Thailand could be the focus of Southeast Asia's tourism industry this year. chosen as the setting for the hit TV series The White Lotus season 3, Thailand is increasingly attracting foreign tourists who are very interested in the land of the Golden Temple.
Bloomberg reported that a nearby destination is outperforming in terms of growth. That is Vietnam - the third most visited country in Southeast Asia. The number of international visitors to Vietnam in 2024 is 17.5 million, Singapore is ranked 4th with 16.5 million. Meanwhile, Malaysia ranked second with 25 million international visitors and Thailand ranked first with more than 35 million visitors.
These figures make Vietnam the leading country in Southeast Asia in terms of tourism recovery speed after COVID-19. Vietnam regained 98% of the international visitors recorded in 2019, surpassing all countries in the region including Thailand (87.5%) and Singapore (86%).
From all aspects, Vietnam's popularity continues to skyrocket. According to data from the Vietnam Tourism Administration, in the first 2 months of 2025 alone, nearly 4 million international visitors have arrived in Vietnam, an increase of 30.2% over the same period last year.
There are many factors that explain Vietnam's increasing attractiveness to international visitors, in which access plays the most important role.
The first direct flight between the US and Vietnam, connecting San Francisco with Ho Chi Minh City, will be operated by Vietnam Airlines in 2021. Vietnam's new electronic visa policy will be applied in 2023, helping to simplify entry procedures for international visitors and increase the length of stay to 90 days, three times higher than before.
In addition, Vietnam exempts visas for citizens of many countries including Germany, France, Italy, Spain, the United Kingdom and Northern Ireland, Russia, Japan, Korea, Denmark, Sweden, Norway, and Finland.
A series of the world's leading hotel brands appearing in Vietnam also contributed to attracting international visitors. Recently opened new hotels include Regent Phu Quoc, Capella Hanoi and JW Marriott Hotel & Suites Saigon. Other luxury hotels of famous brands such as Luxury Collection, Ritz-Carlton Reserve and Park Hyatt are all under construction in Vietnam.
Michelin Guide expanding the restaurant rankings in Vietnam in 2024 has created a global foundation for this developing culinary industry.
These are making Vietnam increasingly attractive to luxury travelers - those who have been to Koh Samui and Phuket in Thailand, or those who are looking for a different, less crowded alternative destination than Japan and Singapore.
According to Mike Nguyen, founder of high-end travel agency Ansova Travel based in Ho Chi Minh City, the above factors have prompted the company's number of international booking guests to increase by 25% compared to the same period last year and far exceed pre- Covid-19.
It is expected that in 2025, the number of bookings will increase by 20-30%. This company mainly welcomes American and Indian guests and in 2024, they will return to Phu Quoc, Ha Long to organize lavish weddings.
Along with that, simplified visa procedures and increased direct flights have prompted more than half a million Indian visitors to travel to Vietnam in 2024, an increase of 297% compared to pre-pandemic levels.
The source of heavy-spending Chinese visitors has also become an important source of growth for Vietnamese tourism.
Bloomberg said that there is no sign that the heat of Vietnam's tourism will cool down in the near future.
By the end of 2025, Vietnam is expected to break the record for international visitors in 2019, with the goal of welcoming 23 million.
In March 2026, Long Thanh International Airport is expected to welcome the first flight to Ho Chi Minh City to increase Vietnam's passenger capacity to 25 million.
