Vietnam is gradually affirming its position as one of the attractive sports destinations in the region. If previously the races mainly attracted domestic participants, now Vietnam has formed a system of tournaments taking place year-round, from Hanoi, Ho Chi Minh City, Da Nang to Hue, Sa Pa, Da Lat or Phu Quoc, Con Dao.
Every year, Vietnam organizes dozens of races with many different scales, stretching from mountains, highlands to islands and modern cities or heritage cities. According to data from Traveloka, the Ho Chi Minh City Marathon taking place from January 9-11 this year has created attraction beyond the scope of a sports tournament. The demand for tourism is increasing in all markets that the platform tracks, notably Korea (+206%), Japan (+109%) and Singapore (+107%). This shows that Ho Chi Minh City and Vietnam are gradually being seen as a "runcation" destination - a place where tourists combine participating in the race and enjoying a vacation.
Not only marathons, Vietnam also possesses many conditions to develop triathlon (three sports combined swimming – cycling – running), ultra marathons or outdoor sports events into international brands.
The special feature of sports tourism is that the event is only the starting point of the trip. Today, many athletes and fans plan from many months in advance, book air tickets, hotels and spend more time exploring destinations before or after the competition day. A marathon lasting several hours can create a 3-5-day vacation, with a series of accompanying activities such as enjoying local cuisine, visiting scenic spots, shopping or experiencing local culture.
As the leading integrated travel platform in Southeast Asia, Traveloka accompanies tourists throughout the journey, from finding air tickets, booking hotels to exploring destinations and sports events. Integrating services on the same platform helps users easily plan their trip, while maximizing experiences at the destination instead of just participating in events and then returning.
Besides traditional running events, Vietnam is gradually making sports a typical tourism product of many localities.
With landscape advantages, an increasingly rich tournament system and the ability to combine sports, culture and resorts, Vietnam is facing a great opportunity to become an attractive sports destination in the region and the world, making each tournament a complete tourism journey, contributing to improving the competitiveness of Vietnamese tourism on the regional and world map.
