A view of Hàng Đậu Water Tower in Hà Nội Capital City. Việt Nam remains the destination of many foreign tourists. -- VNS Photo Trương Vị

HCM CITY —  Việt Nam this year has consistently grown in attractiveness to travellers worldwide, according to online travel platforms.

Digital travel platform Agoda recently unveiled its 2023 Search Data report highlighting increased travel-related searches to and within the country.

Accordingly, the data, which showcases the evolving travel patterns of both international visitors to Việt Nam and Vietnamese travellers looking to explore global destinations, revealed an extraordinary 298 per cent year-on-year increase in inbound searches for Việt Nam. 

“Việt Nam this year has consistently grown in attractiveness to travellers around the world, with the nation becoming ever more accessible,” said Lâm Vũ, Việt Nam's country director at Agoda.

Authorities have effectively promoted the nation to markets abroad. The popularity of Việt Nam has also increased because of liberalising visa policies and, of course, through the great travel deals available daily on Agoda, he said.

The top five nations looking to travel to Việt Nam were South Korea, the United States, Japan, Thailand, and Singapore.

"The increase in travel searches for Việt Nam is a testament to the country's appeal as a destination and the growing wanderlust among its residents. The data reflects a heightened interest in exploring international destinations and a strong desire to discover the diverse landscapes and cultural richness within Việt Nam itself," Lâm said.

In a report by Booking.com, when it comes to top nationalities visiting Việt Nam for winter, travellers from South Korea, followed by Australia and the USA, are at the top of the list.

The platform said that the top five nationalities visiting Việt Nam with check-in dates between December 1, 2023, and February 29, 2024, that saw increases compared to the same time in 2022 were South Korea, Australia, the US, Singapore and the UK.

Vietnamese feel more alive when travelling.

In terms of outbound travel, Vietnamese travellers were also looking further afield to satisfy their hunger for travel, with outbound searches from travellers here surging by 45 per cent.

According to Agoda, Thailand, Singapore, South Korea, Japan, and Malaysia are the top five searched international markets for Vietnamese travellers.

Capital cities from the most popular markets also feature in the top five destinations list, with Bangkok, Singapore, Seoul and Tokyo taking top honours among travellers from the southeast Asian nation—Taipei rounds of the city destination rankings.

Interestingly, even with the appetite of Việt Nam’s travellers for international getaways growing by 45 per cent, domestic searches for Vietnamese destinations also increased as there were 17 per cent more searches for travel within Việt Nam’s borders.

Within Việt Nam, the top searched destinations by local travellers were HCM City, Vũng Tàu, Đà Nẵng, Hà Nội, and Đà Lạt.

Booking.com revealed that beach destinations seem to be favourites with Vietnamese travellers this winter, with five out of the top 10 most searched cities being beach destinations. 

With a coastline of over 3,000 km, it's no surprise that these destinations offer the perfect winter getaway for those seeking sun, sand and relaxation. While beaches continue to be popular, Vietnamese are also looking at city trips, with HCM City and Hà Nội making it to the top five most searched destinations by Vietnamese travellers from December 1, 2023, to February 29, 2024. 

Varun Grover, country head of Việt Nam at Booking.com, commented: “As per our Travel Predictions 2024 research, 81 per cent of Vietnamese travellers revealed that they feel more alive when they are on vacation, and we are pleased to see travellers embrace this travel, enthusiasm as the holiday season approaches.”

According to Booking.com, the top 10 most searched domestic destinations by Vietnamese travellers with check-in dates between December 1, 2023, and February 29, 2024, including Hoi An, Đà Lạt, HCM City, Hà Nội, Đà Nẵng, Vũng Tàu, Phú Quốc, Nha Trang, Sapa and Mũi Né.

While hotels remain the most popular accommodation type for Vietnamese travellers, they also explore alternative accommodations while on holiday. Hotels, followed by resorts, apartments, homestays and apart-hotels, are the top five most searched accommodation types for festive travel between December 1, 2023, and February 29, 2024

Given its proximity to Việt Nam, Bangkok tops the list of most searched international destinations by Vietnamese for year-end travel. Interestingly, the list of the 10 top most searched international destinations for winter travel are all within the Asia Pacific region, with Bangkok topping the list, followed by Singapore and Tokyo. — VNS