In August alone, the country welcomed 1.2 million foreign arrivals. — VNA/VNS Photo Hồng Đạt

HÀ NỘI — Việt Nam has welcomed more than 7.8 million international visitors within the first eight months of 2023, touching distance from the 8 million target set for the whole year.

According to the data from the General Statistics Office, most tourists are from Asia with 5.9 million visiting from January through to August – six times more than the same period last year.

Other tourists visited from Europe (919,400 visitors), the Americas (625,400 visitors), Oceania (276,300 visitors) and Africa (17,500 visitors).

In August alone, the country has served 1.2 million foreign arrivals, an increase of 17.2 per cent over the previous month and 2.5 times higher than the same period last year.

Among international visitors coming to Việt Nam, around 6.9 million visitors arrived by air, accounting for 87.6 per cent, followed by road (11.6 per cent) and sea routes (0.8 per cent).

The total revenue from accommodation and dining services is estimated at VNĐ436.3trillion (US$18.04 billion) for the past eight months. Meanwhile, the revenue from travelling services is estimated at VNĐ22.4trillion (US$926.576), an increase of 47 per cent compared to the same period last year.

Earlier this year, Việt Nam set a target of welcoming 8 million international visitors for the whole of 2023. The recent influx of foreign arrivals has seen encouraging results for the efforts of the entire tourism industry in recent months.

However, the number still only equals 69.2 per cent of visitors over the same period in 2019, before the COVID-19 pandemic broke out.

The recent changes in visa procedures, including the extension of tourist e-visa from 30 to 90 days and the extension of visa-free entry from 15 to 45 days from August 15, created favourable conditions for businesses to attract more international visitors and build up new service opportunities.

Along with benefits from the visa policy, Việt Nam should also focus on developing innovative tourism products to bolster its competitiveness, according to experts.

Strategic tourism promotion and advertising initiatives should be targeted towards key markets. Ensuring security and safety in famous destinations will also create favourable environments for tourists when travelling across Việt Nam.

The training procedures for tourism staff need more focus to improve the service quality. The digital transformation and application of information technology within tourism activities must also be pursued cohesively. — VNS