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| Chinese tourists visit Van Mieu-Quoc Tu Giam (Temple of Literature)__Photo: VNA |
Vietnam welcomed nearly 5.6 million international visitors in the first half of this year, accounting for 66 percent of the figure the country recorded in 2019 before the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic, according to Vietnam National Authority of Tourism – the new name of the Vietnam National Administration of Tourism from July 1.
Regarding the level of recovery compared to before the pandemic, five markets saw growth including Cambodia (338 percent), India (236 percent), Laos (117 percent), Thailand (108.4 percent), and Singapore (107.4 percent).
Two markets with the growth close to their 2019 levels were the US (95 percent) and Australia (92 percent). In addition, the number of visitors to Vietnam from the Republic of Korea (RoK), the UK, Germany, and France all increased positively. However, the Chinese market only recovered 22.4 percent because China reopened group tours to Vietnam from March 15 this year.
The RoK remained the largest market of the Vietnamese tourism in the first half of 2023 with 1.6 million tourist arrivals, accounting for 28 percent of total international visitors to Vietnam. It was followed by China and the US.
Among the top ten markets of Vietnam tourism, four were in Northeast Asia - the RoK, China, Taiwan (China) and Japan, and three in Southeast Asia - Thailand, Malaysia, and Cambodia. Australia and India ranked ninth and tenth.
The UK, France, and Germany were the three biggest markets for Vietnam tourism in Europe. In addition, Vietnam attracted 62,000 Russian tourists in the reviewed period.
In 2023, Vietnam aims to welcome 110 million tourists including 8 million international visitors. The country expects to earn about VND 650 trillion (USD 27.56 billion) from tourism.- (VNA/VLLF)
