In 2025, the tourism industry aims to welcome 22-23 million international visitors, serve 120-130 million domestic visitors, achieve total revenue of about 980,000 - 1,050,000 billion VND, create a driving force for the development of other industries and sectors and actively and effectively contribute to the implementation of the economic growth target of 8% or more. To realize that plan, localities, businesses and management agencies need to synchronously deploy many solutions, improve service quality, develop unique products, promote green tourism and cultural experiences, and at the same time strongly innovate promotional activities, targeting strategic markets.

One of the key challenges facing the industry is how to keep visitors coming back and spending more. Retaining visitors is not just about quantity, but also about service quality and product appeal.

Mr. Nguyen Tien Dat, Director of AZA Travel, Vice President of Hanoi Tourism Association, said that to increase its attractiveness, Vietnam needs to focus on developing products aimed at the high-end customer segment. At the same time, it is necessary to conduct thorough research on each target market to design suitable products, thereby implementing effective promotion strategies.

Mr. Nguyen Tien Dat also emphasized the importance of improving infrastructure and continuing to expand visa policies in a flexible and open manner. The current world economic context has caused tourists' consumption behavior to change, with a higher trend of personalization. Therefore, tourism businesses need to quickly adapt and coordinate closely with related units to create affordable products that meet the needs of new experiences.

According to Ms. Bui Thi Thu Huyen, Director of Legacy Voyages Vietnam Co., Ltd., Vietnam's tourism industry needs to continue to invest heavily in three pillars: digital transformation in tourism management and promotion; upgrading tourism infrastructure and services towards high-end and developing experiential products associated with the cultural and natural identity of Vietnam. On the other hand, tourism businesses also want to have more opportunities to access preferential policies on investment in green tourism infrastructure and international trade promotion programs.

Deputy Director of the Vietnam National Administration of Tourism Pham Van Thuy said that in implementing tasks and solutions to implement Directive No. 08/CT-TTg dated February 23, 2024 of the Prime Minister on comprehensive, rapid and sustainable tourism development in the coming time and Official Dispatch No. 34/CD-TTg dated April 10, 2025 of the Prime Minister on promoting tourism development, ensuring double-digit economic growth, the tourism industry is actively completing infrastructure and upgrading services to welcome international visitors with high spending capacity. Promotion activities are focused on expanding the coverage of Vietnamese tourism image in the global market and effectively approaching both traditional and potential markets.

In addition, businesses continue to promote innovation, develop high-quality products, closely linked to the cultural, historical, culinary and landscape characteristics of each region. Applying digital transformation in management and operation will also help businesses optimize costs and bring modern and convenient experiences to tourists. Tourism development is not only an economic story, but also associated with the responsibility of protecting the environment, preserving cultural values ​​and contributing to the community.

In the context of the global economy continuing to recover, Vietnam's tourism industry is showing steady progress with impressive growth right from the first quarter of 2025. Positive figures, along with close direction from the Government, are creating favorable momentum for the tourism industry to realize the target of double-digit growth this year.

According to data from the General Statistics Office, in the first 3 months of 2025, the total number of tourists reached 41.52 million, with total estimated revenue of about 242,000 billion VND. Domestic visitors alone accounted for 35.5 million, while international visitors reached more than 6 million. Compared to the same period last year, the number of international visitors increased by 29.6% and increased by 134% compared to the first quarter of 2019 (the period before the COVID-19 pandemic broke out). March 2025 alone marked an important milestone with more than 2 million international visitors, an increase of nearly 30% over the same period last year.

Among the 10 largest tourist markets of Vietnam, China and South Korea continue to lead, with 1.58 million and 1.26 million arrivals respectively, accounting for 47% of the total number of international visitors. Next are markets such as Taiwan (China), the US, Cambodia, Japan, Australia, India, Malaysia, and Russia.

The industry's outstanding growth is thanks to a series of open policies from the Government, including international promotion programs, promoting Vietnam's image on global platforms, along with the relaxation of visa policies within the framework of the 2025 Tourism Stimulus Program.

Mr. Nguyen Trung Khanh, Director of the Vietnam National Administration of Tourism, said that the positive figures achieved were the result of close coordination from the central to local levels, the synchronous participation of ministries and branches, and the efforts of the tourism business community, the pioneers in the development of the industry. These are also bright signals promising a year of growth and breakthrough for Vietnam tourism.

According to VNA