Vietnam, India bolster tourism cooperation

New Delhi (VNA) – Vietnam and India hold huge potential to enhance tourism cooperation as they have long-standing relations and share similarities in cultural values, particularly direct flights between the two nations will serve as momentum for people-to-people exchange and bilateral trade and investment, said Vietnamese Ambassador to India Pham Sanh Chau.

At the Vietnam Tourism Promotion Roadshow jointly held in India on August 28 by the Vietnamese Embassy in India and VFS Global Company, Chau affirmed that tourism and people-to-people exchange are among the pillars of the Vietnam-India comprehensive strategic partnership, helping to promote mutual understanding and trust between the two nations.

He introduced participants to Vietnam’s tourism potential and the country’s policies to develop tourism, and recommended initiatives and measures to enhance bilateral cooperation in the field.

On the occasion, Chau announced two direct flights between the two countries, namely IndiGo’s Kolkata - Hanoi/Ho Chi Minh City from October 3, and Vietjet’s HCM City - New Delhi from December 6 and Hanoi – New Delhi from December 7. He said the routes will make significant contributions to furthering cooperation in the fields of tourism, economy, trade and investment between the two sides.

A representative from VFS Global Company affirmed many tourists are interested in direct air routes to Vietnam and Vietnamese tourism, believing that the Vietnamese non-smoke industry will be able to compete with Thailand and Singapore, and become an attractive destination for tens of millions of Indian holiday-makers.

The roadshow created opportunities for Vietnamese travel firms to ink agreements with their Indian partners.

Travel businesses of both sides spoke highly of the event and expressed their hope that similar roadshows will be held in the time ahead so that they will have more chances to seek partners.-VNA