Vietnam named one of the most interesting tourism markets in Southeast Asia

November 24, 2023 | 10:25

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Hotelbeds, a platform that provides tech solutions for the tourism sector, is paying special attention to the Southeast Asian tourism market in general, and Vietnam in particular, thanks to its impressive potential.

At the Markethub Asia conference organised by Hotelbeds at Amari Hotel Bangkok on November 22-22, chief commercial officer of Hotelbeds Carlos Munoz commented, “Vietnam is one of our most important markets in Southeast Asia as it possesses many interesting features.”

Vietnam named one of the most interesting tourism markets in Southeast Asia

Carlos Munoz, chief commercial officer of Hotelbeds, speaking at the conference

According to Munoz, the needs and desires of customers from Vietnam on the Hotelbeds' booking platform are growing. An average 70 per cent of bookings are to travel for more than four days and stay in 4- or 5-star hotels.

"We see that more than two thirds of Vietnamese travellers book the higher-end, luxury products," he said.

Hotelbeds recently conducted some analysis on the rise of the high-spending middle class in Southeast Asia, and the results were very positive.

Munoz stated, “The amount of investment that’s going into Vietnam today, both foreign and domestic, is significant, and the number of international brands that are present in the market continues to grow.”

The chief commercial officer highlighted that many customers on the platform, especially international travel companies, are choosing Vietnam to organise conferences and events.

"These travel agents want to look for different locations to develop market hubs, and Vietnam is always a great choice," said Munoz.

Furthermore, Hotelbeds has local sourcing colleagues based in Vietnam, who often contact local hoteliers, airlines, and travel agencies directly to market its website and platform.

Munoz's team in Vietnam often attends travel and hotel events in across the country to meet potential clients in key cities such as Hanoi, Ho Chi Minh City, and Danang.

Vietnam is one of the most interesting tourism markets in Southeast Asia

“Even though these events are not as big as the Markethub we hosted in Bangkok last week, our Vietnamese team works well with travel agencies, the hotel owners, airlines, and retail brands to introduce the Hotelbeds’ technology platform,” he said.

According to Google Trend, Vietnam has been ranked 11^th in the world in terms of tourist accommodation search volume since the beginning of 2023, and is one of only two Southeast Asian countries in the top tier.

According to research presented by the World Travel & Tourism Council at the Markethub Asia Conference, Vietnam ranks 20^th in terms of the countries with the highest economic growth in the world, with an expected rate of 5.8 per cent next year – which is noticeably higher than the global average of 2.9 per cent. This country’s tourism industry therefore also enjoys many attractive development opportunities.

According to statistics from the Vietnam National Administration of Tourism, the country had greeted about 10 million international visitors by the end of October this year. The rapid recovery speed has become the driving force for the nation’s tourism industry to increase its target from serving 8 million international visitors in 2023 to 12-13 million.