Tourists visit Independence Palace in HCM City on National Day on September 2. —  VNA/VNS Photo

HCM CITY — Travel firms in HCM City have launched a wide range of inbound and outbound tour programmes ahead of the Tết (Lunar New Year) holiday, the country’s largest festival.

The seven-day holiday starts from February 8. The Tết travel season regularly lasts one month, starting two weeks prior to the Tết celebration.

Vietravel has launched its spring promotion programme with around 100 domestic travel products and 200 overseas tour packages offered to customers during this Tết travel season.

It is expected to serve more than 150,000 customers during Tết, an increase of 15 per cent compare to the pre-COVID-19 period in 2019, said Huỳnh Phan Phương Hoàng, its deputy general director.

Early-bird bookings and group bookings will receive discounts, she said.

Tour packages for families are also offered with discounts to welcome Vietnamese overseas returning home to celebrate Tết, she added.

Đoàn Thị Thanh Trà, communications director at Saigontourist, said that more than 300 inbound and outbound tour packages are being offered for Tết holiday.

Domestic tours to Sa Pa, Phú Quốc and localities in the northeast, the Cửu Long (Mekong) Delta, Central Highlands and the central region regularly attract a large number of travelers during Tết, she said.

Consumers make purchase decisions based on the quality of services, travel itinerary and tour pricing, according to a survey conducted by the company.

Nguyễn Minh Mẫn, communications and marketing director at TSTtourist, said travel demand for the upcoming holiday may not be as high as expected.

The company has focused on exploring long-haul outbound tours to Europe, Australia and the US for Tết travel season.

Trần Thị Bảo Thu, communications director at Vietluxtour, said prices of Tết tours rise by 5-15 per cent compared to normal days.

Overseas tours would be favoured over domestic tours due to reasonable fees for airfares, Thu said.

Outbound tours to countries in Southeast and Northeast Asia will attract most travellers during Tết, she said. — VNS