HCMC – A Russian tour operator has proposed transporting tourists to Khanh Hoa Province via chartered flights in November, it was announced at a workshop held to discuss solutions on the recovery of post-Covid-19 international tourism on September 29.
Many international travel firms are planning to bring tourists to the province, said Tran Viet Trung, director of the Khanh Hoa Department of Tourism, adding that Russia will be the first source market to resume tours to Khanh Hoa Province.
Speaking at the workshop, a Russian travel firm, which has an office in Khanh Hoa Province, said the firm had written to the Civil Aviation Authority of Vietnam proposing reopening chartered flights to transport Russian visitors to the province.
Earlier, Pegas Misr Travel Vietnam, which regularly serves visitors traveling to Vietnam on chartered flights, told The Saigon Times Online that the firm is awaiting Vietnam’s decision on reopening its doors to international tourists.
Russia is the second largest tourism source market of the south-central province of Khanh Hoa, after China. Last year, the province welcomed over 451,000 Russian visitors, with most of them travelling to the province on chartered flights and staying for long periods.
Tourism in the province has been affected by the two waves of Covid-19, the disease caused by the coronavirus, according to Trung. Local tour operators are gradually recovering and expect to fully recover their operations including hotels, restaurants and entertainment venues in the fourth quarter.
Between January and August, the number of tourists visiting Khanh Hoa Province reached some 986,000, plunging by 80.2% year-on-year, resulting in a 75.6% drop in the total tourism revenue of the province.
By Dao Loan
