HCMC and other provinces in general have seen a great number of tourists registering for spring tours, signaling a promising year for the tourism sector.
Foreign tourists are enjoying a stroll on Bach Dang Wharf (District 1) on January 23 (Photo: SGGP)
Deputy Director Vu Hai Sam of the Domestic Tourism Department in Saigontourist informed that the relaxing tours to the North this Tet Holiday with a price ranging from VND9-15 million (US$366-610) are quite popular to tourists. His company is running the scheme ‘Booking Tet Tour – Doubling Tet Gifts’ and ‘Yellow Apricot Blossom Hunting’ in exchange for gift points until the second of the first month of the Lunar New Year.
The tours to both domestic localities (Bao Loc City, Nha Trang City, Da Lat City, Phan Thiet City, Buon Ma Thuot City) and foreign destinations (mostly in Asia) are able to attract a significant quantity of tourists. At present, tourist agencies are still accepting customers for Tet tours.
The number of overseas Vietnamese people coming back to their fatherland for Tet or enjoying Tet tours sees a remarkable rise, accounting for 60-80 percent of the total quantity in Saigontourist for instance, which is a growth of 20 percent compared to this time last year.
Similarly, TST Tourist Co. reported a considerable increase in the number of overseas Vietnamese people booking tours to the North. Most of them are interested in long trips from 7 to 10 days. Many prefer to start after the Lunar New Year Day since airfare at that time is more reasonable.
These days, HCMC is busy welcoming both domestic and foreign tourists. A major cruise ship tourism company revealed that each day, it serves thousands of holidaymakers to HCMC before touring the Mekong Delta or neighboring nations.
Famous tourist attractions in HCMC like Ben Thanh Market in District 1, Binh Tay Market in District 6, main routes in District 1 or 3 are full of international visitors and overseas Vietnamese people. This year, they prefer to come back for longer stays instead of right before Tet time like the pre-Covid-19 period.
International holidaymakers are experiencing a great time on Nguyen Hue pedestrian street in January 2024 (Photo: SGGP)
Tan Son Nhat International Airport informed that during the peak time of Tet from January 26 to February 24, 2024, it is expected to serve around 860-900 incoming and outgoing flights, equal to approximately 135,000-140,000 passengers per day. To ensure security, it has closely collaborated with other units operating in the airport for human resources allocation and detailed working plans at each location. All are done to minimize congestion.
The airport also reviews the flight slots regularly to exploit the space to the fullest, while working with taxi companies to increase the number of taxis and effectively regulate traffic flows to and fro the site. Customs staff are always available to support passengers in luggage check-in and check-out, answering questions, proceeding with flight procedures, and filling in customs forms.
The HCMC Tourism Department reported that in the first month of 2024, the city is welcoming about 416,000 international tourists and 2.3 million domestic ones, earning a tourism revenue of VND13 trillion ($528.5 million), a rise of more than 57 percent compared to this time last year.
In 2024, the tourism sector of HCMC focuses on the missions of increasing the awareness about tourism development tasks and state management performance in this sector; creating a healthy competitive environment for businesses in the field; carrying out digital transformation in tourism.
The HCMC Tourism Department continuously cooperates with all districts and Thu Duc City as well as tourism companies to introduce interesting destinations and typical tourism products of the city to holidaymakers.
By Gia Han, Thi Hong - Translated by Yen Nhi