"Movie stars and backpackers have long since discovered its beaches but
2011 was the year when Vietnam finally seems to have made it onto the
world stage," states the report. The document reviews UK travel trends
from previous years and identifies holiday hotspots for 2012 based on
exchange rates, trends and resort costs.
After a yearly 106 percent growth in sales of the dong between
August-November of 2011, Vietnam, together with Argentina, is tied for
the top position on the Post Office's first list of emerging holiday
destinations.
With the December launch of the first non-stop service from
London to Hanoi and HCM City, the floodgates are "likely to open as a crop of new
beach hotels compete head to head with Thailand on price", according to
the report.
"Vietnam could finally prove to be the next big thing in long haul tourism," the Post Office forecasts.
The Post Office's worldwide holiday cost barometer, which compares costs
for
holiday travel packages, puts Vietnam as the 10th cheapest of the
40 destinations surveyed.
Thailand is still the cheapest
South East Asian country surveyed, but
Vietnam has emerged as a good value with just 50.71 GBP (US$80) for
eight tourist items, including dinner for two with wine, in resort
areas. (Sri Lanka was the cheapest place and Australia the most
expensive of all for British travellers.)
Vietnam is a little more expensive, 9 percent more than Thailand, but
still it's a better place than other regional countries, including
Malaysia, Indonesia and Singapore.
Some British tourists said Vietnam is even cheaper in reality, with a
bottle of local beer sold at about VND10,000 ($0.47), instead of $2.76
as reported by the barometer.
Vietnam received more than 156,000 UK visitors in 2011, up by almost 90
percent compared to 2005, according to the
Vietnam National Administration of Tourism (VNAT).
Although the UK is not in Vietnam's top 10 tourism markets of 2011,
which is headed by China, it has been one of major European markets.
"Everyone is going to Vietnam," said Anne Smith, a retired Briton who has planned for a trip to Vietnam herself this summer.
VNAT's Travel Department director Nguyen Quy Phuong said the country
will focus on promotions in the UK, given that the direct flights and
the Post Office's ratings were opportunities for a tourism boom after
economic downturns.
After a two hour drive from Hanoi you will arrive at
Giang Mo village in Cao Phong district of Hoa Binh province, where Muong
people live in a wonderfully idyllic setting.
