Rectifying non-aviation service prices at some major airports

A few days ago, while waiting to board a plane at Noi Bai International Airport, a female passenger bought a sandwich to fill her stomach. Her feeling was that the quality of the sandwich was very average, if not bad, but the price was “super expensive”: 7.8 USD, equivalent to 208,000 VND.

A char siu pork sandwich sold by Bigbowl at Noi Bai airport costs 7.8 USD, equivalent to 208,000 VND.

According to her reflection, inside the sandwich there was only a little pork and vegetables, the flavor was normal and nothing special. Although we know that airport food is usually more expensive than outside, the price was too expensive.

This is a common situation that has been going on for a long time at many major airports in Vietnam such as Noi Bai, Tan Son Nhat, etc. Most of the food has “sky-high” prices, commonly 3-4 times higher, and some items even cost nearly ten times more than outside the airport.

More than 10 years ago, the issue of sky-high prices for bottles of water and bowls of instant noodles at the airport caused public outrage, forcing the leaders of specialized management ministries to personally intervene to rectify and handle the situation, and after that, the prices of items sold at the airport "cooled down". However, recently, this situation has tended to recur.

Some passengers who often travel abroad by air for work or vacation also have to complain because compared to many airports in other countries such as Singapore, Indonesia, Malaysia, Korea, China, etc., especially in the international departure area, the prices at Vietnamese airports are much more expensive. Normally, in other countries, food sold at the airport is only about 20-30% higher than outside, not "inflated" 5-7 times as much as at Vietnamese airports.

Many items sold at Vietnamese airports are priced too high compared to the general market level.

According to some experts, due to having to bear many types of costs, prices at the airport are often higher than outside. Airports are often isolated from residential areas, far from the center, the cost of premises, personnel, and freight is very high; food at the airport also requires very high standards of food hygiene and safety, product origin, and processing is also strictly controlled, etc.

On July 16, the Civil Aviation Authority of Vietnam said that it had reported to the Ministry of Construction regarding the incident of bread priced at VND208,000 at Noi Bai International Airport that has been reported by public opinion recently. Immediately after the incident, Noi Bai International Airport coordinated with the Northern Airport Authority to verify and clarify.

According to the verification results, the bread product that the customer reported is from the Bigbowl store in the quarantine area (3rd floor, Terminal T2), a famous brand store at major airports in Vietnam (Tan Son Nhat, Phu Quoc, Da Nang , Cam Ranh) and has been registered for trademark protection at the Department of Intellectual Property.

The char siu pork sandwich product uses pork imported from Brazil with a weight of about 200 grams. The product's selling price is fully listed, public, and easily recognizable at the counter in accordance with current regulations. In addition to the above product, the store also provides other types of sandwiches with prices from 2.1 USD and up to serve the diverse consumption needs of customers.

At Terminal T2 of Noi Bai International Airport, there are currently 24 stalls operating food and beverage services with a variety of products and services from essential goods according to regulations. The prices of products and services are publicly listed from 20,000 VND in public areas and from 1.5 USD/product in quarantine areas.

Currently, Noi Bai International Airport is cooperating in non-aviation services including: food and beverage; souvenir shops; duty-free business, etc. Units providing non-aviation services at the airport all comply with regulations on essential goods; ensure service quality regarding the origin and source of goods, and at the same time fully, publicly and transparently list prices according to regulations.

When hearing the explanation that the char siu pork sandwich product “uses imported pork ingredients from Brazil”, many people will assume that imported ingredients should be expensive. However, the reality is not necessarily so. According to preliminary statistics from the Customs Department, in the first 5 months of 2025, Vietnam imported 366.8 thousand tons of meat and meat products, worth 735.29 million USD, up 9.6% in volume and 14.6% in value over the same period last year.

Vietnam's imports of fresh chilled or frozen pork in the first 5 months of 2025 reached 56.1 thousand tons, worth 149.66 million USD, up 77.7% in volume and 112.3% in value over the same period. The average import price of fresh chilled or frozen pork to Vietnam in the 5 months was 2,661 USD/ton, up 19.5% over the first 5 months of 2024. This means that the average import price is less than 2.7 USD/kg (equivalent to about 70 thousand VND), cheaper than domestic fresh pork.

The Civil Aviation Authority of Vietnam requires a review of the operations of organizations and individuals providing services at the airport, ensuring service quality and passenger rights.

The Civil Aviation Authority of Vietnam has directed the Northern Airport Authority to conduct daily inspections and supervisions according to the plan for non-aviation service provision activities, including service quality, prices of essential basic services and price listing according to regulations, and at the same time requested Noi Bai International Airport to strengthen supervision and review of the activities of organizations and individuals providing services at the terminal, ensuring service quality and legitimate rights of passengers.

In addition, the Department also issued a document requesting the Vietnam Airports Corporation (ACV), the unit that manages airports, including Noi Bai International Airport Strengthen the direction of non-aviation service provision activities at airports; promptly correct any shortcomings that affect the quality of service provision at passenger terminals and the legitimate rights of customers; ensure standards and quality of services and products sold; publicly list prices; ensure civility, politeness and thoughtfulness.

It is true that the prices of airport services are different from the general market due to the many costs involved, but they must be within the acceptable range of the market and cannot be unreasonably high, causing prolonged resentment in public opinion.

In the eyes of tourists and international friends, the airport is the face of the country. Therefore, to improve the quality of passenger service, maintain the position and image of the national gateway, the competent management agencies need to strictly control, detect and strictly handle units, organizations and individuals who abuse their monopoly position in business at the airport area to unreasonably raise or lower the prices of services and goods.

Source: https://baoquangninh.vn/chan-chinh-gia-ca-dich-vu-phi-hang-khong-tai-mot-so-san-bay-lon-3367157.html