 |
| Hoi An is listed among world’s top 50 most beautiful places in 2024 (Source: https://vovworld.vn) |
Hoi An Ancient Town in central Vietnam ranked 21st on the list, as it boasts a unique architectural style of tube-shaped houses adjoining one another along the streets.
“Hoi An, with its lantern-lit streets and historic architecture, invites you to savour delicious street food and take a boat ride along the enchanting Thu Bon River,” said the travel website.
Visitors to the UNESCO-recognised World Heritage Site also have a chance to visit Cau (Bridge) pagoda, the famous Japanese corner, Chinese-style pagodas, and French-style cafes.
 |
| Ha Long bay (Source: https://vietnam.travel) |
UNESCO heritage site Ha Long Bay in the northern province of Quang Ninh was placed 23rd on the list. The area features emerald water and is adorned with thousands of limestone karsts.
The bay is home to over 1,600 limestone towers and islets covered in tropical trees, with the majority of the islands being uninhabited and unaffected by humans.
Time Travel suggests that foreign visitors sail through the mesmerising seascape, visit floating fishing villages, and explore hidden caves.
Ranking 45th on the list, Sa Pa, a relatively quiet mountain town in northern Lao Cai province, is renowned for its mountain vistas, green rice terraces, as well as its proximity to waterfalls and hiking trails.
“Terraced rice fields carve intricate patterns into the mountains, providing a picturesque setting for cultural encounters with local ethnic tribes,” the website noted.
Tourists can also explore a series of popular destinations dotted around the town, including Ham Rong mountain, Fansipan peak, Muong Hoa valley, Seo My Ty lake, O Quy Ho pass, Silver waterfall, as well as gaining greater insights into the local life and unique cuisine on offer in traditional villages throughout the area.
Rounding off the list of top 50 is Santorini (Greece), Rio de Janeiro (Brazil), Prague (Czech Republic), Jasper National Park (Canada), Portofino (Italy), Fez (Morocco), Moorea (French Polynesia), Rishikesh (India), Puducherry (India), and Zadar (Croatia).
Vietnam tourism searches grow at 6th fastest rate
The search volume for Vietnam's tourism via Google's market trend tracking tool grew 75% in 2023, ranking 6th in the world, according to the Vietnam National Authority of Tourism (VNAT).
 |
| Nho Que river in the northern province of Ha Giang. (Photo: VNA) |
Meanwhile, Thailand ranked 10th, Indonesia 11th, Malaysia 12th, and the Philippines 14th.
According to VNA, the 10 countries with the highest number of tourism-related searches of Vietnam were the US, Australia, Japan, India, the Republic of Korea, Singapore, the UK, Germany, Malaysia and Thailand
 |
| The Huc bridge - a tourist attraction in the heart of Hanoi. (Photo: VNA) |
Ho Chi Minh City, Hanoi, Da Nang, Phu Quoc, Hoi An, Nha Trang, Da Lat, Hue and Phan Thiet were the most searched.
According to the VNAT, Vietnam’s tourism will still face challenges in 2024 due to the impact of global markets, geopolitical tensions, and the risk of natural disasters due to climate change.
The number of international visitors to Vietnam is forecast to be around the level in 2019 before the COVID-19 pandemic, while that of domestic tourists is expected to continue to grow but at a slower pace.
In 2024, Vietnam’s tourism industry strives to welcome 17-18 million international visitors and serve 110 million domestic visitors, earning about 840 trillion VND (34.5 billion USD).
Hai Phong strives to welcome 9.1 million tourists in 2024
The northern port city of Hai Phong has introduced several key tourism tasks to realise the goal of 9.1 million tourists, including more than one million foreign arrivals, in 2024, reported VNA.
 |
| Cat Ba island, in Lan Ha bay adjacent to world heritage site of Ha Long bay, is a popular tourist destination near Hai Phong city. (Photo: VNA) |
Deputy Director of the municipal Tourism Department Duong Duc Hung said that the city’s tourism sector will focus on improving quality of sports tourism (especially golf tourism), meeting-incentive-conference-event (MICE) tourism and cruise tourism.
At the same time, the sector will continue to develop “Hai Phong City tour” in association with local historical, cultural, cuisine and architectural values, and bolster communications activities on the city's sea and island tourism.
The sector will actively participate in fairs, programmes and events to stimulate tourism demand and support travel agencies to expand markets, seek opportunities for cooperation and investment in some key markets in Northeast Asia, Southeast Asia, and Europe, among others, particularly on occasions of important political, diplomatic, cultural and sports events both home and abroad.
The city will invest in developing tourism human resources, especially training in professional skills and the Code of Conduct for tourism, and pay attention to protecting environmental sanitation, security and safety at tourist zones and attractions.
In 2023, the city’s Department of Tourism connected with travel businesses of the Republic of Korea to study ways to promote golf tourism targeting Korean visitors.
The city welcomed about 7.9 million tourists in 2023, an increase of 12.85% compared to 2022./.