HCMC – Travel companies in HCMC anticipate suffering a VND10-trillion loss in the first three months of this year, as the number of foreign tourist arrivals slumped by a hefty 84% due to the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic.
The city’s tourism sector expected to earn nearly VND3.5 trillion in revenue in March, down 65.2% over the same period last year, bringing the total number in the first quarter to some VND25.6 trillion, meeting 18.2% of the yearly target and marking a 26% year-on-year drop, the city’s Tourism Department said on April 3.
Of the figure, travel revenues in March reached VND554 billion, down 64% against the previous month and 77.4% compared to March 2019. Tourism is now among those sectors hardest hit by the Covid-19 contagion, which has triggered social distancing and lockdowns around the globe.
Many travel companies in the city have seen tourist arrivals fall by 50% to 60% since the start of the outbreak in January. Given its complicated developments in recent weeks, most firms have reported revenues being reduced by 95% to 100%, compared with last year.
Currently, many enterprises in Vietnam have suspended operations for several months, closing offices to save costs and allow staff to work from home. Some firms are still open to handle service cancellation requests from customers and debts with partners. They are not currently offering new tours to travelers.
Accommodation and catering service providers also felt the impacts, with revenues in the first quarter falling 30.3% to some VND19.7 trillion. Most hotels have seen occupancy rates dropping sharply, while all restaurants have been closed since the end of March, given the Government’s social distancing order to fight the fast-spreading disease.
According to Tuoi Tre Online website, the number of foreign tourist arrivals to the city fell more than 84% to 117,000 last month. Between January and March, the city welcomed over 1.3 million travelers, meeting some 14.5% of the yearly plan and marking a 42.2% decline.
