According to data from the tourism industry, in 2025 Vietnam welcomed about 746,000 Indian tourists, making this South Asian country Vietnam's 6th largest international tourist market, only after China, South Korea, Taiwan (China), Japan and the United States.
In the first 4 months of 2026, the number of visitors from India continued to increase sharply, reaching more than 324,000, an increase of about 35% compared to the same period last year.
Not only increasing sharply in the number of tourists, the Indian market is also assessed as a group of tourists with high spending, who like high-end experiences and have the ability to create strong media effects on social networks. There are many reasons why Vietnam has become a favorite destination for Indian tourists in recent times.
New destination" for Indian tourists
For many years, Indian tourists have often prioritized familiar destinations such as Thailand, Singapore or Dubai. However, in recent years, Vietnam has begun to emerge as a new choice thanks to the combination of nature, culture, cuisine and reasonable costs.
Rahul Bali - a Bollywood producer who has implemented film projects in Vietnam, said that Vietnam has a very unique attraction to Indian tourists because it brings a new feeling and creates closeness.
According to him, few destinations in Asia possess many types of landscapes as far away as Vietnam: from mountains, bays, terraced fields to modern cities and ancient towns.
This is a destination where many different stories can be told," said Mr. Rahul Bali when mentioning Vietnam as a film-rich destination. He believes that Vietnam's landscape has a rare diversity, from the majestic beauty of Ha Long Bay, the ancient beauty of Hoi An to the tropical beaches in Phu Quoc or the vibrant pace of life in Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City.
Not only ordinary resort tourists, Vietnam is also emerging as a destination chosen by Indian wealthy people to organize lavish weddings and MICE events.
Million-dollar weddings with hundreds of guests in Phu Quoc or Da Nang in recent years have contributed to strongly promoting the image of Vietnamese tourism to the middle and upper class of India.
Vietnamese cuisine scores points with Indian tourists
According to travel businesses, cuisine is one of the factors that surprises many Indian tourists when coming to Vietnam.
Contrary to initial concerns about taste differences, many Indian tourists assess that Vietnamese food is easier to access than many other countries thanks to the use of many vegetables, fresh foods and not too heavy spices.
Rahul Bali believes that Vietnamese dishes are famous for their balance and freshness, and there are increasingly more vegetarian food options suitable for Indian tourists.
A representative of a high-class hotel in Hanoi said that Indian guests are often particularly interested in service quality and culinary experience. Accordingly, many groups of guests have very detailed requirements on ingredients, spices or tastes. Some high-class groups even bring their own chefs throughout the trip.
This is causing more and more hotels, resorts and restaurants in Vietnam to add Indian dishes, vegetarian dishes or chefs specializing in serving South Asian groups.
Vietnamese cuisine with many vegetables, light spices, fresh food and increasingly many choices of vegetarian dishes also helps Indian tourists easily adapt to long-day trips.
Hospitality helps Vietnam create differentiation
In addition to the landscape and cuisine, many experts assess that the factor that helps Vietnam score points with Indian tourists is friendliness and hospitality.
Producer Rahul Bali commented that what really makes Vietnam attractive lies in the people who are "warm, disciplined and wholeheartedly devoted to the country".
According to him, many tourists feel sincerely welcomed instead of simply using tourism services.
According to tourism businesses, one of the factors helping Vietnam score points is friendliness and hospitality. Many Indian tourists assess that they feel welcomed instead of simply using services.
Direct flight creates a major boost
The strong development of direct flights between the two countries is one of the important reasons driving the rapid increase in the number of passengers.
Currently, Vietnam Airlines operates many routes connecting Hanoi, Ho Chi Minh City with New Delhi, Mumbai, Bengaluru or Hyderabad. Meanwhile, IndiGo also expanded direct flights to Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City.
Flight time of only about 4-5 hours helps Vietnam become a suitable choice for short vacations for family guests, groups of young friends or guests combining tourism - conferences.
On the other hand, producer Rahul Bali believes that Vietnam needs to open more routes to smaller cities in India, expand vegetarian food choices and strengthen tourism promotion in the South Asian market.
Social media helps Vietnam reach out to Indian youth
Over the past time, destinations such as Phu Quoc, Hoi An, Ha Long or Hanoi have appeared more and more on Instagram, YouTube and short video platforms of Indian youth.
Beaches, cafes, coastal resorts or yacht experiences are becoming content that attracts a large amount of interaction. This trend is helping Vietnam move from a "newly emerging" destination to a priority choice for many Indian tourists.
However, experts believe that to maintain growth momentum, Vietnam needs to continue to improve service quality, expand support in English and Hindi, and develop more separate products for wedding guests, MICE guests and high-end resort guests.
