Room occupancy increases sharply since early this year

The increasing number of foreign and domestic arrivals recently has pushed occupancy rates in hotels around Vietnam to rise sharply.

Ms Do Thi Hong Xoan, Head of the Hotel Department, the Vietnam National Tourism Administration, said that in the first four months of 2010, hotel room occupancy around the country reached 65%, higher than the average rate of 50%. The figure also increased by 30% compared to the same period last year.

In Nha Trang and Phan Thiet, many luxury hotels recorded occupancy rate of more than 90%.

The main reason is the number of foreign arrivals since early this year, 1.8 million, a rise of 35% compared to the same period last year. The number of domestic arrivals also continued to increase thanks to numerous highlights in the economic picture.

Ms Xoan noted that the tourism sector is very sensitive to changes in the economy, diseases, natural disasters, and other factors. Thus, investors are very cautious about investing in the sector. Moreover, it often takes several years to set up plan, kick off construction, and put hotels into operation, she added.