A survey on some ticket booking platforms on June 17 shows that airfares on many key tourist routes are significantly lower than the peak period last year.
Typically, the Hanoi - Nha Trang round-trip route in August and September has the lowest price of about 2.4-2.9 million VND/person. Some routes to Phu Quoc or Da Nang also have many price levels below 2 million VND/way if booked early or choose flexible time slots.
The cooling down of airfares is considered one of the important factors driving summer tourism demand.
Mr. Bui Thanh Tu - Marketing Director of BestPrice Travel said that the reduction in airfares has a direct impact on people's travel decisions because this is one of the largest expenses in total travel costs.
In the previous period, many customers had travel needs but delayed because of high ticket prices, especially on routes such as Hanoi - Phu Quoc, Hanoi - Quy Nhon, Ho Chi Minh City - Hanoi or near international routes such as Thailand, Singapore, Malaysia. When air tickets are softer, this group of customers tends to return to booking tours," Mr. Tu said.
According to travel businesses, the group of destinations that benefit most clearly are localities with high dependence on aviation.
Ms. Tran Thi Bao Thu - Marketing and Communications Director of Vietluxtour commented: "The groups of destinations that benefit most clearly are routes heavily dependent on aviation, especially Phu Quoc, Da Nang, Hue, Quy Nhon, Nha Trang, Da Lat, Hanoi - Ha Long - Ninh Binh and some routes connecting the North and Central regions.
When ticket prices decrease, these destinations regain a competitive advantage compared to the group of road destinations near Ho Chi Minh City.
Meanwhile, Mr. Bui Thanh Tu also said that Phu Quoc, Da Nang, Nha Trang, Quy Nhon, Phu Yen and Da Lat are the localities that benefit most clearly from the trend of reduced airfares. These are all destinations suitable for sea resort needs, family tourism and trips from 3-5 days in the summer.
Not only helping to increase the number of passengers, reduced airfares also create conditions for travel businesses to build products with more accessible prices.
According to Vietluxtour, aviation costs currently account for about 30-45% of domestic tours using aircraft. For nearby international routes, this proportion ranges from 25-40%. When ticket prices decrease, domestic air tours currently have prices about 5-10% lower than the ticket price increase period before.
Mr. Bui Thanh Tu added: "When airfares decrease, the actual tour price may decrease by about 5-15% compared to the high ticket price period, depending on the route".
However, businesses believe that cheap prices are no longer the only decisive factor. After a period of tightening spending, tourists are increasingly focused on the real value of the trip.
Tourists not only ask how much the tour costs, but ask more carefully if the tour is worth it," Ms. Tran Thi Bao Thu shared.
This trend is clearly shown when many families choose relaxing vacations, less travel, prioritizing local experiences, sea resorts and quality services instead of dense sightseeing schedules as before.
From now until the end of the summer peak season, travel businesses forecast that tourism demand will continue to grow positively. Among them, destinations with convenient routes, competitive ticket prices and stable accommodation and service systems such as Phu Quoc, Da Nang, Nha Trang or Quy Nhon are expected to continue to be the group that benefits the most from the cooling trend of airfare prices.
