VietNamNet Bridge – The need for hotel rooms by Chinese in Nha Trang, a famous tourist destination in Vietnam, has soared, causing concern among service providers.

"The situation is very tense. Chinese visitors occupy almost all rooms of 3 star or more hotels. The room occupancy rate in Nha Trang is sometimes up to 100%. Where will Vietnamese tourists stay? This is a situation that has never happened here," manager of a travel firm in Nha Trang said.

Some hotels are not opened yet but are fully booked by Chinese visitors.

Phan Danh Dung, Deputy Director of Nha Trang Palace Hotel, said there are 20 flights carrying Chinese travelers to Nha Trang each day. In July and August the number of flights from China will increase by six.

Dung said this phenomenon is "worrying" for the tourism industry in Nha Trang because no one can be sure of the stable number of Chinese tourists in the future. During the peak time of Chinese tourists here, local firms may ignore tourists from other markets.

Explaining why Nha Trang hotels constantly lower prices and compete with each other to welcome Chinese tourists, Nguyen Hong Dai, Director of APT Travel, said that Nha Trang has so many hotels, so they have to welcome Chinese tourists at all costs.

He said Chinese tourists’ spending is much less than Vietnamese tourists not to mention other foreign markets. So why does Nha Trang have to lure Chinese visitors?

"Chinese tourists coming to Nha Trang are here mainly for enjoying seafood, having mud baths and buying frankincense. They usually come here in big groups. They are very noisy so other tourists don’t like them," said a worker at a tourist site in Nha Trang.

Local tourism firms said that some Chinese travel companies are operating under the cover of a local firm to bring Chinese tourists to Vietnam. This is also similar for Chinese restaurants in the city.

Pha Le