Visa fee exemption takes effect

Samurai to take local travelers to Japan on chartered flight

HCMC – The visa fee exemption policy took effect on Sunday after the Vietnam National Administration of Tourism (VNAT) had issued guidelines on the policy over weekend.

In a document signed by VNAT’s deputy head Nguyen Manh Cuong, the tourism agency said the exemption of visa fees would be granted between Sunday and December 31 to international visitors.

However, the incentive is limited to only those tourists who buy packaged tours from international travel companies who have registered to join the country’s tourism marketing campaign named Viet Nam – Your Destination. Tourists can find such companies at www.impressivevietnam.vn

The central Government late of last month announced the new policy for international travelers to the country following a request from the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism.

Travelers who purchase “Vietnam – Your destination” program’s tours but make their tours after December 31 will not be entitled to visa fee exemption.

The country received more than 383,000 foreign visitors last month, bringing the total number of foreign arrivals to over 3.73 million in the January – September period, up 34.2% year on year.

* HCMC- based Samurai Travel Joint-Stock Company in December will take local travelers to Japan on a chartered flight. The company has promised the cheaper tour prices compared to normal prices because Samurai and APEX travel have cooperated to bring Japanese tourists to Vietnam on the plane.

APEX will handle inbound tours for Japanese travelers to the country.

Samurai’s director Nguyen Van Thanh told the Daily that the outbound tour would start in HCMC on December 28 to take tourists to attractions in Nikko and to celebrate the New Year holiday in Tokyo and other sites. The six-day tour costs US$1,999 per person.

He said tourists would save hundreds of U.S dollars as the two companies have leased the flight for both inbound and outbound travelers.

Thanh said his company was seeking cooperation with other travel companies in HCMC to attract local travelers to the special tour. Samurai and APEX have plans for similar tours on this Lunar New Year holiday.

Tourists can contact the company at 40 Mac Thi Buoi Street, District 1 or via the telephone number 08 3 825 1076 for further information.

Related Articles

• Visa fee exemption takes effect
• President urges effective cooperation in security
• Briefing on developments of ASEAN defence and military cooperation by ADMM+ Chairman
• PM foresees bright future for co-operation with Africa
• Food promotions at Grand and First hotels

Visa fee exemption takes effect

Samurai to take local travelers to Japan on chartered flight

HCMC – The visa fee exemption policy took effect on Sunday after the Vietnam National Administration of Tourism (VNAT) had issued guidelines on the policy over weekend.

In a document signed by VNAT’s deputy head Nguyen Manh Cuong, the tourism agency said the exemption of visa fees would be granted between Sunday and December 31 to international visitors.

However, the incentive is limited to only those tourists who buy packaged tours from international travel companies who have registered to join the country’s tourism marketing campaign named Viet Nam – Your Destination. Tourists can find such companies at www.impressivevietnam.vn

The central Government late of last month announced the new policy for international travelers to the country following a request from the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism.

Travelers who purchase “Vietnam – Your destination” program’s tours but make their tours after December 31 will not be entitled to visa fee exemption.

The country received more than 383,000 foreign visitors last month, bringing the total number of foreign arrivals to over 3.73 million in the January – September period, up 34.2% year on year.

* HCMC- based Samurai Travel Joint-Stock Company in December will take local travelers to Japan on a chartered flight. The company has promised the cheaper tour prices compared to normal prices because Samurai and APEX travel have cooperated to bring Japanese tourists to Vietnam on the plane.

APEX will handle inbound tours for Japanese travelers to the country.

Samurai’s director Nguyen Van Thanh told the Daily that the outbound tour would start in HCMC on December 28 to take tourists to attractions in Nikko and to celebrate the New Year holiday in Tokyo and other sites. The six-day tour costs US$1,999 per person.

He said tourists would save hundreds of U.S dollars as the two companies have leased the flight for both inbound and outbound travelers.

Thanh said his company was seeking cooperation with other travel companies in HCMC to attract local travelers to the special tour. Samurai and APEX have plans for similar tours on this Lunar New Year holiday.

Tourists can contact the company at 40 Mac Thi Buoi Street, District 1 or via the telephone number 08 3 825 1076 for further information.

Related Articles

• Visa fee exemption takes effect
• President urges effective cooperation in security
• Briefing on developments of ASEAN defence and military cooperation by ADMM+ Chairman
• PM foresees bright future for co-operation with Africa
• Food promotions at Grand and First hotels

Tour operators await visa fee exemption advice

HCMC – Many tour operators are still waiting for guidelines from the tourism authorities regarding the exemption of visa fees for tourists following the approval of the Government, and have yet to send the good news to their overseas partners.

Under a new decision last week, the Government agreed to exempt visa fees for international visitors in the last quarter of this year as a way to further bolster the hospitality industry despite its better-than-expected performance so far. However, the incentive is extended to only those visitors who purchase package tours offered by international travel firms who have registered to join the national marketing campaign in 2010 named Vietnam – Your Destination.

Travel agencies said they would announce the incentive to partners right upon the guidance.

“We will send the news to partners when we receive the guidance from the Vietnam National Administration of Tourism (VNAT) because the similar rule last year was complicated for tourists,” said Hoang Huu Loc, deputy director of Saigontourist Travel Service Co.

Loc told the Daily on Monday that visa fee exemption would help the tourism sector woo more visitors as visitors can save US$25 per person. In last year’s program, many tourists catered to by Saigontourist, especially French and German travelers, had received the benefits.

“In a time of tough competition, overseas partners will be happy if we can lower tour prices but we need more time to promote the program to buyers,” he said.

Tu Quy Thanh, director of Lien Bang Travelink, has the same view with Loc but his company has informed overseas partners of the incentive.

“We don’t have time so we send the new rule to partners first and then update the guidance later,” he said.

According to him, it is difficult to woo visitors from long-haul destinations like Europe in the rest of the year because the incentive was announced too late.

“But it’s good news because we have more tourists to travel by groups. We will inform the partners as soon as possible,” said Nguyen Minh Quyen, deputy director of Ben Thanh Tourist Travel Service Center.

Loc from Saigontourist expects the company can make the procedures for tourists in the last two months of this year as it needs time to have the guidance from VNAT and feedback from overseas travel agents.

VNAT has reported more than 383,000 foreign visitors to the country in September, bringing the total number of foreign arrivals to over 3.73 million in the year to date, up 34.2% year on year. The country’s tourism expects to receive five million foreign visitors this year.

Related Articles

• Coffee exports soar with spike in global demand
• UK port operators seek opportunities
• Thousands await relocation
• HCMC to relay grand sale program to November
• Food promotions at Grand and First hotels

Gov’t gives visa fee exemption for tourists

HCMC – Visa fees will be exempted for all international travelers coming to Vietnam as organized by international travel companies who have registered to join the national marketing campaign named Vietnam – Your Destination.

Deputy Prime Minister Nguyen Sinh Hung has just announced the Government decision, which offers visa fee exemption between now and the end of this year.

Vu The Binh, head of the Travel Department under the Vietnam National Administration of Tourism (VNAT), told the Daily on Thursday that the tourism sector would have a good opportunity to woo more visitors to the country in the next three months because all of the country’s international travel companies were joining the marketing program.

“Along with the diplomatic channel, we will send the good information directly to overseas partners to encourage more foreign guests to come,” he said.

VNAT has reported that more than 383,000 foreign visitors visited the country in September, bringing the total number of foreign arrivals to over 3.73 million in the year to date, up 34.2% year on year.

The top ten markets of the country’s inbound tourism sector are China, South Korea, the U.S., Japan, Taiwan, Australia, Cambodia, Thailand, Malaysia, and France. Arrivals from these markets alone hit nearly 2.79 million, while arrivals from the remaining markets total 942.000.

Related Articles

• Vietnam extends visa fee exemption through year’s end
• Countries of CLMV join hands for tourism development
• Fitness for all
• HCMC to relay grand sale program to November
• Expats sing happy birthday to Ha Noi

Bold moves suggested to make Indochina real single destination

Buyers and sellers meet in a business matching session at the Saigon Exhibition and Convention Center in District 7 - Photo: Dao Loan

HCMC – Several overseas travel firms on Wednesday called on tourism authorities of the three Indochina countries to go beyond the slogan to make the sub-region a real single destination by making cross-border travel free of red tape.

Gabriella Papp, sales manager of Eurohand Travel from Hungary, suggested that the three countries consider the possibility of issuing a common visa for travelers to cross the border easier. The common visa will help international tourists to save time and budget and make it easier for them to tour the three destinations.

“There are no embassies of Laos and Cambodia in Hungary, so tourists can benefit greatly if the three countries have strong cooperation to make the one-visa procedure,” she said at the Vietnam-Laos-Cambodia Destination Nexus for Tourism seminar held in HCMC’s District 7.

Of course this bold suggestion is difficult to realize given the huge amount of work to be tackled to iron out related procedures.

On the first day of the gathering, visa procedures were also the issue that captured great interest from overseas travel firms.

A representative from Italia complained about the complicated visa procedures in Vietnam, let alone the paperwork to enter Indochina, so the travel firm wanted to have clear information about procedures.

A representative from Bangladesh raised a similar question, wanting to know the easy way to get a visa to enter Vietnam. “And besides Vietnam, we also want to know about the procedures in Laos and Cambodia to bring tourists in,” he said.

Other travel agents suggested that Vietnam give visa exemption to visitors from potential markets.

Vu The Binh, head of the Travel Department under Vietnam National Administration of Tourism, said that Vietnam is giving visa exemption to nine countries in ASEAN and some other countries such as Japan, South Korea, and Russia.

The visa exemption policy is only offered to visitors from those countries with huge potential as a key source market for Vietnam, he said.

However, Binh said visas for travelers were not that difficult if foreign travel companies cooperate with local travel firms to make the procedures.

The tourism official also noted that Vietnam has been exempting visa fees during promotion programs to make it more attractive to international visitors. “We expect the next program (of visa fee exemption) will be launched next month. It will run until the end of this year,” he said.

Foreign participants at the seminar said the three countries are on the right way to strengthen cooperation to promote Indochina as a single destination. However, the three countries need more efforts in developing products, and linking tourist sites for better attraction.

A tour operator from Myanmar suggested that Vietnam Airlines need to connect flight from HCMC to Siem Reap in Cambodia and then Myanmar along with linking flights from Paris to HCMC and Siem Reap and then Myanmar to woo more international tourists.

The seminar is one of several activities of the yearly International Travel Expo in HCMC. Other activities staged on Wednesday included the ASEAN Tourism Forum, buyers-sellers speech dating, and a special dinner to welcome foreign buyers. The exhibition and other meetings of tourism officials will take place on Thursday in the city.

Related Articles

• Bold moves suggested to make Indochina real single destination
• Market moves up sharply
• Assoc insists on power price hike despite protests
• Girls gear up for Vietnam’s Next Top Model
• Air France unveils non-stop services to HCMC