However, to the chagrin of those in the tourism industry, the General Statistics Office has reported that in the first half of 2015 the number of foreign visitors actually dropped 11.3% compared to the same period last year to around 3.8 million.
To add to their displeasure the statistics office reported that for 13 months in a row through June the number of foreign arrivals for the nation as a whole declined and that June fell 8.2% from May.
The fact that tourism is below last year’s levels shouldn’t be all that disturbing to anyone in and of itself. After all, we are talking about the tourism industry and these types of statistics in business go up and down all the time.
Noticeably, however, the number of arrivals in Ho Chi Minh City jumped up appreciably by 3% compared against last year’s same period in direct contrast to the nation’s overall decline. Additionally, neighbouring Thailand and Malaysia’s arrivals rose according to official statistics. Logically this leads to the rational conclusion that HCM City and Vietnam’s two neighbours must be doing a few things right in publicizing themselves as attractive travel destinations.
For one thing, HCM city has done a superb job elevating its image abroad with ‘glitzy’ and appealing advertising while admittedly the rest of the country has been slack in implementing a robust overseas marketing campaign.
“Vietnam has not done a good job in promoting itself abroad largely due to a lack of funds for advertising,” Vu The Binh, deputy head of the Vietnam Tourism Association, was quoted by local media as saying in May.
To remedy the situation the Vietnam government has set in motion a plan to institute a US$100 million tourism fund to kick start the nation’s first global ad campaign in international markets.
To complement its marketing efforts HCM City was in a much better position to capitalize and take advantage of the new much simplified law that went into effect July 1 exempting visas for citizens of certain foreign countries.
On July 1, Vietnam first began offering visa exemptions for single-entry visits of up to 15 days for visitors from Germany, France, the UK, Italy and Spain, while considering yet more waivers.
More liberalized waivers are universally accepted as a positive development but generally have the drawback they take a while to truly become effective because foreign tourists generally start making travel plans at least one year in advance.
Airline tickets along with hotel reservations take time to coordinate and are generally significantly cheaper if made months, if not a year, in advance and overseas travel is rarely a spur of the moment decision.
“Visa exemptions for European countries are not likely to have any real impact until the middle of next year [2016] because everybody has already made plans for 2015,” Kenneth Atkinson, chairman of the Tourism Working Group under the Vietnam Business Forum recently said.
Meanwhile, HCM City has gotten its act together in better combating crime with the number of crimes targeting foreigners having been noticeably reduced, the Thoi Bao Kinh Te Saigon Online has reported.
Clearly the crime situation is still a drag on tourism but the HCM City has turned the corner and is getting it under control through stricter enforcement and enhanced punishments for lawbreakers.
The HCM City Department of Tourism has also implemented regular inspections of sixteen tourism spots on a regular basis. Public toilets in Ben Thanh and An Dong markets have now been repaired. Tourists around the globe report that “in Ho Chi Minh City, for instance, the toilets in shopping centres like Vincom or Diamond Plaza are immaculate.”
HCM City is quite simply taking a proactive approach to develop its budding tourism industry and not just sitting back ‘starry-eyed’ expecting the world will beat a path to their doorstep.
More specifically they are now augmenting tourism by the river and by electric car, organizing entertaining art performances appealing to tourists as well as have launched a tourism information portal 1087 to provide quality and timely assistance to travellers.
HCM City is on the move upgrading infrastructure, going clean and green, putting safety of tourists at the top of the list of priorities, addressing traffic safety and combating the garbage issues that plague the nation.
In a nation where the number of return international visitors stands at around 33%, localities across the country need to learn a few lessons and follow the lead of HCM City to get on the pathway to becoming a shining tourism mecca.
Lastly, story after story of the Vietnamese press recounting how unspoiled natural spaces across the nation are becoming strewn with rubbish and spoiled by expanding industry is marring the nation’s image in the eyes of the world.
Vietnam’s struggling tourism industry needs meaningful support with a little less talk and a lot more action.
