Việt Nam has welcomed numerous high-end international tourist groups via sea routes to experience culture and tourism. - VNA Photo

HCM CITY – Large numbers of foreign tourists are expected to visit by luxury cruise ships in March and berth at places like HCM City, Đà Nẵng, Nha Trang, and Bà Rịa - Vũng Tàu cities.

On March 2 the Azamara Journey (Azamara Cruises) arrived at Saigon Port in HCM City with over 700 passengers from various countries in Europe, the US and Australia.

On March 19 and 20 the Resort World One cruise ship will dock in Nha Trang and Đà Nẵng, the Azamara in Hạ Long, Đà Nẵng and HCM City, and the Silver Shadow in HCM City and Huế.

March is the last month of the busy cruise tourism season, which begins in November.

According to Saigontourist Travel company in the first two months of 2024, it hosted over 10 ships with 30,000 tourists, an increase of 15 per cent from last year.

Tourists prefer long voyages, visiting various cities like Hạ Long, Huế, Đà Nẵng, and Nha Trang, and choose from various itineraries after arriving at a port.

International cruise tourism has recently seen rapid recovery in Việt Nam after the Government eased visa policies, improved infrastructure and created new accommodation and sightseeing spots of international standards.

According to statistics from the Việt Nam National Authority of Tourism, over three million foreign tourists visited the country in the first two months of the year.

Communication and marketing activities and creative initiatives by local authorities and businesses to develop tourism are credited for this success.

The tourism authority also pointed to the success of the new visa policy that took effect last August.

It tripled the stay period to 45 days for nationals of countries exempted from getting a visa and began the issuance of electronic visas for all nationals for a maximum stay of 90 days.

These are early positive signs for tourism in a year when the country targets 18 million arrivals. - VNS