VIETNAM, January 27 - HÀ NỘI Vietnamese travellers have turned away from domestic tours during the Tết (Lunar New Year) holidays as airline tickets have become more expensive, said industry insiders and experts.

Tour companies said there has been a noticeable preference for international travel over domestic tours during the holidays in recent years.

Hanoi Tourism Company said that some international tours, particularly those involving visas, have formed groups, with bookings increasing by about 30 per cent compared to Tết last year, with demand for international travel appearing to be higher than domestic travel this year.

"The most popular destinations for international tours currently are South Korea and Japan, and high-end travellers are interested in Europe and Australia," Nguyễn Thị Phương Thúy, deputy general director of Hanoi Tourism Company, said.

Bùi Thanh Tú, marketing director of BestPrice Travel Company, said: “About 70 per cent of our customers have booked international tours and the remaining 30 per cent have booked domestic tours. For international tours, the focus is mainly on high-end destinations like South Korea and Japan, while domestic tours are concentrating on routes from the South to the North."

The trend of international travel was expected to continue rising during this year's Tết holiday and throughout 2024, with international destinations opening up post-COVID-19.

While most people traditionally spend the holiday with family or visit nearby places, this year has seen a shift. A woman from Ba Đình District, Hà Nội, said she has plans to celebrate the holiday in Shanghai to experience how it is observed in China.

"We really want to go to Shanghai to celebrate Tết there, to see how they observe the holiday," she said.

Nguyễn Thị Phương Thảo from Văn Giang District, Hưng Yên Province, said: "Our family prefers independent travel because going to China is simpler, not as far as other countries, and we like the freedom of travelling on our own."

Vũ Thị Tâm from Cầu Giấy District, Hà Nội, said her family has decided on a trip to Japan with four friends.

"The price is VNĐ29.93 million (US$1,350). We plan to go to Japan at the beginning of the year, and if conditions permit, we will go to South Korea at the end of the year, followed by Europe next year," Tâm said.

Outward trend

In 2023, approximately five million Vietnamese travelled internationally, just over 50 per cent compared to the pre-COVID-19 level. The most visited destinations were Thailand, with over 1 million Vietnamese tourists, followed by Japan, South Korea and Taiwan (China).

The trend of Vietnamese people travelling abroad has been increasing due to easier and more convenient travel between countries. International destinations also offer simpler visa policies and post-pandemic incentives, contributing to the surge. However, another significant reason for choosing international destinations this year has been the high prices of domestic flight tickets, making domestic tours sometimes even more expensive than international ones, especially in Southeast Asian countries.

The high prices of domestic flight tickets have not only occurred during the upcoming holiday, but have been happening for the past few months. If this continues, it may reduce the competitiveness of domestic destinations, especially when many countries are competing to boost tourism as a post-COVID-19 growth driver, said industry insiders.

To avoid purchasing fake or inflated flight tickets during the peak Tết travel period, Vietnamese airlines have advised customers to buy tickets through official channels. This includes official websites, mobile apps, authorised ticket offices and agents. Customers should request a proper invoice following regulations, as it is an essential document to protect passengers' rights.

Airlines said they have observed various methods of selling fake tickets, especially during peak travel times. The most common is the use of social media to advertise cheap Tết flight tickets, accompanied by convenient flight schedules to attract customers. To gain trust, those posting advertisements for cheap flight tickets even create fake images of successful transactions. However, when users transfer money, these entities block or delete their Facebook accounts and phone contacts, erasing all traces.

Last year, during the six-day break, the country served nine million domestic tourists, and international visitors surged, contributing to a total revenue of VNĐ17.5 trillion. VNS