Vietnam announced a demand-stimulation programme targeting tourists from Western Europe and Belarus, as heard during a workshop held in Hanoi on July 8.

Promotion packages will be launched for foreign passengers using three direct flights operated by Vietnam Airlines and connecting Paris, Frankfurt and London with Vietnam.

Accordingly, citizens of the UK, France, Germany, Spain, Italy and Belarus, all of who recently gained a unilateral visa exemption for stays lasting no longer than 15 days, now enjoy a range of good quality tourism services with prices reduced up to 30 percent.

The services, coordinated by the Vietnam National Administration of Tourism (VNAT), the Vietnam Tourism Association (VITA) , and the national flag carrier Vietnam Airlines, will include inter-country tours such as Indochina tours across Vietnam, Laos and Cambodia.

According to VITA Vice Chairman Vu The Binh, there are some 700,000 Western European nationals coming to Vietnam annually and about 150,000 Vietnamese visiting the five countries on average.

The figures have fallen short of their potential, Binh said, adding that the stimulation programme aims to attract 1.1 million arrivals from the market within the next three years, up 50 percent from 2015.-VNA