VietNamNet Bridge – Many provinces and tourism firms have registered to join a major promotional program initiated by the Vietnam Tourism Association (VITA) to cut tour prices by 20-30% for tourists from Western Europe.

Foreign tourists drop by the landmark HCMC Post Office in HCMC’s District 1. VITA prepares to launch a major promotional program to woo more European visitors to the nation - Photo: Dao Loan

The localities include HCMC, Quang Ninh, Haiphong, Danang, Hoi An and Quang Binh, according to VITA.

Vu The Binh, vice chairman of VITA, said the association is receiving requests from more enterprises and provinces to participate in the program, which will be launched soon.

“We will help build strong linkages between businesses in the tourism and other sectors with an aim to lower tour prices by 20-30% for tourists from Western Europe,” Binh said.

VITA plans this stimulus program for the tourism sector after the Government approved visa exemptions for citizens of France, Germany, the UK, Spain, Italy and Belarus when they stay in Vietnam no more than 15 days from July 1.

In order to woo more tourists, some travel firms have launched promotional programs and cover visa fees for tourists from the countries if they book tours lasting more than 15 days in Vietnam.

Figures of the General Statistics Office showed 589,600 Europeans visited Vietnam in the first half of this year, falling 6.4% year-on-year. The growth in European visitors to Vietnam was only 5.35% in the 2010-2014 period.

Local travel firms said financial woes in Europe have forced people to tighten spending, including on overseas tours.

In the past year, European travelers have had to buy Vietnam tours at prices 15-20% higher in previous years as the euro has fallen against the U.S. dollar while prices of tours to Vietnam are denominated in the dollar. On top of that, prices of some tours have been adjusted up due to higher transport and food-catering service costs on the domestic market.