Foreign tours still dominate
More than a month before the Tet holiday, Hoang Phong (27 years old, Cau Giay district, Hanoi) and a group of friends booked a tour to Kunming - Dali (China) for less than 8 million VND for 4 days and 4 nights.
“Taking advantage of the long holiday, free from work, my friends and I decided to go abroad to celebrate Lunar New Year to change the atmosphere. The group decided on a road tour to save money and have more experiences of sightseeing along the way while taking the high-speed train in the neighboring country,” shared the young man who currently works in the IT sector.
In fact, cheap China tours are one of the dominant Tet tourism products, due to their close geographical distance, convenient transportation, diverse products and destinations, and cheap prices. Some popular tours include the Jiuzhaigou - Jiagushan, Guizhou, Beijing - Shanghai, and Phoenix Ancient Town routes, with prices ranging from 6.9 to 17.4 million VND.
Mr. Bui Thanh Tu - Marketing Director of BestPrice - said that the rate of tourists registering for Tet tours is about 80% international tours and 20% domestic tours. The most interested foreign destinations are China, Korea, Japan, Singapore, accounting for more than 50% of tour bookings. For the domestic market, the top destinations are Sa Pa, Ha Long, Phu Quoc, Da Nang, Da Lat. "This trend shows a significant increase in the demand for foreign travel of Vietnamese tourists during the peak Tet season this year" - the representative of this business analyzed.
Airfare affects traveler choice
According to travel agencies, the first holiday of 2025 recorded positive growth in the number of domestic tour buyers, but tourism demand was not evenly distributed among domestic destinations.
In general, travelers still consider the cost of airfare a lot. Travelers tend to look for products that combine package deals, hunt for promotional packages from airlines or travel businesses, plan early and reserve seats in advance to enjoy good prices or switch to closer locations to save costs.
Tourist cities that have recorded growth are: Da Lat, Nha Trang, Sa Pa, Ha Giang, Ha Long... because they are close to big cities and convenient to travel by road.
“Places that are receiving little attention such as Da Nang, Phu Quoc... due to travel restrictions, high airfares and frequent overload during major holidays” - Mr. Bui Thanh Tu analyzed.
According to general assessment, airfares during Lunar New Year this year will remain high, with an increase of 10% - 15% compared to the same period in 2024. The peak period is from the 2nd day of Tet to the 6th day, when many people return.
“The number of domestic tourism products traveling by plane during Tet 2025 is expected to increase slightly by about 20% compared to the same period last year, despite airfares still being a significant obstacle. This trend is mainly driven by increased tourism demand due to the long Lunar New Year holiday,” said a business representative.
A representative of a ticket office in Hai Ba Trung District (Hanoi) shared that the ticket prices for flights from Ho Chi Minh City to other localities are higher than the return flights during the period before Tet holiday. For flights scheduled to depart on the day of the holiday, the ticket prices for the Ho Chi Minh City - Hanoi route increased by about 10-20% compared to the period before the holiday. Meanwhile, the ticket prices in the return direction are lower, because airlines have to fly "off-peak" during this peak season.
Travel demand during the 2025 Lunar New Year has increased sharply, especially on flights from Ho Chi Minh City to the Central, Northern and Central Highlands regions. Responding to this trend, Vietnamese airlines have added 70,000 seats, bringing the total supply to more than 7 million seats, up 5% over the same period last year, with a focus on domestic flights.
