VNExpress-Aug 12
Foreign tourists have hailed as “positive step” Vietnam’s tourism minister proposing visa exemption be expanded for major markets like Europe and the U.S.
Nguyen Van Hung, Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism, had proposed earlier this week that Vietnam expands visa exemption for tourists from Australia, Canada, India, New Zealand, Europe, and the U.S. to boost tourism recovery after more than two years of pandemic restrictions.
Michael Burger from the U.S., who visited Vietnam in May, said the proposal was definitely a positive step toward making travel to Vietnam easier. It would help increase Vietnam’s tourism competitiveness among Southeast Asian nations that already exempt American passport holders from having to get a visa for stays of under 30 days. India is currently seen as a country with potential to boost post-pandemic tourism recovery in Vietnam. Vietnamese authorities are now issuing up to 6,000 visas a day to Indians, a 24-fold increase from pre-Covid times, said Pham Sanh Chau, the country’s ambassador in New Delhi.Vietnam reopened its borders to foreign tourists last November before allowing quarantine-free entry from March 15. In addition to 24 tourism markets eligible for 15 to 30-day visa exemption, Vietnam now only issues a one-month single-entry e-visa to visitors from other countries.Some tourists want the government to return to the three-month visa policy that was the norm before the pandemic. The country hopes to welcome five million foreign tourists this year, around 30 percent of pre-pandemic levels. Read more at: https://e.vnexpress.net/news/travel/foreign-tourists-upbeat-as-minister-seeks-visa-waiver-expansion-4498465.html
