At the government's online conference with localities on the morning of july 4, General Secretary and President To Lam noted that the amount Vietnamese citizens spend on overseas travel is "just as substantial" as the revenue from international visitors to Vietnam. Consequently, Vietnam's tourism sector recorded a surplus of only 950 million USD over the past six months. This compares to a 2025 surplus of 480 million USD and a 2024 deficit of 380 million USD.

President To Lam therefore proposed a deeper analysis of the service balance and the development of a strategy to rebalance the tourism sector in the coming years. He suggested that for a higher tourism surplus, Vietnam's tourism industry must upgrade its offerings to encourage international visitors to spend more and to motivate Vietnamese citizens to choose domestic travel more frequently.

According to data from the General Statistics Office (Ministry of Finance), international arrivals to Vietnam in june reached 1,68 million, a 5,7% decrease from the previous month but a 14,7% increase compared to the same period last year. In Q2, international arrivals totaled 5,49 million, an 18,8% reduction from Q1. Overall, in the first six months of the year, Vietnam welcomed 12,3 million international visitors, marking a 14,9% increase over the same period last year.

Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism Lam Thi Phuong Thanh spoke at the conference on the morning of july 4. *Photo: Nhat Bac/VGP*

At today's conference, Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism Lam Thi Phuong Thanh stated that the sector will promote tourism to become a key economic driver. She emphasized the need to foster the interdependent relationship between tourism and related industries, shifting focus from broad reach and quantity to depth, quality, and high added value. This shift will involve creative products and unique experiences. Vietnam's tourism sector will target high-spending, long-stay tourists.

"Through assessing the situation and working with various localities, we observe that many local authorities prioritize tourism, but their solutions are not yet robust, and there is a lack of synchronized investment," Minister Thanh stated. She urged localities to concentrate on finding effective solutions for tourism development in their areas.

Vu Tuan