HCM City (VNS/VNA) - The global hotel and resort sector is recoveringwell from the COVID-19 pandemic with improvements on occupancy and room rates,and Vietnam is no exception, said Mauro Gasparotti, director of Savills Hotels AsiaPacific.

The performance during the summer vacation period suggests a positive outlook.

Coastal locations such as Ba Ria-Vung Tau, Ho Tram, Da Nang, Nha Trang, and PhuQuoc performed well, largely due to the return of domestic travellers.Occupancy reached 50% to 70% in some resorts.

However, for performance to reach 2019 levels, international arrivals need torecover fully, Mauro said.

Three factors are hindering tourism's recovery, including inflation, risingflight costs and continued disruptions in key source markets such as China andRussia.

“We expect demand to fully recover by 2024. However, Vietnam’s tourism industryalso faces the challenge of oversupply. Over the next three years, supply inkey tourist destinations is expected to grow at an average rate of 20% peryear. At this rate, if demand does not increase, it may lead to oversupply,which will impact occupancy,” he said.

There is great potential for resort real estate in Vietnam as the country sawthe largest increase in international arrivals in Southeast Asia between 2009and 2019 at 16.9% a year.

The supply of mid-scale to luxury rooms has increased to 94,000 this year from14,000 in 2009.

“To place Vietnam firmly on the international tourism map, agencies, investors,and professional consultants need to cooperate to deliver quality projects thatreflect the demands of the changing market and the local features. This isessential for long-term sustainability," Mauro said.

In the Asia Pacific, hotel occupancy was decimated by the pandemic and rangedfrom 25% to 40% in major destinations since 2020. However, the market has seenupticks since the second half of 2021, following successful vaccinationcampaigns across the region, which instilled confidence in investors.

According to Savills Asia Pacific Hospitality Spotlight published in June, hotelinvestment volumes reached 14.9 billion USD from 459 deals in 2021, surpassingthe pre-pandemic five-year average of 14.6 billion USD.

The market saw an uptick in both investment volumes and the number oftransactions in 2021, up 42.1% year on year and 25.8% year on year,respectively./.