International visitors experience health check services in HCM City. — Photo www.sggp.org.vn

HCM CITY — With world-class doctors, modern hospitals and a growing reputation for affordable care, HCM City is positioning itself as a promising wellness tourism hub – and experts say it’s high time the city fully taps into its potential.

Home to 162 hospitals and nearly 10,000 private clinics, the southern metropolis already offers a wide range of medical services, from reproductive healthcare and IVF to traditional medicine and cosmetic treatments. Many of these are available at competitive prices, making the city an attractive option for international patients seeking both physical and mental rejuvenation.

Wellness tourism – aimed at helping travellers recover from the strains of modern life – is now on the agenda for local authorities. But despite its strengths, HCM City currently welcomes only around 500,000 international visitors and overseas Vietnamese annually for medical-related purposes, a figure experts believe falls short of its true capabilities.

Challenges holding back the sector include outdated infrastructure, a lack of foreign language–proficient staff, limited international payment options, and weak links between the healthcare and tourism industries.

Speaking at a recent forum, tourism operators proposed targeted policies to kickstart medical tourism, including incentives to promote partnerships with tour companies and discount schemes to encourage packaged offerings that link health services with leisure travel.

Deputy Director of the city’s Department of Tourism Lê Trương Hiền Hòa said a Medical Tourism Development Project is underway, focusing initially on dentistry, aesthetics and advanced care. He called on healthcare providers to step beyond their traditional remit and collaborate more actively with tourism operators, including through public-private partnerships.

“To attract more visitors, medical tourism products must be built on actual demand, taking inspiration from successful models in Thailand and Germany,” he said. “Improving workforce capacity, particularly in foreign languages, is key – and both students and AI could help enhance service quality.”

He also suggested more flexible visa policies to boost the city’s global appeal, adding that 'quality and reputation, not just price, must be the foundation of our products'.

The Editor-in-chief of Phụ Nữ Thành phố Hồ Chí Minh (HCM City Women’s) newspaper, Lý Việt Trung, noted the city’s advantages as both a major economic centre and a hub for modern and traditional medicine, supported by highly trained professionals.

“These factors present valuable opportunities for the city to develop a distinctive brand in medical and wellness tourism,” she said.

According to the city’s Department of Tourism, HCM City welcomed 5.2 million international visitors in the first eight months of 2025 – up nearly 50 per cent year-on-year – alongside 25 million domestic travellers. Tourism revenue reached VNĐ161.9 trillion (US$6.14 billion), a 31.2 per cent increase from 2024. — VNS