Vietnam's travel companies cash in on Lunar New Year holiday

Ho Chi Minh, capital of Vietnam marks the Lunar New Year holiday. [Photo/Xinhua]

Tens of thousands of local and international visitors headed to beauty-spots and tourist destinations in Vietnam during the traditional Lunar New Year holiday (locally called Tet), which lasted from Feb 15 to 23 this year, local media reported Tuesday.

Ho Chi Minh (HCM) City travel firms served more than 58,000 tourists in the city during the nine-day Tet holiday, an increase of 39 percent year on year, with total earning jumped 50 percent to 540 billion VND ($25.32 million), according to the city's Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism.

Meanwhile, more than 30,000 tourists visited Sapa, a mountainous resort in northern Lao Cai province during Tet, with local hotel rooms fully booked. Travel has become easier since the opening of the new highway linking capital Hanoi to Lao Cai last year, said the provincial tourism department.

Thua Thien-Hue province in central Vietnam welcomed more than 75,000 tourists, including 40,000 foreigners, during the holiday, a rise of 15 percent.

On the first day of the Lunar New Year, the Star Pride cruise operated by Destination Asia Vietnam Company, carrying 190 international visitors, arrived at Tien Sa Port in central Da Nang city. Another flight from Seoul of South Korea carrying 180 international tourists arrived at Da Nang International Airport on the same day.

The number of foreign visitors to Da Nang reached 66,000, out of 200,000 tourists to the city during Tet.

Khanh Hoa province, also in central Vietnam, received an estimated 150,000 tourists during the first six days of the Lunar New Year. Most tourists preferred sightseeing and island tours off Nha Trang Bay.

Most of the foreign tourists visiting Vietnam during Tet were from China, Russia, Japan, France and the United States, according to the Vietnam News daily.