HCM City (VNS/VNA) - High-quality, affordably priced tours areneeded to attract local tourists, especially following the second COVID-19outbreak that occurred this summer, experts have said.

Now that the outbreak is mostly under control, more tourist attractions areopen for business and have introduced promotional tourism packages. But tourismagencies need preferential policies from the State to revive their operations.

Director of Sai Gon Star Company Huynh Van Son said it was necessary to easetourists’ travel anxiety.

“Reducing tour prices and locals’ travel costs must be part of demand stimuluspolicies. For example, a tour to Phu Quoc usually costs 8 million VND (345 USD),but it should be cut to 6 million VND at this time,” Son said.

Chairman of the Ba Ria – Vung Tau Province Tourism Association Pham Ngoc Hai saidthat tourism agencies have agreed to reduce their price by 50 percent or moreduring the second phase of the stimulus programme.

The association has told participating business firms that they should think ofcreating new tours and products. “Due to the low-peak tourism season,especially when international tourists cannot come now, it is crucial to 'turnon' the deep-sale mode,” Hai added.

Located in the busy old quarter of Hanoi, Solasta Restaurant at Solaria Hotel Hanoihas launched discounted set menus to attract domestic customers. A three-courseEuropean buffet set is currently 159,000 VND for the first customer and 80,000 VNDfor the second diner in a group.

Restaurant manager Phuong Hang My said that diners were excited to experiencehigh-quality dishes and luxury spaces such as Solasta Restaurant at affordableprices.

“However, in terms of revenue, the restaurant has suffered a loss since thisprice is only enough to buy ingredients and pay part of our staffs’ salary. Itdoes not cover rent. We consider this as an advertising cost and a way ofretaining our employees," My said.

Meanwhile, general director of Flamingo Redtours Company Nguyen Cong Hoan saidthat the upcoming months are the low season of tourism as students arereturning to school and most families have been negatively affected by thepandemic.

The demand for travel is expected to drop compared to previous years.

“This time, we plan to launch new special tourism products that elevatetravellers’ usual experiences. All of them will be offered at reasonableprices,” Hoan added.

Most tour operators said that despite their efforts to come up with new tours,sales are only about 30 per cent of the number compared to June and July. Ifthe pandemic is further controlled and international flight routes reopen, thetourism market will be brighter.

Stimulating demand and promoting safe tourism are the two goals of VietravelCompany, the General Department of Tourism, and tourism management agenciesfrom HCM City and Ba Ria – Vung Tau, Binh Thuan and Tay Ninh provinces.

According to chairman of Vietravel's Board of Directors Nguyen Quoc Ky, it iscrucial to develop a digital safe tourism map for each locality, then integrateall the elements into a bigger country map in order to ensure efficiency andmake it easier for locals to plan their trips.

“Relevant authorities should consider choosing key destinations in each region,such as the Southeast with HCM City, Ba Ria – Vung Tau, Binh Thuan and Tay Ninh,and the Red River Quadrangle with Hanoi, Hai Phong, Quang Ninh and Ninh Binh,when building stimulus tourism programmes," Ky said.

Each region should have different plans, and HCM City and Hanoi, as the twomain suppliers of tourists for the country, should be the first places forthese promotional campaigns.

Even though tourism promotion is necessary to “reheat” the market after thesecond wave of COVID-19, secretary general of the Tourism Advisory Council HoangNhan Chinh said that stimulus progammes must be considered thoroughly in orderto benefit travel agencies. Before launching any programme, authorities shouldresearch locals’ travel behaviours and demands.

Stimulus programme

 The Ministry of Culture, Sports andTourism has resumed its domestic tourism stimulus programme to boost domestictravel demand as the COVID-19 pandemic gradually comes under control.

Themed ‘Vietnam – a safe and attractive destination’, the programme, whichbegan on September 18, offers attractive stimulus travel packages through theyear.

A number of quality tourism products and service packages at reasonable priceswill be introduced with flexible cancellation and postponement policies.

The ministry has called on local tourism authorities and travel and tourismfirms to deliver messages to public to highlight the attractiveness anduniqueness of various destinations.

The tourism sector in co-ordination with travel firms will promotecommunication about safe and attractive destinations to restore travelconfidence and demand.

All tour programmes are required to follow COVID-19 safety and prevention protocolsto ensure the safety of staff, guests and communities.

The Vietnam Tourism Association has been instructed to co-ordinate with itsalliance of industry stakeholders, experts and enterprises to provide moreattractive and safe options for travellers.

The alliance was established in February to revive the tourism industry, whichhas been one of the hardest hit by the pandemic.

The tourism stimulus programme was launched in May but was temporarily halteddue to the second wave of COVID-19 that began at the end of July./.