Chinese tourists at a Nha Trang City restaurant. Young, independent, digitally-driven travelers are expected to lead the return of Chinese tourists to Vietnam when the country’s tourism sector reopens for the remainder of 2020 – PHOTO: DAO LOAN

The survey of 1,000 travelers from some of China’s major cities, conducted by leading hospitality consulting group C9 Hotelworks and Delivering Asia Communications, indicated that nearly half of them hope to travel abroad this year, with 45% expressing interest in visiting Vietnam.

Moreover, after the Covid-19 outbreak ends, Chinese tourists will be looking at more mainstream, well-known destinations, with the top choices in Vietnam being HCMC, Hanoi, Nha Trang/Cam Ranh Bay and Halong Bay.

Speaking of the reopening of Vietnam’s tourism sector, C9 Hotelworks Managing Director Bill Barnett noted that Chinese tourists’ preference for short-haul and door-to-door flights is a key opportunity for Vietnam’s tourist sites.

“Tourism for the remainder of 2020 will be heavily leveraged by young travelers aged 20-29 years old, who increasingly place an emphasis on booking hotels on digital platforms,” remarked David Johnson, chief executive officer of Delivering Asia Communications.

Aside from sightseeing and local dining, nature tours have moved up in preference, which could be a reaction to a post-crisis change in tourism values, he added.

Also, the survey showed that 81% of young travelers said they would choose independent travel rather than group tours. This trend, coupled with young Chinese booking hotel rooms digitally through WeChat and Fliggy, is a new twist in Vietnam’s marketing strategy for Chinese visitors. SGT