From the Blackpink "fever" to G-Dragon's record mark
In recent years, international concerts continuously taking place in Hanoi are showing a spread beyond the entertainment sector, becoming a driving force for tourism industry growth.
The clearest proof is Blackpink's two Born Pink concerts at the end of July 2023.
According to statistics from the Hanoi tourism industry, during the two days of the event, the Capital welcomed more than 170,000 visitors, including about 30,000 international visitors, with total tourism revenue reaching about 630 billion VND.
Many hotels in the My Dinh area and city center recorded a sharp increase in room occupancy, while the number of visitors to famous tourist attractions also increased by 15-20%.
This effect continues to be extended with two performances in G-Dragon's Übermensch tour in 2025.
According to the organizers, the event attracted about 100,000 spectators, becoming the show of international artists with the largest number of attendees ever held in Vietnam.
Hanoi is also the stop with the second largest audience in the male artist's entire world tour, only after Tokyo Dome of Japan.
Not only bringing revenue to the performing arts industry, music festivals also attract the need for accommodation, food, transportation and sightseeing. Tens of thousands of audiences from many localities and countries have chosen to come to Hanoi to combine concerts and tourism.
In particular, thousands of videos, images and posts on international social networking platforms after each concert have contributed to naturally promoting the image of Hanoi and neighboring provinces and cities, from Hoan Kiem Lake, the Old Quarter to street food.
This is a form of destination communication that has a strong spread to young tourist groups - subjects who tend to spend heavily and regularly share travel experiences.
Big Bang and the opportunity to make Hanoi a music destination in Asia
Recently, YG Entertainment continued to announce Hanoi as one of the 18 cities of Big Bang's 20th anniversary world tour.
According to the schedule, the group will hold two concert nights at My Dinh National Stadium on October 24 and 25, 2026. This is Big Bang's first world tour after nearly a decade and is considered one of the most anticipated K-pop events of the year.
Hanoi's appearance along with major destinations such as London, Paris, Tokyo, Osaka, Sydney, Bangkok or Singapore shows the increasing attractiveness of the Vietnamese market to international organizers.
Mr. Nguyen Van Hieu, General Director of Vitamin Tours & Events Company, once commented: "Guests coming to see concerts often have travel needs in nearby destinations, around the city or the event area. Customers are mainly young people with good spending ability.
Therefore, travel businesses often proactively design short-day product packages such as Hanoi city tours, night food tours, or tours combined with sightseeing to Ha Long - Ninh Binh - Sa Pa after concerts to attract tourists, especially international tourists".
According to representatives of travel businesses, these products not only help extend the length of stay but also increase the average spending of tourists, while creating opportunities to promote Vietnamese landscapes, culture and cuisine more deeply.
In fact, many countries such as Thailand, Singapore or South Korea have turned international music festivals into an important part of the tourism and night economy development strategy.
With Blackpink, G-Dragon and soon Big Bang continuously being welcomed, Hanoi is having the opportunity to gradually affirm its position as a new music destination in Asia.
However, to turn temporary "fevers" into long-term advantages, synchronous coordination between the tourism industry, travel businesses, event organizers and management agencies is needed. From transportation infrastructure, accommodation to policies to support international event organization, all need to be invested methodically to improve the competitiveness of destinations.
