The Vietnam International Travel Mart (VITM) 2020, themed “Vietnamese tourism looks toward the future,” is slated for August 12-15 in Hanoi.

Dak Nong Geopark in the Central Highlands province of Dak Nong has been a luring destination to tourists and scientists and has been nominated for listing in the Global Geoparks Network by UNESCO.

Tourism activities have resumed in the central city of Da Nang after a hiatus due to COVID-19. Operators of cruises along the Han River, a major symbol of the city’s tourism, are set to welcome swelling numbers of domestic visitors.

Vietnamese people will prefer to travel freestyle or with families and friends using family vehicles.

National flag carrier Vietnam Airlines on May 16 partnered with the Vietnam Tourism Association (VITA) to launch a programme to boost domestic travel demand until the end of 2020.

Tourists can now visit many tourist destinations which have re-opened since last weekend after the social distancing regulations have been eased.

Many travel firms affected by Covid-19 are struggling to access loans with low interest rates from the Government’s credit package as banks have denied their applications out of concern over their ability to repay the debt

It would take Vietnam’s tourism sector at least two years to recover after being hard hit by the Covid-19 pandemic, said Le Tuan Anh, director of the Tourism Information Centre under the Vietnam National Administration of Tourism.

Foreigners can now experience the next best thing to a holiday in Vietnam via an online tool called “Stay at Home with Vietnam”, which was launched by the Vietnam National Administration of Tourism (VNAT) and the Vietnam Tourism Advisory Board.

Vietnam is forecast to witness a 80-pecent drop in the number of foreign tourists visiting the country in 2020 if the COVID-19 pandemic is not controlled by the end of the year, according to the Vietnam National Administration of Tourism (VNAT).

The Government Office has suggested adding freelance tour guides to the list of beneficiaries on the government's VND62 trillion (US$2.6 billion) package to those affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. 

The Mekong Delta and southern islands like Phu Quoc and Con Dao are dominating domestic tour bookings as COVID-19 cases rise elsewhere in Vietnam.

The COVID-19 epidemic outbreak is affecting global economy with tourism being among hardest-hit industries. The recovery of the sector will depend largely on how long the epidemic lasts.

The tourism sector of the south central coastal province of Khanh Hoa has been seriously hit by the outbreak of a disease caused by new coronavirus (COVID-19). 

The number of international tourist arrivals to Vietnam during January-February rose 4.8 percent year on year to 3.23 million, the lowest increase in the past four years, the General Statistics Office of Vietnam (GSO) said on February 29.

For centuries, the customs and practices of fishermen have denoted the traditional cultural characteristics of coastal regions. 

More than 230 tour boats at Tuan Chau Port in Ha Long Bay have been left idle due to the coronavirus outbreak.

The Nha Trang-Khanh Hoa Tourism Association has proposed allowing travel firms to withdraw 50% of their compulsory deposits at banks to maintain their operations and pay salaries as they are facing hardships due to Covid-19.

Deputy PM Vu Duc Dam has rebuked the Quang Ninh government for turning away an Italian cruise ship carrying more than 1,000 tourists because of fears of the coronavirus and told the local authorities to draw lessons from the experience.