In recent years, the tourism industry has made great progress and achieved positive results. Tourism infrastructure is invested; tourism products and services are more plentiful and diversified; quality and professionalism have been gradually improved, better meeting the needs of domestic and foreign tourists. Viet Nam has become an attractive destination in the eyes of the international community and received prestigious regional and world awards.
After many consecutive years of impressive growth, in 2020, Viet Nam recorded a decline in the number of tourists, especially international visitors, for the first time. According to forecasts at the end of 2019, the number of international visitors to Viet Nam in 2020 is likely to reach a record number of 20 million. But due to the influence of Covid-19, international visitors to Viet Nam for 11 months was estimated at 3,821 thousand, went down by 76.6% compared to the same period last year, of which visitors coming by airway gained 3,073.8 thousand persons, accounting for 80.4% of the number of international visitors to Viet Nam, dropped by 76.4%; by roadway achieved 602.6 thousand arrivals, accounted for 15.8% and went down by 80.3%; by seaway achieved 144.6 thousand arrivals, accounted for 3.8% and decreased by 37.8%. It is estimated that in 2020, Viet Nam will only welcome about 3.8 million international visitors, equivalent to 2006.
However, overcoming the difficulties of the Covid-19 epidemic, Viet Nam tourism continues to affirm its attraction to a large number of international tourists. Viet Nam has been named as the Leading Heritage Destination, Leading Cultural Destination, and leading Culinary Destination of Asia at the prestigious World Travel Awards (WTA) 2020. This is the second consecutive year Vietnam has been honored in the three categories. In addition, several Vietnamese airlines, airports, tourism and travel enterprises, resorts and hotels also received awards in other categories of the World Travel Awards. Not only affirming its position in the region, Viet Nam tourism continues to reap world’s leading awards in 2020 at the World Travel Awards (WTA) in Moscow on 27 November 2020. Viet Nam has become the world’s leading heritage destination selected by the WTAs in 2020, beating out other “heavyweight” nominees such as Brazil, Egypt, Moscow (Russia), Porto (northern Portugal), and Saudi Arabia. Vietnam is honored at the prestigious World Tourism Awards once again affirms the quality and brand of the Vietnamese destination. This is an opportunity to promote the image of Viet Nam to international friends and also a solid foundation, a lever for Viet Nam’s tourism to make a faster and stronger breakthrough in the future, especially in Post-Covid-19 recovery period.