Hanoi welcomes first foreign tourist in 2020

A ceremony to welcome Baron and 14 other foreign visitors was held at the Noi Bai International Airport on January 1 by the municipal Department of Tourism, the Vietnam Airlines Corporation and the Noi Bai International Airport.

Director of the Hanoi Department of Tourism Tran Duc Hai noted that Hanoi has been chosen as a favourite destination by many foreign tourists, and many leading travel magazines named the city among the most attract tourism spots of the region and the world.

The ceremony to welcome the first foreign visitors to Hanoi is hoped to help the capital city promote its images and people to international friends. The number of tourists to Hanoi reached nearly 29 million in 2019, up 10 percent from the previous year, including over 7 million foreigners, a year-on-year rise of 17 percent.

According to the municipal Department of Tourism, the tourism sector grossed over 103.8 trillion VND (4.48 billion USD) in revenue, up 34 percent compared to the previous year. In 2019, Hanoi won the Travelers’ Choice Awards and was ranked among the 25 leading destinations in Asia, and the 25 world’s leading places on TripAdvisor website.

Hanoi was also shortlisted for the World’s Leading City Destination at the 2019 World Travel Awards (WTA). In 2020, the capital city strives to welcome approximately 32 million visitors, including 8.22 million foreigners, up 10.2 percent and 17 percent year-on-year respectively. The total tourism revenue is expected to exceed 116.7 trillion VND, a yearly rise of 12.5 percent.