Deputy Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism Ho An Phong commented at the seminar "Which products are for high-end tourists coming to Vietnam" on October 11 in Hanoi, Vietnam is not only a destination for "Western backpackers" but also attracts many billionaires and rich tourists.

Currently, there is no full assessment of the quantity, total spending, and quality of tourists, but experts all commented that it was equal to or exceeded 2019. In the first 9 months of the year, more than 12.7 million international visitors visited, exceeding the number of visitors in 2023 and equal to 99% compared to the same period in 2019. The quality of tourists coming to Vietnam also increased.

"Before, three-star hotels were the best-selling hotels, now they are five-star hotels," said Mr. Phong. However, the number of high-end guests with high spending is still modest.

According to Mr. Nguyen Hoai Bao, Director of Wildtour Travel Company, first of all we need to "identify" the client file high-end tourism, their preferences to have suitable products. High-end customers are those with high income; looking for unique experiences; requiring personalized services as well as high-quality, convenient services; interested in sustainable development and tend to travel for relaxation and health care.

Director of the National Tourism Administration Nguyen Trung Khanh added that this high-end customer group also loves cruise, yacht, and adventure tourism. MICE customers are also a group of customers that need attention because they come in large numbers, spend a lot, stay long, use many services, and all are 4-5 star services.

To attract quality tourists, Vietnam needs to: become a quality tourism market. In fact, the quality tourism market is very limited and highly competitive globally. Therefore, to attract this group of customers, it is necessary to answer two questions: What factors motivate customers to choose a destination and what encourages them to spend more?

Oxford Economics research shows that food and beverage services are one of the major drivers of tourists' choice of destination. In particular, high-end tourists are more interested in food than middle-class and low-income tourists. In addition, destinations that offer high-end food and beverage services attract 2.5 times more wealthy visitors than those with only normal services. They are also willing to pay more for high-end food experiences, but these services must be worth the money spent. On average, tourists to Southeast Asia in general and Vietnam in particular are willing to pay an additional 250 USD per person per day to enjoy luxury food and beverage experiences.

Wealthy travelers are also very concerned about food safety. 84% of respondents said that reliability and safety are the most important factors in cuisine and play a key role in choosing a destination. Oxford Economics representatives hope that Vietnam can Exploit high-end culinary services to make customers spend more.

In addition, experts also believe that it is necessary to improve service quality and have "tailor-made" products for this group of customers. Korean customers like golf tourism, Vietnam needs to have a policy to promote and build golf products to serve this group of customers.

Ms. Huynh Thi Xuan Lien, representative of Cao Fine Jewelry Company, said that high-income international tourists are very interested in high-end Vietnamese handicraft products, especially those made by skilled artisans. These tourists are willing to spend three times more than regular visitors. Therefore, Vietnam can develop high-end shopping product line like jewelry like Dubai is doing.

Vietravel Chairman Nguyen Quoc Ky believes that if we know how to make a normal product, we can still make it into a high-end product and vice versa, if we don't know how to make a high-end product, it will just be a normal product.

In addition to product upgrades, attention should be paid to Customer perception. Customer perception will determine whether our product is high-end or low-end.

"A hotel with 5-star facilities but unprofessional staff and poor service is still considered 0-star in the eyes of tourists," said Mr. Ky.