After Korea and ASEAN, tourism of Khanh Hoa Province is aiming to Japanese tourist market. According to the provincial Department of Tourism, from December, 2019, charter flights to carry Japanese tourists to Khanh Hoa will be launched. It is expected that from March 2020, there will be direct flights from Japan to Cam Ranh airport.
After Korea and ASEAN, tourism of Khanh Hoa Province is aiming to Japanese tourist market. According to the provincial Department of Tourism, from December, 2019, charter flights to carry Japanese tourists to Khanh Hoa will be launched. It is expected that from March 2020, there will be direct flights from Japan to Cam Ranh airport.
Japanese visitors rising
Japan used to be one of the traditional tourist markets of Khanh Hoa Tourism. However, in recent years, the number of visitors from Japan has decreased. According to the statistics of the Department of Tourism, in 2013, Khanh Hoa welcomed 26,108 Japanese tourists. By 2018, Japanese visitors decreased to 12,012, equaling 46% compared to 2013. Currently, in Asia, the Japanese tourist market has dropped to the fifth position (after China, Korea, Malaysia and Thailand).
Facing this situation, Khanh Hoa tourism has made great efforts in promoting the Japanese market. In September 2017, leaders of the Department of Tourism and representatives of four tourism businesses in the province joined the delegation of the Vietnam National Administration of Tourism to promote for Khanh Hoa tourism in Japan. During the trip, the delegation went to Japan International Tourism Fair to introduce products, promote the image of Nha Trang - Khanh Hoa tourism, meet travel businesses bringing Japanese tourists to Vietnam, and discuss solutions to bring Japanese tourists to Nha Trang - Khanh Hoa. From the trip, in early December 2017, Apex International tour operator sent a famtrip delegation to survey and explore opportunities for tourism cooperation in Nha Trang - Khanh Hoa. In 2017 and 2018, the provincial People's Committee organized trips to Japan to promote investment, trade and tourism. Initially, tourism promotion activities have been effective. The latest report of the Department of Tourism shows that, in 9 months of 2019, Khanh Hoa has welcomed 9,620 Japanese visitors, an increase of 2.42% compared to the same period in 2018. Most likely, in 2019, the number of Japanese visitors to Khanh Hoa will increase again after many years of continuous decline.
A corner of Japanese garden in Vinpearl Land Nha Trang
Direct flights to be launched
One of the reasons causing difficulty for Khanh Hoa Province to attract Japanese tourists is the lack of direct flights. At a meeting between Japan and South Central region in Nha Trang in end 2017, Takahashi Ayumi - Director of Japan Tourism Promotion Agency assessed that natural conditions and facilities of Nha Trang – Khanh Hoa met the most criteria of Japanese tourists. However, because there is no direct flight, not many Japanese tourists have come Nha Trang, instead they flied to Ho Chi Minh City, Da Nang ... To attract Japanese tourists, Nha Trang – Khanh Hoa need have direct flights from Japanese cities.
During the promotion trips, the provincial leaders and the provincial Department of Tourism have repeatedly suggested Japanese airlines and travel agencies to open direct flights. At a recent conference, Mr. Tran Viet Trung - Director of the Department of Tourism said that Japanese travel companies have planned to organize charter flights from Japan to Cam Ranh airport from December, 2019. It is expected that around March 2020, there will be direct flights from Japan to Cam Ranh airport. “After Korea, Malaysia and Thailand, we will target the Japanese market. Once there is direct flight, it will be easier to attract visitors from Japan and the number of visitors will also increase,” Trung said.
