The France-based branch of Vietravel Marketing and Tourist Company, or Vietravel, has become HCMC’s representative tourism office in Europe, following an agreement signed by the municipal Tourism Promotion Center and Vietravel.

Foreign tourists inspect souvenirs in HCMC's District 1 in this file photo. The city has set up a representative tourism office in Europe

The signing ceremony, taking place in France, is part of a program to promote HCMC tourism in France and Germany between March 6 and March 12, according to the municipal Department of Tourism.

This is the first time that the city’s tourism sector has set up an office in Europe. The France-based office is in charge of offering tourism products and information about HCMC to European tourists.

Also, the tourism promotion program was organized to coincide with local tourism operators attending ITB Berlin, an international travel trade show taking place from March 6 to March 10 in Germany.

The city focused on highlighting the topic “HCMC – An ideal destination to explore Vietnam” via the program, seeking to introduce to Europeans to the idea that HCMC is not only an exciting destination, but also the entry point to various parts of Vietnam, as well as displaying the many cultures found throughout the country.

France and Germany are among the major source markets of the city’s tourism industry. The city expects that the newly-opened office, tourism promotion programs, visa exemption policy for five Western European countries, and the issuance of e-visas for other European countries, would attract more visitors to the city.

Data from the tourism department showed that the city welcomed 7.5 million international tourists last year, up some 17% year-on-year, while there were an estimated 29 million local visitors to the city, up 16%. Its tourism sector generated VND140 trillion in revenue, including services offered by restaurants, hotels, and travel firms, which was an increase of 22%, compared to the 2017 figure.

SGT