Tourism in Vietnam has seen an extraordinary recovery this year, with arrivals surging and revenue increasing, but the industry needs to continue the good work to return to the heyday seen prior to the arrival of Covid-19.

Figures from the General Statistics Office (GSO) show that international visitor numbers to Vietnam reached 486,400 in August, up 38 per cent against July and 52.3-fold higher than in the same period last year, when social distancing measures were widespread around the country. In the first eight months, international visitors stood at 1.44 million, 13.7-fold higher year-on-year but down 87.3 per cent compared to the first eight months of 2019.

Revenue from accommodation and catering services in the first eight months also saw solid growth, by 48.1 per cent year-on-year to an estimated VND377.8 trillion ($16.1 billion).

Travelling services revenue in the first eight months is estimated to have reached VND15.4 trillion ($657 million), 3.4-fold higher year-on-year due to a strong recovery in tourism activities and especially domestic tourism. The figure was, however, just 47.7 per cent of the result in the first eight months of 2019.

Since tourism activities were fully reopened in Vietnam, the sector has continually recorded positive growth, especially in the summer months as people looked for a break after two years of dealing with the pandemic.