HCMC – Many vacant hotels and resorts in Binh Thuan Province have suspended their operations for several days. Only 1,000 guests are staying at lodging facilities in the province due to coronavirus fears.
Data from a quick report by the province show that as of April 7, the province had served a mere 1,082 guests at lodging facilities, with 986 international tourists and 96 domestic visitors, a trivial number compared to hundreds of resorts and hotels in the locality.
The Binh Thuan Tourism Association noted that even though the coronavirus pandemic hit Binh Thuan Province later than other localities such as Khanh Hoa Province and Danang City, Covid-19, the disease caused by the coronavirus, has driven tourists away from Binh Thuan-based hotels and resorts.
Over 90% of these hotels have halted their operations due to the lack of guests. The resort city of Phan Thiet in the south-central province is now deserted.
The province’s accommodation facilities served an estimated 312,000 guests in March, dipping by 34% year-on-year, according to data from the provincial Statistics Department.
The number of guests at Binh Thuan-based lodging facilities in the first three months of the year is estimated at 1.33 million, down 10.3% year-on-year.
The province saw international tourist arrivals drop by 44.5% year-on-year to 34,800 visitors in March. Over the past three months, the province welcomed an estimated 164,400 international holidaymakers, down 16% against the year-ago period.
Russia is the largest source market for Binh Thuan’s tourism, with the number of Russian travelers to the province making up 38% of the total international tourist arrivals in the province, followed by South Korea, Germany, France and Thailand.
However, most Russian visitors returned to their country by end-March and early April, leading to the emptying of most hotel rooms in the province this month.
