The report "Southeast Asia Situation 2026" recently released by the Institute for Southeast Asian Studies (ISEAS) is based on a survey of more than 2,000 experts, scholars, entrepreneurs and policymakers from 11 countries in the region.
According to survey results, Thailand, Singapore, Malaysia and Vietnam are the 4 most popular destinations in ASEAN. Among them, Singapore leads in choosing places to live and work, while Thailand is the most popular tourist destination.
Vietnam is highly appreciated in both tourism and living environment criteria, thereby affirming its increasing attraction to people in the region.
The report shows that the decision to choose a tourist destination is often influenced by factors such as exchange rates, reasonable costs and the effectiveness of promotional campaigns. Meanwhile, choosing a place to live and work reflects longer-term factors such as quality of life, social environment and development opportunities.
Experts believe that the survey results partly reflect the "soft power" of each country. This is the ability to create attractiveness through culture, lifestyle, social values and the quality of the living environment, instead of relying on economic or military power.
Dr. Irna Nurlina Binte Masron, a researcher at ISEAS - Yusof Ishak Institute, said that the difference between countries favored for tourism and countries chosen for living shows that soft power comes not only from the attraction to short-term tourists but also from the ability to create an attractive environment for learning, working and long-term development.
Vietnam's presence in the top ASEAN destination group takes place in the context that the tourism industry continues to record many positive signs. In recent years, Vietnam has been continuously honored by international organizations and prestigious tourism awards thanks to its diverse landscape, rich cultural resources, reasonable costs and increasingly upgraded tourism infrastructure.
According to data from the Statistics Office, in April 2026, Vietnam welcomed about 2.03 million international visitors. In general, in the first 4 months of the year, the number of international visitors reached 8.8 million, an increase of nearly 15% compared to the same period last year.
This is also the first time after 18 years of statistical monitoring that Vietnam's tourism has recorded 4 consecutive months receiving over 2 million international visitors per month, showing the strong recovery and growth momentum of the industry.
The ISEAS report also shows that people in the 5 largest ASEAN economies including Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines, Thailand and Vietnam all tend to prioritize domestic tourism. Notably, up to 85.7% of Thai people surveyed said they still prioritize domestic trips over overseas tourism.
Experts predict that the trend of migration of tourism, education and labor in the region will continue to increase in the coming time, as the middle class in Southeast Asia expands and connectivity between countries in the region is improved.
