With 85% of local travelers stating they intend to travel in the next 12 months, Vietnam emerged as the second most confident country in the Asia-Pacific region, according to the newly released Travel Confidence Index. 

Hanoian excited to travel 

The index indicates that among Asia-Pacific travelers, Vietnamese, especially Hanoians, were among the most willing travelers to put up with and overlook key travel deterrents to hit the road - which included enduring disruptions and travel costs; as well as confidence in their home country in receiving inbound travelers.

As the border is gradually opened after the Covid-19 pandemic, more and more Hanoians are eager to travel as far as possible.

Notably, most of them said they are comfortable with Vietnam opening borders back up (82%), and 75% are confident about welcoming international travelers.

When it comes to travel motivation, the need for a mental wellness retreat emerged as the top motivator to travel to Hanoian in particular and Vietnamese consumers in general (55%) after two years of lockdowns and a rapidly evolving travel landscape.

The report showed that 45% of respondents said these trips are motivated because they had planned for them before the pandemic. It's finally time to hit the road! While 32% would book a trip to visit a specific destination they are interested in, the same percentage (32%) would travel to get away from home, regardless of the destination.

Sustainable travel remains essential and top of mind

Young Vietnamese and international travelers love to travel to Sapa Town in Lao Cai Province, Vietnam. Photo: Dan Chi

Hanoi's economy is improving considerably, and tourism is growing, but for Vietnam's capital city to best position itself to develop as a responsible tourism destination, a change in mindset must occur. And that change needs to come from the young Hanoians of today.

According to the 2022 Sustainable Travel Report by Booking.com, 81% of global travelers affirm that sustainable travel is essential to them, with 50% stating that recent news about climate change has influenced them to

make more sustainable travel choices.

A family of foreign travelers enjoys holiday in Vietnam's central coastal city of Danang. Photo: InterContinental Danang Peninsula Resort

Sustainable travel remains important and top of mind

According to 2022 Sustainable Travel Report by Booking.com, 81% of global travelers affirm that sustainable travel is important to them, with 50% stating that recent news about climate change has influenced them to make more sustainable travel choices.

In the Asia-Pacific region, Vietnam once again ranked second in the index in terms of intent to travel sustainably, with 83% of respondents agreeing on the importance of making sustainable travel decisions. Among them, 73% are actually willing to pay more during their travels for sustainability, while 70% agree to have less options, as long as they are sustainable. 

A Vietnamese traveler experiences kayaking at Phu Quoc Island, the biggest island in Vietnam. Photo: Bao Nhi

In their upcoming travels, it is clear that Vietnamese travelers will be much more mindful about their environmental and societal impacts, with 71% emphasizing eating locally-sourced food in their accommodation, followed by 65% wanting to join tours and activities organized by locals, or as simple as bringing reusable bottles (52%) and turning off the air-conditioner in their hotel rooms (41%).

With the country slowly shifting toward endemic living with Covid-19, Vietnamese look determined to make up for lost time and are ready to do their part to care for the places they visit - with a few considerations to keep in mind.

Booking.com published Travel Confidence Index on June 22 based on an online survey, which polled 11,000 individuals from Singapore, Australia, China, Hong Kong, India, Japan, Korea, New Zealand, Taiwan, Thailand, and Vietnam.

It aims to track the impact of the region's geopolitical and societal diversities, alongside the varied response to the Covid-19 pandemic on overall confidence levels when it comes to restarting travel.

Accordingly, Vietnam emerged as the second most confident, with 85% of Vietnamese travelers stating they intend to travel in the next 12 months; second to India (86%); and followed by China (79%).