Hopes For Tourism Revival in Phu Quoc

Tourism Reopening in Viet Nam

During the pilot programme, Phu Quoc anticipates 40,000 foreign tourists from Europe, the US, Northeast Asia, Australia, and the Middle East. In the first three months, the programme will exercise “isolation tourism” with 2,000-3,000 tourists arriving every month by chartered flights and staying in separate resorts. If the first period is successful, the monthly number will increase to 5,000-10,000 tourists, who will arrive by commercial flights and will be allowed to see more of the island.

Mr Mauro Gasparotti, Director, Savills Hotels APAC, said, “We are pleased to see that the Government announced the pilot plan to revive the hard-hit tourism sector. We truly hope that, if proven safe and successful, this will soon expand to other destinations. This move will also allow Viet Nam to be put back onto the international tourism map, along with destinations like Thailand or Indonesia – who are also in the process of reopening. However, we should not expect this pilot programme restore revenues right away as there is a relatively small number of anticipated guests, who will only utilise a fraction of Phu Quoc’s hospitality resources. More importantly, this project will act as a statement for Viet Nam’s international tourism revival. It will show Viet Nam’s intention of opening to international travellers while ensuring both community and traveller safety.  It will also be a good way to test the process of re-establishing the leisure market and welcoming international guests.”

Viet Nam to Reference Thailand’s Phuket Sandbox Programme

The project started two months ago and has welcomed 26,400 foreign tourists, of which only 0.3%, or 83 people, tested positive for Covid-19 on arrival.  There are high hopes for the programme to reboot the local travel industry and ensure long-term recovery. In Phuket, 69% of hotels have reopened compared to only 65% before the project was launched. Occupancy rates among the participating hotels rose to almost 20% by the end of July.

Mr Gasparotti commented, “Although occupancy is still low in Phuket, the programme is a good starting point for market recovery and restoring the tourism ecosystem. It has given Thailand the chance to consider a full reopening for more destinations like Bangkok. The biggest difference between Phuket and Phu Quoc is that Phuket has largely relied on international tourism, while Phu Quoc’s primary source of income comes from the local market. Almost 90% of Phu Quoc’s arrivals are local guests. There are still several concerns about the plan. The first concern is timing, as several steps need to be completed before the plan can be carried out safely and correctly. The second concern is its ability to attract tourists. Visitors like to experience culture, usually across multiple destinations when visiting Viet Nam. As they will be restricted to only one property and will not be able to move around freely, it may not be seen as an attractive destination.”

Challenges and potentials

“For Viet Nam to attract international visitors quickly and successfully, besides from a strong international marketing strategy, they need to be able to ensure the safety of their visitors. International guests need to feel safe in Viet Nam; they need to know that in the case of an emergency, there are structures like medical aids and international hospitals in place, as well as an excellent level of support in case of infections. The revival of the tourism industry will also depend on human resources and resorts being able to work under levels of demand uncertainty - which will become the ‘new normal’ in the future,” Mr Gasparotti added.

According to Savills Hotels statistics, there are over 12,000 keys in the mid-to-luxury segment on Phu Quoc island. A few resorts will open this year, and 1,800 new units will enter the market. One new resort opened in May 2021, but the majority have delayed their launches.

Mr Gasparotti commented, “Some stunning new properties were expected in Phu Quoc this year; however, the pandemic has delayed launches. Hopefully, as soon as Covid-19 is contained in HCMC and Ha Noi, local tourism will resume, and Phu Quoc can take advantage of the pent-up demand. The international leisure market will become very competitive, with other destinations such as Phuket or Bali trying to capture independent travellers and groups. Destinations will need to improve their brand offering, infrastructure, and services to secure their place in the market.”

See further:

• Untapped Potential in Phan Thiet
• Current situation lights up potential of drive-by destinations