Moscow (VNA) – The number of Russian visitors to Vietnam is forecast to reach a historic record of 1.5 million this year, a senior official has said.
Russian news website news.ru quoted Nikita Kondratiev, Director of the Department for Multilateral Economic Cooperation and Special Projects under Russia’s Ministry of Economic Development, as saying that even during the pre-pandemic peak in 2018-2019, Russian arrivals to Vietnam stood at only around 700,000-800,000. The figures show impressive growth in the tourism sector, he noted.
According to the official, key factors behind Vietnam’s growing appeal include the maintenance and expansion of direct air routes, as well as convenient payment options for Russian tourists through QR codes and MIR bank cards at some locations in Vietnam.
The strong interest from the Russian market is fully reflected in recently released statistics. On September 4, Travel Russian News cited figures from the Vietnam National Authority of Tourism showing that Russian arrivals to Vietnam surpassed 1 million in the first eight months of 2026, representing a remarkable 165.7% increase year-on-year. This was the highest growth rate among Vietnam’s major international tourist markets.
With this result, Russia jumped from around seventh place in 2025 to become Vietnam’s third-largest source market, behind China with 3.54 million visitors and the Republic of Korea 2.76 million.
A June report by the Association of Tour Operators of Russia (ATOR) also recorded more than 742,000 Russian visitors to Vietnam in the first half of the year, a 2.8-fold increase from the same period in 2025.
In addition to more diverse payment options, the surge in Russian visitors has been driven by Vietnam’s reputation as a safe and welcoming destination in Asia, along with an increase in direct charter flights from major Russian cities.
Beach destinations such as Nha Trang, Mui Ne and Phu Quoc remain highly attractive to Russian tourists thanks to favourable weather, well-developed resorts and diverse cuisine./.
VNA
