Cruise tourists arrive in Quảng Ninh aboard the Adora Magic City cruise ship. — VNA/VNS Photo

HÀ NỘI — The tourism sector is shifting its growth model from attracting more visitors to generating greater value from each trip, with a focus on higher spending, longer stays, green development, technology application and cultural experiences.

The country aims to welcome 45-50 million international visitors and 160 million domestic tourists by 2030, Đỗ Cầm Thơ, head of the Planning and Finance Division at the Vietnam National Authority of Tourism (VNAT), said at HORECFEX Vietnam 2026, a major hospitality and tourism forum.

​She said 2026-27 would be a pivotal period in shifting tourism development from expansion in scale to deeper value creation.

Việt Nam welcomed 21.2 million international visitors and 137 million domestic tourists in 2025, with total tourism revenue estimated at around VNĐ1 quadrillion (US$38.1 billion).

In the first seven months of 2026, the country received nearly 13.92 million foreign tourists, up 13.8 per cent year on year, while domestic visitors numbered about 98 million, with tourism revenue of VNĐ675 trillion.

International visitors currently spend an average of $1,200-1,400 per trip in Việt Nam, while domestic tourists about VNĐ2.4-2.6 million ($92-99).

About 70 per cent of foreign visitors come from mainland China, the Republic of Korea, Japan and Taiwan (China), while markets with higher spending power, including the Middle East, Northern Europe, North America and Australia, still account for relatively small shares.

Tourism is receiving greater attention as Việt Nam seeks to achieve rapid national development and make tourism a spearhead economic sector, Thơ was quoted by Tuổi Trẻ (Youth) newspaper as saying.

​A draft resolution on developing tourism into a key economic sector in the new era is awaiting approval by competent authorities. Accordingly, tourism development would follow an integrated ecosystem model, helping drive other sectors such as agriculture and culture, while focusing on value rather than visitor numbers.

Under the proposed approach, Viêt Nam targets total tourism revenue of $80-90 billion by 2030. The country is expected to have about 1.5 million accommodation rooms and tourism is projected to create around 5.8 million direct and indirect jobs.

Among three development scenarios for 2030, the most ambitious targets annual international visitor growth of 15-18 per cent. Achieving it will require institutional reforms, development of the night-time economy, diversification of high-end markets and measures to increase visitor spending.

VNAT said Việt Nam will continue to consolidate Northeast Asian and ASEAN markets while expanding into Europe, North America, Australia and other markets with high spending capacity and longer stays.

India, the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries, Russia and Muslim markets have been identified as areas with significant growth potential.

For domestic tourism, the focus will shift from boosting visitor numbers to encouraging higher spending, with an emphasis on two- to three-day weekend getaways, high-end Meetings, Incentives, Conferences and Exhibitions (MICE) tourism, family vacations and night-time tourism.

Key products will include sea and island tourism, cultural and heritage tourism, ecotourism and urban tourism, alongside higher-value segments such as wellness, MICE, golf and shopping tourism.

The shift requires hotels to go beyond accommodation services and become more deeply integrated into the broader destination experience ecosystem. — VNA/VNS