed seems to be the theme thissummer.”/.
VNA
