In May alone, the figure topped 1.16 million, down 13.5% month-on-month.
The number of Asian tourists hit more than 5 million in the five months, up 33.3%, while those from China was up 37%, the Republic of Korea (62.1%), Japan (6.6%), Malaysia (12.5%), Thailand (9.1%), and Singapore (5.4%).
Meanwhile, the number of European visitors rose by 11.8% year-on-year, including those from Russia (up 9.2%), France (13.1%), the UK (9.6%), Germany (8.5%), and Italy (18.3%).
In addition, visitors from America and Oceania were up 13.8% and 12.1%, respectively.
Major tourist localities saw a surge in tourist arrivals. The central city of Da Nang welcomed more than 3.2 million visitors, up 30.4% year-on-year, including more than 1.35 million foreigners, a rise of 51.3%.
The central province of Khanh Hoa served more than 2.44 million holidaymakers in the period, marking a 20.75% rise, over 1.17 million of them were foreigners, a surge of nearly 50%.
In May, the Vietnam National Administration of Tourism and the Japanese embassy in Vietnam held a seminar to boost the exchange of tourists between the two countries.
Last year, around 800,000 Japanese visitors arrived in Vietnam while 300,000 Vietnamese landed in Japan. At present, almost all of Vietnam’s lodging facilities and flight services could serve Japanese visitors, even during the peak season.
However, Vietnam still lacks tour guides proficient in the Japanese language, especially in the central region. Moreover, Japanese tourists often stay in Vietnam for brief periods, so Vietnam’s tourism sector needs to offer new products to satisfy their demand.
The Vietnam Society of Travel Agents proposed that Japan loosen its visa policy, especially for groups of tourists from major travel agencies.
