Viet Nam tourism industry forum kicks off in Seoul

The Viet Nam Tourism Forum opened in Seoul, Korea on Wednesday. The six-day event introduces Vietnamese tourism products and services while creating opportunities for businesses of the two countries to discuss culture and tourism co-operation.

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Minister of Culture, Sport and Tourism Hoang Tuan Anh said at the forum that Viet Nam was a country with a diversity of cultural characteristics and boasted many tangible and intangible heritage sites that had received UNESCO recognition. The country also shared similarities with Korea.


Vietnamese Ambassador to Korea Pham Huu Chi said Viet Nam and Korea had many chances to develop tourism and cultural co-operation, particularly in golf tourism. He recommended that businesses work together to develop cheap tours that would draw more Korean golf players to Viet Nam and proposed Korea loosen entry procedures for Vietnamese tourists.

Representatives from Korean corporations investing in the fields of hotels and tourism in Viet Nam shared experience in tourism development.

The forum is part of the Viet Nam Cultural and Tourism Festival 2014 hosted by the Viet Nam Tourism Administration in Seoul and Gwangchu.

In the past five years, Korea has ranked second in terms of the number of tourists visiting Viet Nam. During 2008-12, the number of Korean tourists to Viet Nam recorded an annual increase of 12 per cent, soaring from 450,000 in 2008 to 700,000 in 2012.

In the first eight months of this year, nearly 550,000 Korean tourists visited Viet Nam, a year-on-year increase of 9 per cent.