Airfares are more expensive than during peak Tet holiday season.
Preparing himself mentally for the journey to Hanoi to attend the nation's historic ceremony, Mr. Quang Huy (living in Thu Duc, Ho Chi Minh City) had already bought a plane ticket and booked a hotel room so he was not caught up in the "whirlwind" of sold-out rooms and tickets in the past few days. "I bought a round-trip ticket of Vietjet from Ho Chi Minh City to Hanoi on Sunday (August 31), flying back on Wednesday (September 3) more than 2 months ago and it was already more than 5 million VND. Now that the ceremony is approaching, the price must be high," he said.
People across the country are turning to the capital to welcome the nation's historic celebration.
Photo: Dinh Huy
As Mr. Quang Huy predicted, the closer to the grand ceremony, when information and images of the series of "national concerts" were revealed, the more people "had appointments with the capital". Although airlines continuously increased flights, most of them achieved high occupancy rates and "hot" prices. For example, on the first day of the September 2 holiday (August 30), there were about 70 - 80 flights from Ho Chi Minh City to Hanoi operated by 5 airlines, spread across all time slots from 5 am to 11 pm. Of which, Vietjet's cheapest tickets will be on early morning flights, around 2.5 million VND/way. Some noon or evening flights using large Airbus A330 aircraft also sell business class tickets for more than 6.5 million VND/way. Bamboo Airways' evening flights still have quite affordable fares compared to the general level, more than 2.2 million VND/way. Other flights are scattered throughout the day with prices ranging from 2.4 - more than 2.7 million VND/way.
Vietnam Airlines is still at the top with flights with economy class tickets skyrocketing to nearly 3.7 million VND/way and some flights only have flexible economy class tickets up to 5.908 million VND/way, business class is over 8.7 million VND/way. With a total cost of about 7.5 - over 9 million VND for a round-trip ticket from Ho Chi Minh City to Hanoi, the airfare for the 2.9 holiday this year is even more expensive than the peak ticket for the Lunar New Year 2025.
Similarly, the Da Nang - Hanoi route also increased to the same level as the summer peak with Vietnam Airlines' economy class ticket prices ranging from VND2,372 million/way, business class VND3,593 million/way. Vietjet Air listed ticket prices ranging from over VND2,2 - 2,8 million/way depending on the ticket class.
Not only are flights to the capital becoming more crowded, airfares for many domestic routes are also bustling and "hotter" as each day counts down to the holiday. From Ho Chi Minh City to Hue to visit her family on August 12, Ms. Ngoc Ngan (living in Tan Hoa Ward) only spent more than 1.2 million VND for a one-way ticket on Vietnam Airlines. Continuing to plan to go to Hue on August 23, her airfare has increased to nearly 1.7 million VND/way. If she postpones just a few more days to the holiday, Ms. Ngoc Ngan will have to spend at least nearly 1.9 million VND/way for a flight from Ho Chi Minh City to Hue.
A representative of Vietnam Airlines said that this year's National Day holiday on September 2 saw a sharp increase in travel demand, with many flights achieving high occupancy rates. Notably, flights from Ho Chi Minh City, Da Nang, Dong Hoi and many localities in the Central and Southern regions to Hanoi have reached 70-80% occupancy rates at the moment. "This shows the special attraction of the capital, where the parade and a series of events celebrating the 80th anniversary of National Day took place. At the same time, traditional tourist routes between Hanoi, Ho Chi Minh City and resort destinations such as Nha Trang, Da Nang, Da Lat, Quy Nhon, and Phu Quoc also recorded high booking rates, reflecting people's demand for travel and relaxation before the new school year," a representative of Vietnam Airlines said.
Train stations and bus stations also began to bustle.
According to statistics from Vietnam Railways Corporation, as of August 21, more than 70,000 train tickets have been sold, reaching 41% compared to the same period in 2024. Saigon Railway Transport Branch also recorded an increase in passenger demand for train travel during the September 2 holiday. The number of tickets sold for travel days from August 29 to September 29 has reached 38,000 tickets (Thong Nhat train and southern region trains). Many trains running in the evening and night of August 29 (the best time to get to Hanoi in time for major ceremonies) have run out of sleeper seats, with only a few sleeper seats in 6-person compartments remaining, and the price is already over 1.7 million VND/way.
Passengers check in at domestic terminal T3, Tan Son Nhat airport
Photo: Independence
Saigon Railway Company said that it has prepared enough vehicles, running more Thong Nhat trains and the southern section to serve people. Particularly, Thong Nhat route organizes 6 regular train pairs. For the southern section, in addition to trains operating on routes from Da Nang and further, the company also organizes 22 additional trips to serve tourism as well as the travel needs of people during this holiday.
Meanwhile, major bus stations in Ho Chi Minh City are also ready to serve the peak of the September 2 holiday with a forecast of an increase of about 10% in passenger numbers compared to the same period last year. Specifically, Mien Tay Bus Station Joint Stock Company forecasts that vehicle output will increase by more than 5% and passengers will increase by more than 7% compared to the same period in 2024. On the peak day of August 30, the number of departing passengers can reach 65,500 passengers/day and the number of departing vehicles will be 2,250 vehicles/day. From August 29 to September 2, the bus station is expected to serve about 227,000 passengers, equivalent to 9,570 trips. Bus routes in the Mekong Delta region will increase by no more than 40% compared to normal ticket prices, the price increase period is 2 days August 29 - 30.
At the new Eastern Bus Station, the total number of passengers is expected to increase by about 27% compared to the same period last year, the number of trips increased by 18%, concentrated on routes from Ho Chi Minh City to Da Nang. From August 30 to September 4, the station served nearly 54,000 passengers with about 2,700 trips. During the peak of August 30-31, there were 13,500-15,100 passengers per day. The new Eastern Bus Station also requires businesses to declare and adjust, and publicly post prices. The maximum ticket price increase of 40% applies on August 29-30 for routes from Da Nang to Dong Nai and the West.
4/5 airlines have "moved" to terminal T3 - Tan Son Nhat
- At terminal T3, Vietravel Airlines arranges check-in area from counters 25 - 31 (enter gates D1, D2), departure gates for flights will flexibly change from gate 1 to gate 5 (on the 1st floor).
- Bamboo Airways flights are checked in at counters 45 - 50 (opposite gates D2 and D3 of terminal T3) and flexibly expanded within the range from counters 43 - 52 depending on actual output and demand.
- Vietnam Airlines passengers check in at counters 56 - 109; Pacific Airlines passengers check in at counters 11 - 18; Vasco passengers and Vietnam Airlines flights on the route between Ho Chi Minh City - Con Dao, Rach Gia, Ca Mau will check in at counters 19 - 24. In addition, 22 automatic check-in kiosks are located at the terminal to help passengers of all three airlines be proactive and save time when checking in.
Source: https://thanhnien.vn/ve-may-bay-tau-xe-nong-cung-dai-le-185250822192655847.htm
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