HANOI (Xinhua): Vietnam attracted over 8.8 million international visitors in the first half of 2024, up 4.1 per cent from the same period in 2019 before the COVID-19 pandemic broke out, according to the latest statistics released by the country's General Statistics Office.
During the period, foreign arrivals to Vietnam by air accounted for 83.8 percent (7.4 million) of the total, followed by 14.3 percent by road (1.3 million) and 1.9 percent by sea (164,900).
According to the Vietnam National Administration of Tourism, South Korea remained Vietnam's top source of tourist arrivals in the first half with 2.2 million visitors, followed by China with 1.8 million tourists.
The number of visitors from South Korea and China accounted for 47.2 percent of total foreign arrivals to Vietnam during the cited period.
Major markets in northeast Asia were the main driving force for Vietnam's foreign arrival recovery. The Chinese market reported a year-on-year increase of 229.4 percent, said the administration.
It is predicted that the number of international visitors to Vietnam will continue to grow dramatically in the second half of 2024.
Vietnam will realize the target of welcoming 17-18 million international visitors this year, said the administration. - Xinhua
