According to Director of Hanoitourist Travel Company Phung Quang Thang, tourists’ behaviour has now changed towards green and safe destinations. They also now prefer travelling in small groups and booking online services prior to their trips. He also noted the increase in visitors’ demand for resort tourism, ecological tourism, and medical tourism.
Given the situation, tourism products need to be renovated towards differentiation and uniqueness in order to meet the above changing trends. The difference and uniqueness of the products will also help travel businesses increase their competitiveness in the market.
In anticipation of the change in tourism demand, many localities and travel businesses have been active in renovating new products to offer fresh travel experiences for holidaymakers.
For example, Hanoitourist Company in coordination with Hoa Lo Prison’s Management Board launched night tours at the prison, arousing all the senses and emotions of visitors, from sympathy for prisoners in the gruesome conditions of a colonialist prison to respect for their resolute resilience and sacrifices for national independence.
The travel agency also worked with the Thang Long - Hanoi Heritage Conservation Centre to revise the night tour “Decoding the Imperial Citadel of Thang Long” which allows tourists to visit Doan Mon (South Gate), Kinh Thien Palace and architectural ruins in shimmering fanciful lights.
In addition, a travel itinerary to discover French architectural-styled buildings in Hanoi has been put into operation as an initiative of Hanoitourist and the Vietnam National Museum of History.
Meanwhile, under the slogan ‘New products - New style - New experience’, Flamingo Redtours Company has added more destination in their current travel itineraries and launched tours to new arising sea destinations such as Diep Son Island (Nha Trang City), Phu Quy Island (Phan Thiet City), and Con Co Island (Quang Tri Province).
Recently, a series of hot-air balloon festivals were held in Hanoi, Tuyen Qung Province and Da Nang City, attracting significant interest and enthusiastic participation from locals.
Children holding hands to cross Rao Nan river as part of their deep jungle expedition at Phong Nha – Ke Bang National Park in Quang Binh province (Photo: oxalisadventure.com)
In Quang Binh Province, in addition to operating adventure tours for small groups, Oxalis Company now offers an expedition to explore the deep forest in the Phong Nha-Ke Bang National Park, allowing backpackers to learn about the life of. animals in the forest, thus raising their awareness of environmental and wildlife protection.
In his speech at the Vietnam Tourism Forum, which was recently held in Hanoi under the theme ‘The recovery of Vietnam tourism – New direction, New action’, Cao Tri Dung, Chairman of Da Nang Tourism Association and Chairman of the Board of Directors of Vietnam TravelMART Company, suggested that travel businesses should develop a variety of tourism products targeting different age groups.
For example, young people will be interested in products which offer them fresh experience and catch up with current tourism trends. Meanwhile, young-elderly travellers and international visitors prefer resort tourism with green and environmentally-friendly criteria while allowing them to explore the local culture.
He also pointed out that customers from different market will have different taste in selecting destinations and services. For instance, tourists in urban areas often opt for sea and island tourism as well as ecological and nature-based tourism.
Travel businesses should adopt flexible policies on cancellation or postponement due to COVID-19. They also need to pay attention to integrating volunteer activities or cultural activities into their tourism programmes, which will leave a special impression on young people and foreign vacationers.
For his part, Dr Nguyen Anh Tuan, Director of the Institute for Tourism Development Research, stressed the importance of combining museums, libraries, cultural and historical sites, and culinary destinations in travel itineraries in order to help tourists explore the places they visit to the fullest.
Participating tourism experts at the forum agreed that that the difference and uniqueness of the products is an essential factor contributing to promoting Vietnam's image and bringing it closer to visitors both at home and abroad.
