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Reopening of key Chinese market will drive Vietnam tourism boom in 2023

Tourism is set to rebound significantly in Vietnam this year, with the key Chinese outbound market reopening. The country saw a strong domestic travel rebound in 2022, with the trend now expected to extend to the international sphere.

Authorities at the Vietnam National Administration of Tourism (VNAT) expected to see a 50-80 per cent recovery in Chinese arrivals this year.

Following the reopening following

Covid-19 last March, domestic tourism has been roaring, with Vietnam easily surpassing its 2022 target of 60 million - recording over 100 million tourists last year. At the same time, Vietnam welcomed 3.6 million international tourists in 2022, mainly driven by travellers from South Korea (26 per cent) and the United States (nine per cent).

However, the rebound of international tourism was only partial, with tourist arrivals only 20 per cent of the level seen in 2019.

Prior to the pandemic, tourism accounted for roughly ten per cent of GDP in Vietnam.

For 2023, the government is targeting 102 million domestic tourists and eight million international visitors, with tourism receipts expected to rise more than 30 per cent, albeit to levels still lower than seen 2019.

The good news is that mainland China, the largest visitor base for Vietnam prior to the pandemic, has also recently begun its reopening process, adding further tailwinds to the burgeoning tourism sector. While the recovery process may be gradual, the impact on tourism will be sizeable on many metrics. For instance, Chinese tourists have on average historically spent more and stayed longer than most Asian peers, though lagging behind European and American peers.

Given the proportion of Chinese tourists (30 per cent of the market in 2019), Vietnam will likely be another main regional beneficiary, alongside after Thailand, to receive a boost from the return of Chinese tourists.

If flight constraints can be solved and visa entry requirements can be eased further, authorities believe some 4.5 million Chinese guests could arrive this year.