Hanoi (VNA) – About 12.6 million international tourists have visited Vietnam this year, a 3.4-fold rise from 2022, surpassing the target of 8 million set earlier, the General Statistics Office
(GSO) reported on December 29.
The yearly figure, however, is equivalent to only
70% of the pre-pandemic level in 2019, the agency said, adding that in December
alone, it stood at nearly 1.4 million, up 11.2% month-on-month, and 93.9%
year-on-year.
Meanwhile, some 5 million Vietnamese travelled
abroad in the year, two times that in 2022. During the final month
of 2023, the number was estimated at 352,100, a rise of 23.2% from the same
period last year.
Revenue from lodging and catering services this year
reached 673.5 trillion VND (27.77 billion USD), accounting for 10.8% of the
total value and expanding by 14.7% compared to the previous year.
The agency attributed the hikes to efforts by
localities in developing tourism products, and cultural and sport activities, with
Da Nang, Ho Chi Minh City, Hanoi, Hai Phong, and Can Tho among those reporting
increases in tourism revenue.
The Vietnam National Authority of Tourism said the 2023
National Tourism Year, hosted by the central coastal province of Binh Thuan
under the theme of “Green convergence”, has wrapped up successfully, featuring
more than 200 national and international events.
Binh Thuan welcomed a record number of 8.5 million
holidaymakers in the year, and raked in 23 trillion VND from the sector,
doubling that in 2022. It has been among the nine localities nationwide posting
the highest tourism revenue, contributing to boosting the country’s tourism
recovery and promoting the land and people of Vietnam to international friends.
The 2024 National Tourism Year will be hosted by the
northern province of Dien Bien, marking the 70th anniversary of
the Dien Bien Phu victory which played a decisive role in ending the resistance
war against French colonialists.
With nine UNESCO-recognised heritage sites, including
five cultural, three natural, and one complex heritage, Vietnam has won the
World’s Leading Heritage Destination 2023 title of the World Travel Awards.
This is the 4th time that Vietnam has obtained the
title, as it did in 2019, 2020, and 2022./.
VNA