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 Leading Vietnamese travel firm Saigontourist has reported an increase of 38% in tours for the April 30 holiday. The company will serve 4,100 holidaymakers, 70% of them in groups.
Vietnam holds a four-day weekend on April 30 for Victory Day, and tourists seem to prefer travelling in large groups rather than solo. Travel firms are also targeting their services more to organisations than to individuals.
Fiditourist will give a $5 coupon to all who book tours abroad and $50 to those who book tours to Australia. Agencies offering local travel have also launched promotions. Cho Lon Tourist Company and Saigon – Mekong Tourist Joint Stock Company are offering a 10% discount on certain domestic tours, and a $5-7 discount per traveller for those who go abroad.
According to the travel firms, China remains the most popular destination for most Vietnamese. The eight-day tour ($775), five-day Beijing tour ($499), six-day Beijing and Shanghai tours ($635) and six-day Kun Ming tours ($499) have all sold well.
Pham Thu, Head of the Outbound Tourist Section under Saigontourist said that while tourists in groups prefer medium-class tours, independent tourists prefer high-grade. Ms Thu reported an increase of 21% in independent tourists this year over the previous year.
But is it not only Vietnamese who are using the service. Statistics show that 47% of international travellers to Vietnam in April 2006 also booked further tours for the April 30 holiday. The number of foreign travellers coming to Vietnam by sea has increased sharply and Saigontourist received the cruise ship SuperStar Gemini three times in April, bringing 1,900 international travellers.
(Posted by VietnamNet - 24Apr.06)
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