New air routes are opening the future—but value will be decided on the ground
By 2026, Vietnam’s tourism industry will enter a decisive new phase. After welcoming nearly 21 million international visitors in 2025, the country is targeting 25 million arrivals in 2026 and 35 million by 2030. These figures signal confidence—but they also impose a far more demanding test: not merely attracting more visitors, but capturing greater value from higher-quality experiences.
According to official statistics, 85.2% of international visitors arrive in Vietnam by air. Boeing forecasts Vietnam to be Southeast Asia’s fastest-growing aviation market through 2030, with annual passenger growth of 8.1%. New nonstop routes to Europe, India, the Middle East, and Northeast Asia are rapidly redrawing Vietnam’s inbound tourism map.
Yet growth alone does not guarantee success.
“The flight map has changed,” says Dr. Pham Ha, Founding President & CEO of LuxGroup®.
“But value does not automatically arrive with airplanes. Value comes only when destinations create experiences compelling enough for visitors to spend more—and to return.”
In this sense, 2026 is not just a year of takeoff, but a year that tests Vietnam’s ability to land safely—in quality, sustainability, and long-term competitiveness.
From volume to value: the USD 1,500 question
The goal of 35 million international visitors by 2030 is meaningful only if Vietnam raises average visitor spending. Today, international tourists spend roughly USD 1,200 per trip in Vietnam—well below Thailand (USD 2,000) and Singapore (USD 3,000).
Vietnam’s strategic pivot is therefore clear: move from quantity tourism to value tourism, targeting USD 1,500–1,600 per visitor. This shift is not aspirational—it is essential to reduce pressure on infrastructure and natural assets while improving incomes across the tourism value chain.
As Dr. Pham Ha notes:
“Twenty-five or thirty-five million visitors do not automatically create prosperity. Prosperity comes from the value each visitor leaves behind—through spending, positive memories, and the desire to return.”
Tourism in the age of experience and memory
Global tourism has entered the experience-and-memory economy. Travelers no longer purchase rooms or tours; they purchase emotion, meaning, and personal stories.
European travelers seek authenticity. Nordic travelers evaluate sustainability and community impact. Indian travelers bring deep cultural and culinary expectations. Middle Eastern travelers require certified Halal standards. Chinese travelers expect seamless digital payments and service efficiency.
What unites high-spending travelers is simple: they do not pay for imitation—and they do not return after shallow experiences.
Vietnam’s opportunity lies in experience design: night-time economies, culinary storytelling, heritage immersion, wellness travel, river and coastal journeys, and genuine community engagement—experiences that create lasting memories rather than fleeting checklists.
To serve five-star guests, Vietnam needs five-star people
The greatest constraint on Vietnam’s tourism ambitions is not infrastructure—it is human capital.
The industry requires roughly 40,000 new workers annually, yet supplies barely half that number. Only 43% of tourism workers receive formal training, while 70–80% of frontline staff lack professional-level foreign language skills.
Dr. Pham Ha is direct:
“High-end tourism cannot be run on low-cost labor thinking. If Vietnam wants five-star guests, it must invest in five-star people—skills, service culture, and professional pride.”
Applied learning models—hotel-in-school programs, apprenticeships, on-the-job training—and internationally benchmarked service standards must become foundational, not optional.
Cultural storytelling as a competitive advantage
Vietnam’s deepest advantage lies in culture, history, and hospitality. But advantages only become value when they are communicated with clarity and emotion.
High-value travelers are not looking for ostentatious luxury. They seek refined authenticity: a properly brewed Vietnamese coffee, a heritage story told with feeling, a meal that reflects regional identity, a sincere smile at the right moment.
“Vietnam does not lack stories,” Dr. Pham Ha observes.
“What we lack is storytelling that makes visitors feel they are part of the story.”
Promotion and positioning: from advertising to strategic branding
With 69% of travelers planning trips through digital platforms, tourism promotion is no longer about brochures or mass campaigns. It is about precise positioning.
Vietnam must articulate a clear high-value identity, communicate consistently across markets, and promote real experiences rather than exaggerated promises. Effective promotion today is not about spending more—but about saying the right thing to the right audience.
Policy as an enabler of satisfaction, not just growth
To achieve 25 million visitors in 2026 and 35 million by 2030, public policy must act as an enabler:
• competitive and flexible visa regimes
• standardized Halal and sustainability frameworks
• destination capacity management
• incentives for high-value experience development
• strong public–private collaboration
Above all, visitor satisfaction—not raw arrival numbers—must become the key policy metric.
Conclusion: safe landing matters more than fast takeoff
New air routes have opened unprecedented opportunities. Aircraft are arriving from Copenhagen, Milan, Bengaluru, and Abu Dhabi. The growth targets are achievable.
But Vietnam’s tourism future will not be decided in the sky. It will be decided on the ground—through experience quality, human excellence, and cultural authenticity.
As Dr. Pham Ha concludes:
“The future of tourism is not measured by how many people arrive, but by how many want to return. When Vietnam achieves that, revenue will follow—sustainably and with dignity.”