Air carriers have launched Tet air ticket sales. Experts, pointing out that the airfares of many routes are high, have warned that this may lead to a sharp fall in number of tourists at many destinations.

According to Hoang Nhan Chinh, secretary general of the Tourism Advisory Board (TAB), this is a problem that occurs regularly in Vietnam.

On April 30 and September 2 holidays, passengers may see airfares soar unexpectedly and become 2-4 times more expensive than usual. The air tickets prices for the flights to tourism sites such as Phu Quoc, Nha Trang and Tuy Hoa are very high.

The airfare increase pushes tour fees up by 30-40 percent, since air tickets account for 30-60 percent of domestic tour fees. 

The problem has been put into discussion at recent TAB meetings. The prices of tourism products are seriously affected because of the lack of close coordination between the aviation and tourism sectors.

Chinh said the airfare policy has had adverse effect on the number of travelers to Phu Quoc Island, Hai Phong, Ha Long, Da Nang and Khanh Hoa, especially Phu Quoc which heavily depends on airways.

As the air tickets soar 1-2 months just before high season and then drop sharply, travelers are hesitant to book tickets early and they no longer expect tour fee reductions right before trips.

The unreasonable policy not only impacts travel firms, but also travelers, accommodation service providers, restaurants, local people and revenue of local budgets.

Analysts say that air carriers also suffer from price fluctuations, because in fact, though air tickets are much cheaper later, the occupancy rate on the flights during holidays is just 40 percent. 

The airfare increases not only affect domestic travel demand, but also cause the CPI (consumer price index) to increase, which has impact on the national economy.

That is why Vietnamese travelers now prefer outbound tours. The fees of many outbound tours are lower than domestic tours because of more competitive airfares (airfares make up 40-60 percent of costs of domestic tours).

Thailand, Indonesia and some Asian countries are the destinations chosen by many Vietnamese. Vietnamese travelers tend to be indifferent to domestic destinations and choose Bangkok, Phuket and Bali instead. This results in the so called ‘foreign currency bleeding’, which means foreign currencies are brought by outbound travelers abroad. Meanwhile, local economies lose sources of revenue.

Economists all agree that airlines and travel firms should ‘join hands’ to find long-term solutions to the problem, because tourism brings more passengers to airlines and airlines create a momentum for tourism development.

Asked about Vietnam’s rivals, Chinh said in other countries, agencies and travel firms cooperate with each other to develop tourism.

The government of Thailand has approved a budget of 3.95 billion Baht to stimulate tourism demand, including food tour vouchers and hotel room rate reduction of up to 40 percent. Prior to that, the country applied a subsidy for 2 million air tickets.

Meanwhile, Malaysia has called on domestic airlines to cut airfares in festival season.

Chinh believes that the key to successful coordination lies in the leading role of watchdog agencies. Airlines and travel firms need to cooperate under the principle of ‘harmonizing benefits and sharing difficulties’, or ‘win-win’ and ‘win-win-win’ solution.

TAB have discussed coordination among involved parties at many meetings and found that there should be a state agency which acts as the ‘conductor of the orchestra’ to regulate and direct operations.

Observers have found that after Covid-19, domestic travelers seek information about destinations, tourism products, and means of transport, and then book main services, such as air tickets and hotel rooms in combo.

TAB has suggested that airlines and accommodation service providers join forces to design various service packages suited to the diverse demand in the market.

Ngoc Ha