According to Da Nang-based travel agencies, the city has witnessed a sharp increase in Asian visitors since December last year thanks to the increase in charter flights from China, Hong Kong, Taiwan and Korea, and Air Asia’s cheap direct flights from Malaysia to Da Nang.
Meanwhile, Da Nang has seen a decline in the number of visitor arrivals from the United States, Europe and Australia.
Vitours Travel Agency Operations department manager, Mr. Le Tan Thanh Tung, said that Tet is the peak season for tourists, especially domestic, in the central region. Da Nang’s beaches, Hoi An and Hue, amazing helicopter tours and road trips to Laos are among the most popular attractions.
More local investors, especially private ones, are now seeking investment opportunities and showing interest in building luxury hotels in Ho Chi Minh City.
Truong Vinh Tho, head of the Hotel Division under the Ho Chi Minh City Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism, said that there were more local private investors wanting to invest in hotel projects while the number of foreign ones was fewer.
“We do not have detailed figures, but the number of investors who said they may invest in big projects was on the rise,” Tho said.
Emirates Airline, a leading international carrier of the United Arab Emirates, announced the launch of a direct flight to Ho Chi Minh City, starting June 4 this year.
Ho Chi Minh City will be the 124th destination among 68 countries serviced by Emirates Airline.
The carrier will use Airbus 330-200 and Boeing 777-300 ER aircrafts for its flights to Vietnam. Presently it has a fleet of 168 aircrafts, including A380, the world’s largest commercial airplane. Trade between Vietnam and UAE exceeded US$24 million in 2010.
Source: saigon-gpdaily
The low-cost airline Jetstar Pacific will transport apricot and peach blossoms as a special ‘Luggage Consignment Service’ for Tet from now until February 7.
A passenger will be allowed to check in no more than two branches of apricot or peach blossoms, measuring maximum 120cm x 50cm x 50cm to avail the service provided by Jetstar Pacific.
Transportation fees for this will be VND250,000 on flights from Ho Chi Minh City to Da Nang, VND350,000 on flights between Ho Chi Minh City to Hanoi, Hai Phong and Vinh.
Passengers can contact phone number 19001550 and the booking office of Jetstar Pacific for registration.
From the first to the third day of the lunar New Year 2012, all relics in the complex of Hue ancient citadel will open for free.
Phan Thanh Hai, deputy director of the Centre for Preservation of Hue Relics, said that all relics in the Hue royal citadel will open for free for all visitors on January 23-25.
“This is an annual activity of the Center for Preservation of Hue Relics,” Hai said.
The current prices of tickets to the Hue royal citadel is VND30,000-50,000 ($1.5-2.5) per a local visitor and VND55,000 ($2.6) per a foreign visitor.
Vietnam Airlines will operate 11 direct flights between the Mekong delta City of Can Tho and Taiwan during the Lunar New Year in January, using Airbus 321 aircraft which can carry 100 to 130 passengers.
There will be six flights from Taipei, Kaohsiung, and Taichung to Can Tho and five in the reverse direction, with the first flight from Taipei to Can Tho scheduled for January 17.
It is for the third successive year that Vietnam Airlines is offering a direct air service between two cities to allow Vietnamese expatriates to return home for the New Year.
36,500 flights carrying more than 3.24 million passengers arrived and departed Hanoi in 2011, said the Hanoi Customs Department.
They included passengers on domestic flights as well as overseas Vietnamese returning to the homeland and travelers leaving Hanoi for countries and territories around the globe.
Most foreigners entering Hanoi in 2011 came from China, Japan, the Republic of Korea, Europe and North America.
The number of arrivals was up by 640,000 over 2010, and the number of flights rose by 9,500.
Next year, Hanoi will continue to enhance administrative reform and improve the customs sector’s operational efficiency to meet requirements for international integration in line with Vietnam’s WTO commitments.
The Central Highlands resort town of Dalat will celebrate its annual flower festival later this month.
The five-day festival opens December 30 with a “flower hill” at the Dalat Golf Course near the iconic Xuan Huong Lake, and many smaller floral decorations.
For the first time the Dalat Flower Association will join hands with the golf course to create a flower garden that will spread over 3.3 hectares and have 360,000 plants.
Also for the first time in its two-decade existence the golf course will open to the public for sightseeing.
On Dec 24 2011, Son La People’s Committee coordinated with the Vietnam National Administration of Tourism (VNAT) to hold a seminar on “Promoting Son La’s Tourism”.
The seminar was held in Hanoi with the attendance of Deputy Head of the Northwest Steering Committee, Mr. Hoang Tri Thuc; Deputy Director General of VNAT, Mr. Nguyen Manh Cuong; Deputy Chairman of Son La People’s Committee Mr. Bui Duc Hai; representatives of relevant ministries; ESRT project; JICA organization (Japan); and leaders of Son La’s Departments and travel businesses in Hanoi….
Saigontourist Travel Service Co. this year will maintain their special tours during the Tet holiday season to serve foreign travelers to Vietnam tour.
This year’s products by Saigontourist include a one-day ‘Welcoming Tet in the Mekong Delta’ priced at VND945,000 from Jan 16 to 22 and ‘Enjoying Tet with the Saigonese’ at VND630,000 for a half day from Jan 23 to 26.
The first tour sees tourists join a sightseeing program, visit colorful flower markets, pagodas and make banh tet (glutinous rice cakes) along with My Tho City’s residents.
