Hanoi is the least expensive international destination to travel to according to the TripIndex Cities cost-comparison study released on July 19 by TripAdvisor, the travel planning and booking site.

There are four cities in Southeast Asia on the Top 10 most affordable cities worldwide: Hanoi (first), Kuala Lumpur (fourth), Bangkok (fifth) and Bali (seventh).

The study showed that lunch for two in Hanoi is $28, dinner $55, taxi travel (a two-mile round-trip) and tours/activities $2, and hotels $79. The total average cost of a three-day summer trip for two comes to about $497.

TripIndex Cities, conducted by independent research firm TNS, compares the cost of a three-night vacation during the summer travel period from June to September in 39 key tourism cities around the world, taking into account typical in-destination costs for two people.

These include a four-star hotel for three nights, a visit to three attractions, lunch each day, an Uber or taxi to and from dinner each day, plus the cost of dinner itself.

In May the UK newspaper The Telegraph wrote that Hanoi was one of the world’s greatest cities for food after the US President Barack Obama and the famed chef Anthony Bourdain enjoyed a $6 “bun cha”; one of Vietnam’s most famous dishes, with grilled pork, rice noodles, spicy fish sauce, and vegetables.

According to the General Statistics Office (GSO), international tourist arrivals to Hanoi in July were estimated at about 192,000, a 12.4 per cent increase compared to June and 8.8 per cent year-on-year.

Arrivals by air were 172,000, up 12.6 per cent compared to June, while those arriving by water or road totaled 20,000, up 11.1 per cent.

Domestic tourists visiting Hanoi numbered 770,000, a 1.1 per cent increase against June and 5.4 per cent year-on-year.

Revenue from tourism in July was estimated at VND4.585 trillion ($205 million), up 0.1 per cent compared to June and 13.4 per cent year-on-year.

In the first seven months, arrivals to Hanoi from some countries increased dramatically, such as China (up 96.9 per cent year-on-year), South Korea (33.6 per cent), Thailand (33.1 per cent), and Germany (35 per cent).

In the first half of the year total tourist arrivals to Hanoi were 11.015 million. International arrivals were 2.04 million, up 33 per cent year-on-year, and domestic arrivals 8.97 million, up 6 per cent year-on-year.

Total revenue from tourism was VND31.306 trillion ($1.4 billion), an increase of 24 per cent year-on-year.

In 2016 Hanoi has targeted welcoming 21.165 million tourists, including 3.8 international tourists, and to earn revenue of VND60 trillion ($2.69 billion).

In 2020, the city targets welcoming 30 million tourists, 5.7 million of which will be international tourists, and to earn VND120 trillion ($5.38 billion) in revenue.

Annual growth in international tourist numbers to Hanoi by 2020 will be from 8 to 10 per cent and annual growth in tourism revenue will be from 15 to 17 per cent.

On average, occupancy rates in hotels will be from 60 to 65 per cent.