Tourists at Fansipan Mountain, Lào Cai Province. — VNA/VNS Photo Quốc Khánh

HÀ NỘI — Việt Nam earned some VNĐ394 trillion (US$16.1 billion) from tourism in the first nine months of this year, equivalent to 78 per cent of the figure recorded in 2019 before the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Việt Nam National Administration of Tourism said the country welcomed over 1.8 million foreign tourists in the nine-month period, of which 1.2 million were recorded in the third quarter of this year, 2.5 times the figure of the previous quarter.

The Republic of Korea (RoK), the US and Asian countries such as Cambodia, Japan, Singapore and Thailand are the biggest sources of tourists for Việt Nam, the agency noted.

As of mid-September, international search volumes for aviation and lodging services in the Southeast Asian nation rose three times and 10 times, respectively, as compared with early March when the country had yet to reopen its doors.

Domestic holidaymakers reached about 86.8 million in the nine months, surpassing the 85 million in 2019.

More and more Vietnamese are travelling abroad, with their search volume increased four times from early March, targeting such countries as Thailand, Cambodia, Australia, the US, Indonesia, France and Malaysia.

Việt Nam fully reopened borders to tourists from March 15. The country aims to welcome 5 million foreign arrivals this year. — VNS