Hanoi (VNA) - To achieve the goal of welcoming 5 million foreign tourists this year as set out earlier, Vietnam's tourism industry needs to makegreater efforts in promoting its image and building more tourism products,according to insiders.

Statistics from the Vietnam National Administration ofTourism (VNAT) show that in the first seven months of 2022, Vietnam served 954,600 foreign tourists, up nine folds compared to the same period last year. InJuly alone, the nation welcomed 352,600 foreign visitors, up 49% month-on-month.

Foreign tourists to Vietnam over the recent past mainlycame from the Asia-Pacific region, prominently in the top 10 markets being theRepublic of Korea with 196,200 arrivals, up 903.7% year-on-year; the US 102,900, up 5,382%; and Japan 46,000, up 794.6%.

The VNAT also pointed out that European markets showimpressive increases in the number of visitors to Vietnam and will graduallyincrease in the near future such as the UK (26,400 arrivals, up 2,958.6%),France (23,400, up 2,963.7%), and Germany (23,600, up3,897.1%).

The sector expects that the number of foreign visitorswill surge when the peak inbound tourism season starts fromSeptember.

To attract more foreigners, Pham Ha, CEO of Lux Group - Asia'sleading luxury travel and tourism company, said that Vietnam's visa policyneeds to be more open to remarkably growing markets such as the US, Canada,Australia, New Zealand or East European countries.

Nguyen Thi Anh Hoa, Director of Ho Chi Minh City Departmentof Tourism, highlighted the need for the Ministry of Culture, Sports andTourism to propose to the Government and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs toconsider and expand the list of countries subject to visa exemption and lengthen the temporary stay for international visitors to Vietnam from 15days to 30 days from the date of entry.

Insiders also suggested strengthening connectivity betweenlocalities in tourism promotion to further develop the industry./.