VNExpress-July 11
Popular tourist hotspots in central Vietnam, including several UNESCO heritage sites, have seen a surge in tourist numbers after Vietnam lifted most of its Covid-19 restrictions. After Vietnam allowed quarantine-free entry from March 15 and resumed most of its pre-pandemic visa policies, Da Nang’s tourism industry has seen hotel occupancy rates reach 70-75 percent on weekend. The municipal tourism department said the number of domestic tourists arriving in the city in the first half of this year grew 39.5 percent year-on-year to 1.27 million, around 60 percent of pre-pandemic levels. The city also welcomed 57,800 foreigners, around 3.2 percent of pre-pandemic levels. Dung said that in the second half of the year, there will be 90 weekly flights connecting Da Nang with Asia’s tourist hubs like South Korea, Thailand and Singapore. Quang Binh, home to the world’s largest cave Son Doong, has also witnessed a quick tourism recovery, with the number of foreign tourists in January-June crossing 7,600, up 138 percent year-on-year. The UNESCO heritage site of Hoi An welcomed 91,000 foreigners in the first half of this year, up six times year-on-year and 4 percent of pre-pandemic levels. The former imperial town of Hue also saw the number of tourists increase by 34 percent year-on-year to 771,000. Vietnam targets 5 million foreign arrivals this year, around 30 percent of 2019, when their numbers had reached record levels. However, it has only received 602,000 foreigners so far this year. Read more at: https://e.vnexpress.net/news/travel/central-vietnam-enjoys-post-covid-tourism-boom-4486563.html
