Countries step up to attract Vietnamese tourists

(PLVN) - With the combination of unique culture, attractive landscapes, favorable tourism policies and special tours, Korea and Singapore are becoming two leading international destinations for Vietnamese tourists in recent years.

Many special tours

In the first 6 months of 2025, the Korea Tourism Organization in Vietnam (KTO Vietnam) has implemented many large-scale and effective tourism promotion programs. Notably, the campaign "Spring and Summer Visit Korea, Fragrant Flowers and Sunshine" was launched in collaboration with 20 travel companies in Vietnam to promote Korea's unique spring and summer tourism products, with thousands of gifts for Vietnamese tourists and support for Korean travel experience costs up to 50,000 won/tourist (about 900 thousand VND).

KTO also actively participates in domestic events, such as the VITM 2025 International Tourism Fair in Hanoi , together with local promotion agencies from Jeju, Busan, Suwon, Gyeongsangbuk..., bringing a series of rich experiences that attract a large number of visitors. In addition, the Korea Travel Mart 2025 event was successfully held, gathering more than 20 Korean tourism businesses and more than 100 partners from Vietnam.

Each region in Korea has its own color and tells its own story. (Photo: KTO)

The program “Be the Kreator” has selected and connected with 20 young Vietnamese content creators living and studying in Korea, aiming to spread the image of Korea through a new, creative and close perspective. Through popular social networking platforms such as Facebook and TikTok, the program hopes to bring the image of Korean tourism closer to Vietnamese tourists, especially young, dynamic tourists who love cultural experiences.

In the first 6 months of 2025, KTO Vietnam will continue to strengthen the presence and influence of Korean tourism in Vietnam through a series of large-scale events. Notably, the Korea Travel Festa 2025 is expected to be held in Ho Chi Minh City with a scale of reaching about 70,000 Vietnamese tourists who love to travel, bringing many attractive cultural and entertainment exchange activities such as Korean cultural and tourism experiences, performances by famous Kpop artists and especially exchange activities with players of the Korean League of Legends Championship.

Ms. Park Eun Jung, Chief Representative of the Korea Tourism Organization in Vietnam, shared that through a series of diverse promotional activities, KTO is actively developing specialized tourism products such as K-Culture tour, Premium tour, Sports tour, as well as supporting charter groups to Korea. KTO hopes to bring Vietnamese tourists new, unique and authentic Korean experiences.

By the end of May this year, Korea welcomed 224,000 tourists from Vietnam, an increase of 11% over the same period in 2024. It is expected that in 2025, Korea will continue to welcome more than 500,000 visitors from Vietnam and maintain its achievements to be one of the Southeast Asian markets with the highest number of visitors to Korea.

Singapore welcomes families and adventure-loving travelers. (Photo: STB)

During the summer, Singapore welcomes families and adventurous, youthful-spirited visitors to explore a world of creativity, brimming with color and fun through a series of interactive exhibitions and pop culture events. From toy exhibitions, vibrant storytelling spaces to national record-breaking performances, all promise to bring fun and memorable moments to visitors of all ages. For example: the interactive exhibition “The Little Prince: The journey of stars”, Coming to “Wings of art 2025”, visitors will admire the longest barbie catwalk in Singapore, up to 60 meters, with 1,060 barbie dolls with wings on display. Notably, Asia’s largest art toy event Pop toy show Singapore returns to Singapore in August at the Sands Expo and Convention Center. The event featured over 150 booths and impressive displays. Visitors also had the opportunity to interact with artists, participate in sketching sessions and find unique limited edition toys.

The Peranakan Museum has partnered with OpenAI and French artificial intelligence studio Ask Mona to allow visitors to converse with some of the museum’s most iconic artifacts through AI technology. Among them are kamcheng jars, intricately carved traditional objects once used for storage, along with rare archival photographs. Combining storytelling, cultural education, and interactive technology, the experience builds on visitors’ natural curiosity and desire to learn, thereby contributing to a more personal and intimate connection.

It is known that as of May 31, 2025, the total number of international visitors to Singapore reached 7.09 million, with nearly 130,000 visitors from Vietnam.

The appeal comes from tradition mixed with modernity

South Korea and Singapore are two Asian countries that are geographically close to Vietnam, only 3 to 6 hours flight from Hanoi, Ho Chi Minh City or Da Nang. Short travel time and high flight frequency make these two countries the top choices for short vacations, family tours or personal travel.

Korea always attracts Vietnamese tourists.

Not only convenient in terms of distance, both Korea and Singapore score points with Vietnamese tourists thanks to the harmonious combination of modernity and tradition. In Korea, tourists can easily experience the ancient royal culture at Gyeongbokgung Palace, wear hanbok and stroll around the ancient village of Bukchon, and immerse themselves in the vibrant life at Myeongdong shopping street or the modern Gangnam district. Meanwhile, Singapore brings the image of a clean, modern island nation, but still well-preserved cultural areas such as Little India, Chinatown, Kampong Glam - places that vividly demonstrate the exchange between Asian and European cultures.

Many people choose to travel to Korea not only to ski, but also to visit the filming locations of famous TV dramas or join K-pop concert tours, visit idol artists' stores, and even cafes and restaurants that they often appear on social media.

Similarly, Singapore has emerged as a hub for international music events, light festivals, and modern theme parks such as Universal Studios and Jewel Changi, which features the world’s largest indoor waterfall. These factors attract a particularly young group of visitors who love experiences, selfies, and technology.

In addition, the cuisine of these two countries has also become a big plus. From street food such as tokbokki, gimbap, Korean spicy chicken to high-class specialties such as hanwoo grilled beef or ginseng soup - Korean cuisine has become very familiar to Vietnamese people through movies and domestic restaurants. When coming to Korea, tourists are even more excited because they can eat the "original" food.

Red leaf season in Korea. (Photo: KTO)

Singapore is famous for its multicultural cuisine. Just by visiting a hawker center (food market), visitors can enjoy typical dishes from China, India, Malaysia to the West. Hainanese chicken rice, frog porridge, laksa or kaya toast are considered by many Vietnamese tourists to be both delicious and accessible.

In addition, the convenient public transportation system, high security, friendliness of local people and clean environment are factors that make Vietnamese tourists - especially families with young children or the elderly - feel secure and satisfied when choosing Korea or Singapore.

Both Korea and Singapore have invested heavily in communications and tourism promotion in Vietnam - from television campaigns, fan meetings with Korean artists, tourism fairs to cooperation with KOLs and Vietnamese travel bloggers. Building the image of a safe, youthful destination, easy to check-in and with many "Instagrammable" experiences has hit the psychology of young Vietnamese people - a group of customers that is making up an increasingly large proportion of the Vietnamese tourism market.

Bao Chau

Source: https://baophapluat.vn/cac-quoc-gia-day-manh-thu-hut-du-khach-viet-post552487.html