According to data from the Statistics Office, in the first 7 months of 2026, Vietnam welcomed 13.9 million international visitors, an increase of 13.8% compared to the same period last year. Of which, visitors arriving by air reached 11.5 million, accounting for 82.8% of the total number of international visitors.
Notably, the two largest sending markets, China and South Korea, both recorded decreases compared to the same period. Accordingly, China still ranked first with more than 3.084 million visitors but a decrease of 1.1%, while South Korea decreased by 5.5%.
In July alone, the number of Korean tourists to Vietnam reached 226,248, down 28.6% compared to the same period in 2025.
Talking to Lao Dong Newspaper, Ms. Tran Thi Bao Thu - Marketing - Communication Director of Vietluxtour - said that it is necessary to recognize this development in the context of seasonal factors and the general trend of the market.
According to Vietluxtour, this trend is not worrying if it only appears in one month, especially when the total number of international visitors in 7 months still increased by 13.8% compared to the same period.
South Korea and China continue to be two strategic source markets; what needs to be monitored is the continuous trend for at least 2-3 months, pre-order time, stay time, spending level and conversion ability according to each segment," Ms. Thu said.
According to Ms. Thu, July is a relatively low season for international visitors to Vietnam. In addition, rainy weather at some destinations, summer vacations in source markets, the shift to domestic tourism or destinations with cooler climates, along with fluctuations in airfares and airline operating capacity can all cause the number of visitors to fluctuate monthly.
Agreeing with this view, Mr. Nguyen Tien Dat - CEO of AZA Travel, Vice Chairman of Hanoi Tourism Association - said that the decrease in the Korean market after a period of strong growth is a normal development.
The decrease in Korean tourists after reaching a peak in 2025 is normal. In fact, the tourism demand of Vietnamese people in this country is still high," Mr. Dat assessed.
According to Mr. Dat, in recent years, in addition to Da Nang, Phu Quoc has become a destination chosen by many Korean tourists and is strongly promoted by travel companies in Korea. However, July is also the time when Phu Quoc enters the rainy season, the sea is rough, not favorable for resort activities. This may be one of the reasons for the short-term decrease in the number of Korean tourists.
Ms. Tran Thi Bao Thu also said that the fluctuations of a month do not reflect the long-term trend of the market.
For businesses, a monthly stagnation is a signal to adjust products, not a signal to reverse the market. We will continue to develop specialized products for family customers, M.I.C.E., golf, resorts, culture - cuisine; and expand the inter-regional journey and seasonal communication to increase attractiveness in the autumn-winter period," Ms. Thu said.
According to travel businesses, the total number of international visitors still maintains a double-digit growth momentum. In the coming time, diversifying the source market and improving product quality will be an important factor to maintain the growth momentum of Vietnamese tourism.
