As for Ho Chi Minh City, the Department of Tourism said that the destination continues to be the leading unit in the country in terms of visitor rate, revenue and contribution to the tourism industry. In 2023, the city welcomed nearly 5 million international visitors and nearly 35 million domestic visitors. Total tourism revenue was over 160,000 billion VND. Notably, the figure of 5 million international visitors compared to about 8.6 million visitors in 2019 is still quite far (equal to 58%), but total tourism revenue exceeded about 14.2% compared to the figure of 140,000 billion VND in 2019.
Tourists visit Ben Thanh market. Photo: TAN THANH
This figure is receiving mixed opinions from those working in tourism. The leader of a large tourism company analyzed that international visitors are still down sharply compared to 2019; tourism service prices have not increased, even lower; purchasing power is still very weak. Regarding business activities, the number of newly established enterprises in the tourism industry is not much, not to mention many enterprises leaving the market. Many destinations, shops specializing in welcoming tourists, restaurants, and eateries in the central area are still closed or announced for rent...
Some other travel companies also reported that their guest reception business activities have recovered, but their revenue has not been able to match that of 2019. "The overly optimistic figures at this difficult time make businesses wonder about their business activities, unintentionally creating pressure on their strategies and plans for 2024 and the following years. Why is the whole industry generating record revenue while businesses are not as expected?" - a business leader questioned.
2023 is a difficult year for businesses in many industries and sectors with impacts from the international and domestic context. With the announced growth rate, the city's tourism industry will become the city with the highest tourism growth in the world! The data is positive but does not fully reflect the actual picture of business activities of businesses and the industry.
Ho Chi Minh City's tourism industry has been making efforts to invest, survey, upgrade and announce a series of new products, tourism programs and tours. However, in addition to statistics on the number of visitors and total revenue, it is necessary to have detailed statistics on the number of visitors staying at the accommodation for how long, how much they spend, how many times they come and return or just transit... Which segment does the "huge" tourism revenue come from? There are detailed figures to guide businesses and the industry to focus on promoting and investing more effectively. Only then will the city's tourism be truly effective, spreading to those working in tourism, the community and the locality, bringing added value and contributing a lot to the city's economy.
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