South Korea accounted for the highest number of international visitors to Hanoi in the first two months of this year, with some 61,900, according to the city’s Department of Tourism.

Second was the US, with nearly 37,900 visitors, then Thailand with 23,400.

Vietnam’s capital welcomed nearly 387,000 international visitors in January and February, up 13.1-fold year-on-year.

A total of 3.73 million tourists visited the capital in the first two months. Total turnover was nearly VND13.2 trillion ($554 million).

Hanoi targets welcoming 22 million tourists in 2023.

Average hotel occupancy was around 56.2 per cent, up 39.5 per cent year-on-year. Hanoi currently has 3,756 accommodation establishments with 70,218 rooms, of which 602 hotels with 25,432 rooms have 1 to 5-star ratings.

The department said tourism activities in the city have seen positive signs as the number of tourists is up in the opening months of the year.

To attract more visitors, the city has focused on promoting cooperation and has enhanced links with key tourism localities nationwide to build suitable programs. It will also welcome delegations of foreign travel companies and media exploring Hanoi’s tourism products.

Attention has also been paid to developing more night tourism products and experiential tours based on the capital’s traditional culture and on strengthening the promotion of tourism destinations and new products on domestic TV channels, CNN, digital platforms, and social networks.