When Vietnam decided to implement a visa-free travel policy to five European countries in July 2015, almost right away it enticed more Europeans to visit the country, boosting tourism more than expected.
Image by https://www.talkvietnam.org
Based on official data from the General Statistics Office of Vietnam, Italian tourists who visited Vietnam in October of this year increased to 22.3% compared to the same period in 2015. Tourists from Germany entering Vietnam jumped to 20.3% annually, while visitors from Spain showed a 19.1% yearly increase. There was a quick 8.2% up from French tourists arriving in Vietnam, while visitors from United Kingdom grew to 8.4%. According to the Vietnam National Administration of Tourism, October is the peak season for tourist arrivals in Vietnam, and the visa-free policy resulted in a 16.1% climb or a total of 649,000 foreign visitors into the country this year in relation to 2015.
The visa-free travel policy covers a one-year period from the effective date and specifically allows German, French, British, Italian and Spanish tourists a 15-day stay in Vietnam free of visa for each entry.
Nevertheless, the local government, alongside with tour organizers, travel agencies and the tourism sector in general, is confident that the new visa-free travel policy of Vietnam will still result in a positive turnout, bringing in more tourists, both domestic and foreign, to visit, enjoy and in fact come back to Vietnam.