Vietnam has jumped one place from one year earlier to ninth among the 20 favorite countries to visit by readers of Condé Nast Traveler, a US-based luxury travel and lifestyle magazine.

Thung Nam mountain, Cao Bang province. Photo: Chu Xuan Khoa

Italy led the top 20 countries by Readers' Choice Awards 2020 of Condé Nast Traveler, followed by Sri Lanka, Portugal, Japan and Greece.

Along with Vietnam, Indonesia and Thailand, two Southeast Asian countries, ranked 6th and 7th among the magazine readers' choices.

Earlier, in September, CNTraveller (CNTraveler’s publication in the UK) rated Vietnam among the best holiday destinations for 2021. Some attractive points of Vietnamese tourism were highlighted in a CNTraveller article such as high-end resorts, the North-South railway and community-based tourism. 

CNTraveller suggested a “clutch of smart-but-unshowy stilted wooden villas” in the coastal enclave of Bai San Ho (coral reef) in Phu Yen province – “one of the country’s most biodiverse regions.”

Previously, Vietnam ranked fourth among the top 10 searched destinations for travel among all different traveler group from June 1 to December 31 this year, according to search data revealed by Agoda.

In September, the country ranked 31st among the most searched places for a post-lockdown holiday as travel restrictions have prevented tourists from jetting off across the world on holiday, according to Official ESTA, the US visa service company.