Tour agents and airlines have reported rising demand during Reunification Day and May Day holidays.

Customers at an office of Saigontourist Company

This year Reunification Day and International Labour Day holidays will last up to five days from April 27 to May 1. Many people have already booked tours for their families since early April.

Nguyen Thi Hoa, a resident in HCM City, said she was trying to find tickets to Con Dao Island but both plane tickets to Con Dao from HCM City and Hanoi had all been booked since late March.

Plane tickets from Hanoi and HCM City to well-known destinations such as Danang, Nha Trang or Phu Quoc are also running out quickly. Most people booked tickets early because of cheaper prices. A Vietnam Airlines' economy class ticket from HCM City to Phu Quoc is now listed at VND1m (USD43) max. However, the price will increase to VND1.9m starting from April 26.

In order to meet rising demand, many airlines have increased flights for the holiday. Vietnam Airlines will prepare nearly 800,000 seats, an increase of 78,000 seats compared to last year, for both domestic and international routes from April 26 to May 5.

Tran The Dung, deputy director of The He Tre Travel, said because of the long holiday, their tours to the northeast, northwest regions and the Central Highland have all been full.

"This year, more people choose to travel on their own on short tours from HCM City to Phan Thiet or Nha Trang," he said.

According to Vietravel, most popular packages are tours to Buon Ma Thuot, the Mekong Delta or northern region. Popular outbound tours are packages to travel to Japan, South Korea, Dubai, Thailand and Singapore.

Head of the Communication and Marketing Department Truong Thi Thu Trang said the tour packages this holiday had increased in price by 10% because of rising accommodation and transportation costs.

Saigontourist also said several tours for the Reunification Day and May Day Holiday were full. The prices of inbound tours increased by 7-10% while the cost of outbound tours have mostly stayed the same. Prices for tours to South East Asia and North East Asia have increased by 2-5%.

Nguoi Lao Dong/Dtinews