Spring Travels to Everywhere

In recent years, on Tet Holiday, Vietnamese families have chosen to have either a simple celebration or a relaxing spring tour in order to get a fresh and energetic start for a new year. A 3-5 day tour is suitable for many people because they can spend time with relatives and friends as usual, and they can also have enough time for their own families or just for themselves. Ms. Huynh Thi Ngoc Tram (an inhabitant in Ly Tu Trong Street, Ninh Kieu District) says, “My family certainly follows the traditional way of celebrating Tet Holiday. In the previous years, there were only few days off, so we were very busy on Tet. This year, we have more time, so we have decided to take a 4-day tour in Phu Quoc Island. In fact, we have enough time not only for visiting our relatives but also for enjoying ourselves.” According to several travel agencies, more and more people choose to have a tour on Tet and their planning for such tours starts earlier and earlier. Mr. Tran Van Thanh (an inhabitant on Tran Quang Dieu Street, Binh Thuy District) states, “Only on Tet can all of our family members get together, and we are taking a tour to Da Nang City for a “fresh” change. A 1-hour flight from Can Tho City to Da Nang City is quite convenient. This tour suits our diverse interests. The children like the sea while the adults prefer ancient architectures and historical relics. Also, it does not take much time to traveling to Hoi An or Hue City from Da Nang.”

However, young people that are fond of exploring new places like backpacking tours. They plan their tours about 2-3 months in advance, search for companions, and then “hunt” cheap air tickets as well as additional free services. Tours to Vietnamese Western North and Eastern North or international countries like Thailand, Malaysia, South Korea, Japan, Singapore etc. are most preferable among the youth. Mr.Nguyen Hong Chien (an inhabitant on Tran Hung Dao Street,  Ninh Kieu District) shares with us, “Our group keen on exploring new places. It is said that Vietnamese Western North is very beautiful, so we plan to go to Ha Giang and Sa Pa. This time, we are going to stay with the locals so as to experience all cultural aspects of the high land on Tet Holiday.” Mr. Nguyen Hai Lam along with his friends has chosen to explore South Korea because “This country has a lot of beautiful sceneries, and it is not difficult to apply for a visa by ourselves.” Japan is also a popular destination this Tet. Mr. Dinh Van Khang (an inhabitant on Hai Ba Trung Street, Ninh Kieu District) explains, “Spring in Japan is said to be wonderful with flowers blossoming everywhere. What my friends who have been there say to me sounds exciting. It is on Tet Holiday that we should visit cheerful and brilliant places.”

Among tourist destinations in the Mekong Delta, Dong Thap Province, Can Tho City and Ben Tre Provinces attract the most visitors. Mr. Nguyen Hoang Nguyen (a visitor from Ho Chi Minh City) comments, “It is okay to visit Sa Dec Flower Village and Lai Vung mandarin garden for some days before Tet Holiday because this tour lasts only one or two days. The most important thing is to emerge myself in the simple and humble atmosphere of Tet Holiday in the Western South.”

“Hot” Tours on Tet Holiday

A number of travel agencies in Can Tho City like Fiditour, Cantho Tourist, Ben Thanh Tourist, Vietravel, Vietsun, Saigontourist, Idotravel… all have offered a series of tours this Tet Holiday. Popular domestic tours include Da Nang, Nha Trang, Mui Ne, Vung Tau, Phu Quoc, Ninh Binh, Ha Giang, Dong Thap, Sa Pa, Da Lat etc. while the most chosen international ones are Thailand, Malaysia, Singapore, Japan, South Korea, Australia, the United States of America, China.

Mr. Cao Tan Dung, Vice Director of Fiditour Can Tho, says, “Hot destinations currently include Thailand (Bangkok - Pattaya), Philippines, Myanmar, South Korea etc. with nearly 85% of total bookings. Right now, there tours can accept only some bookings on tours departing after the third of lunar January. Especially, we have to issue an additional ticket of 30% higher than our plan in order to satisfy the market demand. Tours to Europe, America, and Australia etc. were fully booked in early November 2018. Tours to Dubai, Japan, Malaysia, Singapore, and Thailand have only 20% bookings. Bookings for domestic tours accounts for 80% of our plan. Last Tet Holiday, tours to the central regions, Phu Quoc Island, Nha Trang Beach were the hottest, but those to the North and Western South have the most bookings this year.” According to Fiditour, as Tet Holiday come nearer, Western South destinations have become hotter because of tours to flower villages, orchards, trade villages, homestay etc. In 2018, tourism promotion agencies in the Mekong Delta implemented a lot of promotion activities such as reasonable price to attract more customers. In fact, a 3-day tour of 2.5-3.2 million VND/customer with visits to interesting places has been chosen by people inside and outside the region.

Ms. Le Dih Minh Thy, director of Vietravel in Can Tho City and Western South area, informs us, “Our customers have booked tours for this lunar new year, much earlier than previous years. Current hot tours are mostly those to travel abroad. In addition to common tours to Thailand, Singapore, Malaysia, the demand for further destinations like Europe, Australia, and Japan has significantly increased. Domestic tours by air to Da Nang City and Ha Noi City are preferable. Therefore, Vietravel has offered more tours travelling by air from Can Tho City and more departure dates for customers to choose easily. In particular, departures for Da Nang City are on the 1^st, 2^nd, 3^rd and 4^th of lunar January and those for Ha Noi City on 2^nd and 3^rd of lunar January.  Moreover, the company has been offering tours to Japan with charter Fukushima destination, which is very attractive to our customers.”