Vietnam has become the tourism destination with the
highest growth rate in South East Asia, reports released by leading hotels in
Vietnam and the Vietnam National Administration of Tourism (VNAT) shows.

The reports all show that more and more foreign international tourists choose
Vietnam, the country with the highest population in South East Asia, as their
destinations.

Manager of Caravelle Hotel John Gardner said that in the eyes of foreign
tourists, Vietnam has become more competitive to the countries in the region
which have a strong tourism industry such as Indonesia or Thailand. Though
Thailand has been stabilizing gradually after political uncertainties, the
troubles in other countries have made Vietnam stand out from regional countries
as the safest area in the region. The feeling of safety and peace nowadays has
become more important for tourists than it was 10 years ago, according to Mr.
Gardner.

“With a lot of resorts located throughout the country, Vietnam is ready to serve
a wide range of guests, from those people, who want to have a trips where they
can associate business with tourism, to those, who want to simply enjoy
beautiful landscape and the wonderful natural environment, and relax,” he said.

Previously the favorite destinations in Asia Pacific region for Australian
people were Indonesia (mostly Bali), Fiji and Thailand. However, according to
VNAT, the number of Australian tourists to Vietnam in 2010 increased sharply by
128 percent, the highest growth rates among the foreign tourists coming from
non-Asian markets. Analysts say traveling to Vietnam has become a trend, not a
temporary change. A survey on tourism intentions conducted by Visa and the Asia
Pacific Tourism Association shows that up to 16 percent of Australian people are
planning to travel to Vietnam in the next two years.

Caravelle Hotel, a well known hotel in HCM City, said the number of tourists
from Australia has increased two fold. Meanwhile, Sofitel Legend Metropole Hanoi
has reported the high 48 percent growth rate in the last 12 months.

Kai Speth, General Director of Metropole Hanoi noted that Australia proves to be
the nation which suffered the least impacts from the global crisis, while the
value of the Australian dollar has been increasing, which has prompted people to
travel abroad more than before. He said that Australia has been highlighted as
one of the biggest strategic markets of the hotel in recent years.

“We have been attending all the trade and tourism exhibitions in Australia.
Therefore, our efforts to polish our image have been useful, and now is the
right time for us to reap success,” he said

Meanwhile, The Nam Hai, a resort of international stature located on the coastal
area of the central region has been ranked by Conde Nast Traveler journal as one
of the 20 most attractive resorts in Asia. The resort has also reported a sharp
rise in the number of tourists from Australia: the number of tourists from the
country increased by 69 percent just in the first eight months of the year.

Damien Van Eyk, an Australian, and managing director of Exotissimo, a travel
firm which specializes in organizing tours to South East Asia, said that there
are more and more factors that make Vietnam more attractive in the eyes of
Australian tourists. First of all, the two countries are relatively close to
each other in geographical position, which means it is very easy to travel
between the two countries. Second, verbally transmitted advertisements have been
effective: after Australian tourists return home, they have talked much about
the beauties of Vietnam to their relatives and friends, persuading them to
travel to Vietnam.

Meanwhile, Gardner has pointed out some other factors which have helped attract
more tourists to Vietnam. In particular, the infrastructure in Vietnam has
become better, and the Australian dollar has been appreciating against the
Vietnam dong. This means that Australians can buy more things with their money
in Vietnam. Besides, the budget airline Jetstar has been providing regular
flights connecting Vietnam’s HCM City with big cities in Australia and all for
very competitive airfares.

Source: Dau tu