Vietnam enters the wedding tourism race
In just over 4 months of 2026, Quang Ninh continuously welcomed 6 weddings of wealthy families from India. Each event lasts many days, gathering hundreds of guests and costing up to millions of USD. From yachts in Ha Long Bay, Ngoc Rong cave to high-class resorts, they all became wedding venues, and at the same time mobilized hundreds of personnel and dozens of businesses to participate in serving.
All show that Vietnam is no longer an experimental choice for international tourist groups. After the first impressions in Phu Quoc, Vietnamese destinations are gradually attracting more attention from the international wedding market, alongside names that have been positioned for a long time such as Bali (Indonesia), Phuket (Thailand) or Maldives.
That trend is clearly reflected in the activities of international businesses. In 2025, Da Nang welcomed more than 50 wedding tourism events from markets such as India, the US, Australia and overseas Vietnamese. Notably, 30 leading wedding planners from India have come to the city to survey hotels, resorts, event venues and service experience. This is considered a signal that international wedding organizing businesses have begun to include Vietnam in their destination list to offer to customers, instead of just considering it as an alternative.
Mr. Nguyen Trung Khanh - Director of the Vietnam National Authority of Tourism, affirmed: "Vietnam is a world-class destination for the event and wedding industry of India and the Middle East".
With advantages in landscape, high-class resort system, increasingly complete infrastructure and the ability to organize large-scale events, Vietnam has enough conditions to develop wedding tourism into a specialized product, contributing to attracting high-spending tourists and improving the competitiveness of destinations.
According to Mr. Khanh, Phu Quoc and Da Nang are prominent destinations for wedding tourism. Along with the rise of Quang Ninh in recent times, this picture shows that wedding tourism in Vietnam is entering a new stage of development, from individual events to forming products with clear orientations.
Turning weddings into travel journeys
An international wedding usually lasts from 3 to 5 days, even a week, with a series of activities from welcoming parties, sightseeing, socializing to post-wedding holidays. Brides and grooms and hundreds of guests therefore become true tourists, spending a lot of time exploring destinations and using many types of services at the same time.
Mr. Cao Tri Dung - Chairman of Da Nang Tourism Association said that Vietnam in general and Da Nang in particular are possessing many favorable conditions to develop this segment.
Da Nang has advantages in aviation connectivity with 50 - 55 international flights per day during peak season; diverse tourism resources with sea, mountains and cultural heritage; synchronous infrastructure system and high-quality resort network, comparable to Phuket, Hawaii or Bali but more competitive in price," Mr. Dung assessed.
According to Mr. Dung, infrastructure, landscape and service systems are the foundation to attract international wedding groups. What determines the attractiveness of the destination is the ability to design a suitable itinerary for many different groups of guests, from brides and grooms to families, friends and young children. When each member of the group has their own experiences, the length of stay and spending is also extended.
From a business perspective, Mr. Nguyen Van Hieu - General Director of Vitamin Tours & Events, realized that international visitors are increasingly interested in the overall experience of the entire trip rather than the wedding ceremony space alone.
International tourists no longer see the wedding as a lavish event taking place for a few hours. They want the whole trip to become a complete experience for family and friends, from resorts, cuisine to exploring destinations," Mr. Hieu said.
According to Mr. Hieu, this is also the reason why wedding tourism is considered a segment with high economic value. A group of guests often stays for many days and uses accommodation, transportation, food, shopping, entertainment and sightseeing services at the same time. The source of spending is thereby spread to many businesses, while contributing to increasing revenue and extending the length of stay of tourists at the destination.
