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| A ceremony is held at Phu Quoc International Airport to welcome the 20 millionth international visitor to Vietnam on December 15__Photo: VNA |
The year 2025 has emerged as a milestone for Vietnam’s tourism sector, marked by robust growth, strong international recognition, and renewed momentum toward becoming a spearhead industry of the national economy.
According to the Vietnam National Authority of Tourism (VNAT), Vietnam is projected to welcome 21.5 million international visitors and serve 135.5 million domestic travelers in 2025, with total tourism revenue exceeding VND 1 quadrillion (USD 38.03 billion). On December 15, a ceremony was held at Phu Quoc International Airport to welcome the country’s 20 millionth international visitor. This marks two-fold growth in the country's tourism in less than a decade, having reached 10 million foreign arrivals in 2016.
Deputy Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism Ho An Phong said the milestone is especially significant as global tourism has only recently emerged from the unprecedented disruption caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. With international arrivals growing by around 22 percent, Vietnam has been ranked by UN Tourism among the world’s fastest-growing tourism markets, far outpacing the global average of 5% and the Asia-Pacific average of 8 percent.
Vietnam’s tourism industry has continued to shine at prestigious international awards. At the World Travel Awards 2025 - often dubbed the “Oscars of global tourism” - Vietnam was honored in 16 top-tier global categories. Notably, several titles have been retained for multiple years, including “World’s Leading Heritage Destination” for the sixth time and “Asia’s Leading Destination” for the seventh. Vietnam was also named “Asia’s Best Golf Destination” for the ninth consecutive year, while Lo Lo Chai village in Tuyen Quang and Quynh Son village in Lang Son were recognized by UN Tourism as “Best Tourism Villages in the World 2025.”
These achievements reaffirm Vietnam’s growing appeal and rising position on the regional and global tourism map, while highlighting the sector’s resilience and adaptability amid fierce competition for market share.
Key drivers of success
The strong performance reflects a convergence of factors, from the consistent and decisive leadership of the Party, State, Government and Prime Minister, to close coordination among ministries, sectors and localities, and the active participation of communities and businesses.
A major driving force has come from breakthrough visa policies. A series of Government resolutions and decrees issued in 2025 significantly expanded visa flexibility and openness, enhancing Vietnam’s competitiveness and attractiveness to international travelers.
Tourism promotion has stood out, with Vietnam’s destination image gaining clearer recognition through major international travel fairs such as ITB Berlin, WTM London and TRAVEX, alongside intensified roadshows in key markets including Europe, Russia, India, China, the US, Australia, the Republic of Korea and Japan.
Digital communication has become increasingly effective and coordinated. Beyond continued cooperation with Google on the “Vietnam - Travel to Love!” campaign on YouTube, localities and destinations have expanded partnerships with KOLs, KOCs and digital content creators, enabling tourism messages to spread more naturally across digital platforms. The official website vietnam.travel has improved its global ranking, rising to second place in Southeast Asia.
Meanwhile, administrative restructuring in 2025 has opened up new cultural spaces and resource linkages, facilitating the development of distinctive, interconnected tourism products. Alongside four core product lines - sea and island tourism, cultural tourism, eco-tourism and urban tourism - emerging segments such as night tourism, wellness tourism, agricultural and rural tourism, MICE, golf, sports, rail and cruise tourism, and community-based tourism linked to cultural preservation have gained strong traction.
Continuous investment in infrastructure, green and digital transformation, and the gradual formation of a smart tourism digital ecosystem are laying a solid foundation for sustainable growth.
The rapid rise in scale, quality and global standing has created valuable momentum for tourism to fulfil its role as a key economic sector. Looking ahead to 2026, Vietnam aims to attract 25 million international visitors, serve 150 million domestic travelers and generate around VND 1.125 quadrillion in tourism revenue.
To achieve these targets, the sector must continue leveraging its strengths while addressing persistent shortcomings, including overlapping products, limited regional linkages, uneven digital transformation, modest return-visitor rates, and lingering issues affecting destination civility and visitor experience. Addressing these challenges will be crucial for elevating Vietnam’s tourism brand amid intensifying global competition.- (VNA/VLLF)
