HCMC – Khanh Hoa Province and Vietnam Airlines welcomed the first visitors from Hanoi City on February 1, or the first day of the Lunar New Year.
After Flight VN1551 transporting these tourists landed at the Cam Ranh International Airport in the province, passengers and flight crew were welcomed with lion dance performance, flowers and gifts, creating a happy atmosphere on the first day of the new year, according to the air carrier.
The carrier is operating domestic routes connecting Khanh Hoa Province with Hanoi, HCMC, Danang and Vinh, Vietnam Airlines said, adding that the airline will restart flights between the province and Haiphong and Phu Quoc. The airline will launch a total of over 64 weekly flights to/from Khanh Hoa as it signed a cooperation agreement with the provincial government to bring tourists to the province in the 2021-2025 period.
Khanh Hoa Province is one of the seven cities and provinces permitted to implement a program to pilot welcoming back international tourists after the Covid pandemic is brought under control.
Statistics from the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism indicated that as of January 23, or after two months of the pilot program, the province had welcomed 7,000 travelers.
The pandemic has taken a heavy toll on the province’s tourism industry. Last year, the total number of visitors in Khanh Hoa Province was nearly 643,000, dipping by 49% year-on-year, according to the provincial Department of Tourism.
Some 23,000 international tourists traveled to the province in 2021, plunging by 95% year-on-year, while the province welcomed 620,000 domestic travelers, down 24%. As such, the industry’s revenue last year amounted to a mere VND2.43 trillion, down over 52% year-on-year.
The province has set a target of welcoming over 1.2 million tourists in 2022, including 1.16 million domestic visitors and 40,000 foreigners. The province also targeted revenue at VND4 trillion from the tourism industry.
