Vietnam Travel Market Update 2026

Update, July 2026: Part 2 is now live — H1 arrivals came in at 12.3M, and hotel rates moved even faster. Read the H1 2026 performance brief →

This brief is Part 1 of our 2026 data series — the full-year 2025 baseline every program this year will be planned against. Every figure below is sourced and dated.

How many international visitors did Vietnam receive in 2025?

Vietnam closed 2025 at 21.17 million international arrivals, a 20.4% increase over 2024 and the first time the country has crossed the 21-million threshold. December alone brought 2.02 million arrivals (+15.7% YoY). The result clears both the 2024 total (17.6 million) and the pre-2020 peak of about 18 million.

The pace matters as much as the level. Global international arrivals grew roughly 5% in 2025 and Asia-Pacific about 8%; Vietnam's 20.4% placed it among the world's fastest-growing destinations for the year.

Higher arrival volume does not automatically create pressure — the real constraint is timing concentration across flights and check-in windows.

Key figures at a glance

Which source markets grew fastest in 2025?

China regained the top position with 5.28 million arrivals (+41.3%), about 25% of all inbound traffic. South Korea held second place despite a 5.2% decline. Underneath the top two, the mix is shifting quickly:

• Philippines +81.3% — the fastest-growing major market (see how we support agencies on our Philippines partner desk)
• India +48.9% — approaching three-quarters of a million arrivals
• Europe +38.8% overall, with Russia nearly tripling to ~690,000 — now Vietnam's sixth-largest market
• Malaysia +15.8% · Singapore +15.5% · Indonesia +12.5% — steady Southeast Asian expansion

For program design, the mix shift is the operational story: guide-language pools, dietary and F&B requirements, and itinerary preferences move with the source markets. This matters most for Vietnam MICE programs, where the fastest-growing markets — the Philippines, India, and continental Europe — each carry distinct requirements.

What is Vietnam's tourism target for 2026?

The national target for 2026 is 25 million international arrivals, approximately 150 million domestic trips, and total tourism revenue of about VND 1.125 quadrillion (roughly US$43 billion). That is an 18% step up on a base year that was itself a record.

A target is not a forecast — 2025's original goal of 23–25 million was missed even in a record year. But targets shape supply-side behavior: promotion budgets, visa policy, and route development all key off it, which is why the number matters to planners even before it is achieved.

How does the Long Thanh airport transition affect group travel?

Air carried 84.3% of all 2025 arrivals (17.8 million passengers) through a system running at or beyond design capacity in peak season — Tan Son Nhat (HCMC) has operated above its rated throughput for years.

Long Thanh International Airport Phase 1 (25 million passengers/year design capacity, ~40 km east of HCMC) held its technical opening in December 2025 and targets commercial launch in 2026, with long-haul international routes planned to shift there from Tan Son Nhat, which would retain domestic and short-haul regional traffic (Airports Corporation of Vietnam). The launch date has moved more than once — from mid-2026 toward late 2026 in recent reporting — so the transition should be treated as a routing variable, not a fixed date. Route changes of this kind ripple through connection planning the same way new services do — see our Bangkok–Phu Quoc direct flights ops brief for how we assess them operationally.

Infrastructure expansion improves capacity, but execution still depends on coordination between airport flow, transport timing, and hotel readiness.

What should travel planners do with this data?

Demand is growing faster than peak-season ground capacity. Three actions follow directly from the 2025 numbers:

1. Confirm allotments 6–9 months out. For Q4–Q1 programs, secure hotel allotments and licensed guides before pricing — guaranteed space first, rates second. Lead times are lengthening fastest along the Da Nang–Hoi An, Ha Long, and Phu Quoc corridors, where charter traffic concentrates. Entry formalities should be locked at the same time — our Vietnam visa rules for group operations guide covers the current requirements.
2. Design for the shifting source mix. If your desk sells Philippine, Indian, or European clients, your markets are growing faster than the national average — which means the specific capacity you need (language guides, halal or vegetarian F&B, coach classes) tightens before generic capacity does. This is where incentive program planning and group travel operations lead times diverge from the averages.
3. Verify the HCMC arrival airport per airline. For any group arriving late 2026 onward, confirm the arrival airport at ticketing and again at T-30 during the Tan Son Nhat → Long Thanh transition. Transfer times, meet-and-greet positioning, and coach staging differ materially between the two airports.

Data brief prepared by the Dong DMC operations desk, Ho Chi Minh City. Dong DMC is the B2B destination management brand of Dong Thi Co., Ltd (Tour Operator License 79/168), led by founder Mickey (Dong Hoang Thinh), whose tourism career in Vietnam spans some 25 years. Read more about how we work with partners. Part 2 of this series — H1 2026 performance data — publishes this July.

DONG DMC · DONG THI CO., LTD · TOUR OPERATOR LICENSE 79/168 · DONGDMC.COM · FIGURES ARE FULL-YEAR 2025 UNLESS STATED.