Unfazed by COVID case numbers, travel and hospitality companies rush to recruit staff
A cyclo driver looks for customers along Hoan Kiem Lake in downtown Hanoi on Feb 16, 2022. (NHAC NGUYEN / AFP)
Vietnam is preparing to welcome back international tourists from March 15 in a bid to revive its travel-related industries and shore up the wider economy, making the opening-up move even as the nation suffers from rising COVID infections.
Experts said the reopening can help the Southeast Asian country tap into pent-up global travel demand, though it will continue to suffer from lack of Chinese visitors for some time, given China’s strict pandemic curbs.
Experts said the reopening can help the Southeast Asian country tap into pent-up global travel demand, though it will continue to suffer from lack of Chinese visitors for some time, given China’s strict pandemic curbs
Under eased restrictions in the run-up to full tourism reopening, Vietnam’s Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism said on Feb 17 that foreign visitors and overseas Vietnamese, instead of only charter flights, can take regular commercial flights to Vietnam between now and March 15.
This easing is part of the new regulations for the second phase of Vietnam’s pilot reopening program launched in November, according to Vietnam News Agency.
If tourists test negative for COVID-19 after the first three days of joining a tour package, they are allowed to visit other provinces and cities approved to welcome international travelers, such as Quang Ninh, Da Nang, Quang Nam, Phu Quoc and Ho Chi Minh City.
ALSO READ: Vietnam begins limited reopening to foreign tourists
The decision came after the government announced on Feb 16 that the country will fully reopen its borders to international tourism from mid-March. The country has removed all pandemic restrictions on international flights since Feb 15.
Yet the domestic COVID-19 situation has been escalating over the past few weeks. The country’s daily new COVID-19 infections reached an all-time high of 47,200 on Feb 20, according to Vietnam’s Ministry of Health. The national tally stood at 2,787,493 with 30,501 deaths.
“As long as this does not cause excess stress on the healthcare system … the government will continue on their path to opening up the country,” said Guy Thwaites, director of the Oxford University Clinical Research Unit, or OUCRU, in Ho Chi Minh City.
Tourists stand on the Huc Bridge over Hoan Kiem Lake in downtown Hanoi on Feb 16, 2022. (NHAC NGUYEN / AFP)
Noting the current wave is mainly fueled by Omicron, Thwaites said he expects the infection numbers in Vietnam to reach its peak in two to three weeks, adding that the country has done “a remarkable vaccination campaign” and is in a position to “reopen safely”.
As Omicron has shown itself to be less of a problem in vaccinated immune populations, Thwaites said for a country like Vietnam that depends heavily on tourism, the consequences of not opening up are more serious than the consequences from COVID-19.
Noting Vietnam has adopted a “living with COVID-19” approach, Adam McCarty, chief economist at research and consulting firm Mekong Economics, said the number of people hospitalized and the fatality rate are more relevant than actual infections.
“With high vaccination rates, it is time to open up the country again,” McCarty said.
Vietnam has administered nearly 191.4 million doses of COVID-19 vaccines, with about 78.6 percent of its 96.5 million population fully vaccinated.
ALSO READ: Vietnam's confirmed COVID-19 cases exceed 1m
A lot of people have been delaying their travel and tourism plans, McCarty said. “So if you are one of the popular destinations to open up early, you could have a bit of a tourism boom for people desperate to travel and enjoy street food again,” he said.
Tourism was an important segment of Vietnam’s economy before the pandemic, accounting for about 10 percent of GDP. In 2021, the country welcomed only 157,300 international arrivals, compared with 18 million tourists in 2019, according to the General Statistics Office.
As of Feb 7, a total of 8,967 international tourists had visited Vietnam since a pilot program for select destinations was launched in November, according to the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism.
Most of the visitors were from Russia, Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, South Korea, Singapore, the United Kingdom, the United States and Canada.
Missing the Chinese market is going to hurt though, McCarty said, adding that he expects Chinese tourists to remain absent after the reopening due to stringent anti-pandemic measures.
READ MORE: Vietnam virus hotspot 'may have 40% more unrecorded cases'
China has been Vietnam’s biggest source of foreign tourists in recent years and accounted for one-third of its total international arrivals in 2019.
To prepare for the reopening, travel and hospitality companies across Vietnam are rushing to recruit staff and increase personnel training. On recruitment website Hotel Job, recruitment demand has doubled since early February versus the same period before the pandemic and page traffic continues to grow, local media VnExpress reported.
Vietnam has accepted vaccination certificates or vaccine passports of 79 countries and territories, which were officially sent to the Foreign Ministry.