Vietnam’s Bold Plan To Attract 25 Million Tourists In 2025: Can It Compete With Thailand And Malaysia?

Published on September 25, 2025

Vietnam’s tourism manufacture has group an eager extremity of attracting 25 cardinal overseas visitors in 2025. This target, while exciting, presents a important situation arsenic nan state useful to retrieve from past tourism setbacks and build a stronger, much resilient tourism sector. Industry insiders have pointed retired that gathering this target will require an additional 2.75 cardinal visitors per month for nan remainder of nan year, a steep task considering the current trends in foreign tourism.

Tourism experts person expressed concerns astir nan practicality of this goal, noting that moreover though Vietnam saw 14 cardinal visitors in nan first 8 months of nan year, it’s clear that the final quarter will request to spot a important surge successful arrivals if nan target is to beryllium achieved. With conscionable over two cardinal visitors being nan highest successful immoderate azygous period truthful far, nan task up is daunting but not impossible.

The Challenge Ahead: A Strong Focus connected Strategic Growth

The request for a strategic shift in nan country’s tourism attack has been recognized by Pham Van Thuy, nan lawman head of the Vietnam National Administration of Tourism (VNAT). Speaking astatine a conference connected September 18, Thuy emphasized nan standard of nan challenge, acknowledging that nan target of 25 cardinal visitors is some eager and challenging.

Thuy highlighted that Vietnam’s tourism products have remained mostly unchanged for nan past 10–15 years, and they nary longer entreaty to today’s discerning travelers. He urged the Vietnamese tourism sector to move distant from promoting what is disposable to offering what visitors are genuinely seeking. To scope this goal, he stressed that a significant change successful approach is needed to meet nan evolving expectations of modern travelers. This includes knowing the needs of world visitors and adapting accordingly.

Key Strategies to Meet nan Target

One of nan halfway actions recommended by Pham Van Thuy is nan request to increase hose capacity on cardinal routes. Thuy urged airlines to offer more competitory fares and grow their routes to meet nan increasing request for recreation to Vietnam. This move is particularly important as Vietnam’s visa exemption policy has been expanded, offering greater opportunities to pull visitors from a wider array of countries.

In early August, the Vietnamese government waived visa requirements for citizens of 12 further countries. The new visa exemptions cover nationals from Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Czechia, Hungary, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Poland, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, and Switzerland, allowing stays of up to 45 days. This move has extended Vietnam’s unilateral visa waiver list to 24 countries, pinch a full of 39 countries benefiting from bilateral waivers. This strategy of increasing visa exemptions aims to make Vietnam an moreover much charismatic destination for travelers, peculiarly those from Europe and different regions.

Boosting Marketing Efforts: Leveraging Digital Platforms

The Vietnam Tourism Association (VITA), led by Vu The Binh, is focusing on digital marketing to promote Vietnamas a starring tourer destination. This will see targeting some established and emerging source markets, focusing on international campaigns to pull travelers from crossed nan globe. Digital marketing is seen arsenic a captious instrumentality successful reaching caller customers, peculiarly successful markets wherever tourism to Vietnam is still successful its maturation phase.

Furthermore, VITA plans to organize familiarization trips for major overseas circuit operators. These trips will showcase Vietnam’s tourism products directly to those who tin power recreation decisions and bookings. The purpose is to drive fourth-quarter bookings, ensuring that Vietnam remains a competitory action for travelers seeking affordable, uniqueexperiences in Asia.

Tapping into Fast-Growing Markets: Short-Haul and Long-Haul Opportunities

According to Pham Ha, nan CEO of Lux Group, Vietnam should prioritize nan fast-growing, short-haul markets in East Asia, particularly China, South Korea, Japan, and Taiwan. These regions are seen arsenic cardinal sources of imaginable visitors who are much apt to recreation often and successful larger numbers owed to their geographical proximity. By expanding accessibility from these countries, Vietnam can pat into a precocious measurement of imaginable visitors looking for affordable and easy-to-reach destinations.

At nan aforesaid time, Pham Ha emphasized nan value of attracting long-haul markets such as Russia and Western and Northern Europe, wherever nan economical conditions and traveler request are expected to turn successful nan coming years. The description of Vietnam’s visa exemptions for countries like Switzerland, Poland, and Slovenia provides an added inducement for visitors from these markets to research nan country’s offerings.

Incorporating incentives, akin to those utilized by Thailand, specified arsenic offering complimentary home round-trip tickets and shopping vouchers, is different strategy being considered by Vietnam’s tourism leaders. Such initiatives could thief incentivize visitors to widen their stays aliases sojourn much destinations within Vietnam.

The Outlook for Vietnam’s Tourism Industry

While nan target of 25 cardinal visitors in 2025 may look daunting, Vietnam has nan imaginable to scope this extremity with focused strategies and investments in key markets. Tourism remains a awesome pillar of Vietnam’s economy, and pinch nan correct initiatives, nan state tin flooded nan existent challenges posed by rate fluctuations and world competition.

Both domestic and international tourism have shown resilience contempt world challenges, and Vietnam’s efforts to innovate and accommodate to nan changing scenery of recreation are poised to carnivore fruit. By embracing sustainability, offering unique recreation experiences, and enhancing regional and international connections, Vietnam has nan opportunity to proceed increasing arsenic 1 of nan apical tourer destinations in Southeast Asia.

Conclusion: Meeting nan Challenge of 25 Million Visitors

Achieving nan eager target of 25 cardinal overseas visitors in 2025 will require strategic planning and collaborationbetween nan government, tourism agencies, and airlines. With a renewed attraction on digital marketing, improving accessibility, and attracting both short-haul and long-haul travelers, Vietnam’s tourism industry can proceed to thrive. By enhancing the tourist experience and making Vietnam more charismatic to world visitors, nan state will beryllium well-positioned to scope its tourism goals and guarantee that nan manufacture remains a cardinal driver of economical growth.