Removing barriers critical for tourism to take off

Hanoi (VNA) - March 15 is likened to the "big festival" of Vietnam's tourism as it will open a new path of recovery for the industry's activities after a two-year hiatus.

At a forum organized by Business Forum Magazine on March 11, experts reviewed travel information and proposed optimal solutions for tourism recovery in the new period.

Vu The Binh, Standing Vice Chairman of the Vietnam Tourism Association, said that the tourism reopening from March 15 is the best news the industry has heard in the past 2 years. But there is still a lot of work on the horizon that needs to be taken care of in the immediate term.

The tourism reopening also means reopening the door to the entire Vietnamese economy, he noted.

According to Le Mai Khanh, Vice President of the Vietnam Hotel Association, about 50-70 percent of lodging facilities across the country have opened, with limited operation capacity.

In order to serve domestic and international visitors, the tourism industry needs to prepare conditions to improve service quality and focus on training human resources, she said.

Besides efforts from businesses themselves, the State should provide financial support for them, she added.

Binh held that there are two barriers to attracting foreign tourists back to Vietnam. These are the visa policy and medical quarantine regulations. Therefore, travel companies wish that the Government will restore the previous visa policy and ease medical quarantine measures, paving the way for foreign visitors to return to Vietnam.

Foreign tourists will soon return to visit Vietnam’s heritages (Photo: Vietnamplus)

Echoing Binh, Tran Doan The Duy, General Director of Vietravel Company, said that while Vietnam has yet to issue official guidance for tourism opening, countries like Thailand, Singapore, the Philippines, Indonesia, Cambodia have launched very clear, understandable, and easy-to-implement policies.

According to Duy, businesses need time to build and market products, and introduce tours. They also need to receive official guidance on new entry policies to work with partners.

Pham Ha, CEO of Lux Group, said that in the post-COVID era, opportunities are the same for all nations but countries that adapt quickly and prepare well will have more chances. “We are too slow compared to other countries in the region and Vietnam has created too many barriers and ministries and sectors have not yet reached a consensus in developing tourism as a real economic sector," he said.

According to Ha, in the new context of the recovery period, heritage tourism is the biggest tourism resource. Therefore, Vietnam needs to promote the value of cultural and natural heritages to attract tourists.

Nature-based tourism is one of the post-COVID-19 trends (Photo: Vietnamplus)

This CEO emphasized the importance of sustainable and responsible tourism based on six pillars. These are preserving environmental resources, promoting cultural and social responsibility, developing local economies, creating stable jobs, satisfying customers and profiting businesses. Responsible tourism must create a more beautiful destination for tourists to visit and experience as well as a more livable place for the locals.

VNAT General Director Nguyen Trung Khanh said that the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism has completed a plan to reopen tourism activities to ensure safety and efficiency in the new normal conditions from March 15. International and domestic tourism activities via air, road, sea and railway must ensure safety and conform to regulations on the prevention and control of the COVID-19 epidemic.

The pandemic under control will be a prerequisite to open great opportunities for the tourism industry to quickly restart, recover and develop in the new normal, he stressed./.