Vietnam’s tourism market has recovered to a large scale, creating a substantial base for adventure travel in Central Vietnam. The country recorded more than 17.5 million international arrivals in 2024, while domestic travelers accounted for 110 million of the 127.5 million tourists recorded across the tourism sector. National planning now identifies adventure tourism and sports tourism as emerging segments for priority development.
Contents
- Vietnam tourism scale and recovery
- International arrival trends
- Where visitors come from
- How travelers enter Vietnam
- Spending and the adventure-tourism opportunity
- Operators, guides, and travel demand
- Targets and the outlook
Vietnam tourism scale and recovery
The 2024 figures show both the scale of Vietnam’s visitor economy and the continuing return from the pandemic period. The Viet Nam National Authority of Tourism reported more than 17.5 million international visitor arrivals in 2024, an increase of 39.5% from 2023. B&Company’s summary of Viet Nam National Authority of Tourism and Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism data recorded 127.5 million tourists in the sector during the same year, including 110 million domestic travelers and 17.5 million international arrivals.
The same B&Company summary placed tourism’s 2024 economic contribution at US$33 billion. The national market therefore combines a very large domestic base with a rapidly expanding international segment. For Central Vietnam businesses, that distinction matters: adventure products can be designed for resident travelers as well as overseas visitors, rather than depending on a single source market.
The recovery is also visible in comparisons with earlier years. The Viet Nam National Authority of Tourism reported 6.2 million international arrivals in the first four months of 2024. That period was 3.9% above the same period in 2019. In the first quarter, Vietnam received more than 4.6 million arrivals, up 72% year on year and 3.2% versus the first quarter of 2019. March alone brought nearly 1.6 million international arrivals.
Longer-run tourism data from Strengthening Australia-Vietnam Tourism Cooperation provides a different measurement period and currency. It reported AUD 24 billion in industry revenue in 2021-22, down from AUD 47 billion in 2018-19. Before the pandemic, the sector employed 1.3 million people and contributed 9.2% of Vietnam’s GDP. By 2021, an estimated 90% to 95% of tourism businesses had closed or changed their core focus. Vietnam recorded 3.7 million foreign tourists in 2022, about 20% of pre-pandemic levels.
International arrival trends
The 2024 recovery continued through the year. The Viet Nam National Authority of Tourism recorded 1.15 million international arrivals in July 2024. That brought the first seven months of the year to nearly 10 million arrivals, up 51% year on year. The first four months had already reached 6.2 million, and April alone recorded 1.55 million.
The monthly and cumulative figures should be read as separate measurement points, not added together. They show a tourism market moving through the year at a high volume, with strong early-year performance and continued arrivals through July. For adventure-tourism operators, the numbers indicate a wide potential customer pool, but they do not by themselves measure how many visitors bought trekking, canyoning, rafting, climbing, diving, or other adventure products.
More recent figures from the Viet Nam National Authority of Tourism describe 2026 as another period of growth. Vietnam welcomed nearly 2.5 million international visitors in January 2026, 21.4% above December 2025 and 18.5% above January 2025. February brought more than 2.2 million visitors, taking the first two months of 2026 to nearly 4.7 million, up 18.1% year on year. March added nearly 2.1 million, and first-quarter arrivals reached 6.76 million, up 12.4% year on year.
April 2026 recorded 2.03 million international visitors. The first four months of 2026 totaled 8.8 million, up 14.6% year on year. These 2026 results are reported separately from the 2024 recovery statistics and should not be treated as a single continuous annual total.
Where visitors come from
Asia was Vietnam’s dominant international source region in 2024, accounting for 79.6% of all arrivals. Europe supplied 11.3%, the Americas 5.7%, Oceania 3.1%, and Africa 0.3%, according to the Viet Nam National Authority of Tourism.
South Korea led individual source markets with 4.5 million arrivals, equal to 26% of the 2024 total. China ranked second with 3.7 million, or 21.3%. Other reported 2024 markets included the United States at 780,000 arrivals, Japan at 711,000, India at 501,000, Malaysia at 495,000, Australia at 491,000, Cambodia at 475,000, and Thailand at 418,000.
The first four months of 2024 show how quickly several markets were rebuilding. South Korea contributed 1.6 million arrivals, or 25.8% of the period total, while China contributed 1.25 million, or 20%. Taiwan supplied 418,000 arrivals; the United States 301,000; Japan 235,000; Malaysia 181,000; Australia 180,000; Thailand 164,000; India 158,000; and Cambodia 156,000.
Year-on-year growth in that first-four-month period varied by market. Asian arrivals rose 77.2%, Chinese arrivals 394.9%, Korean arrivals 49.6%, Japanese arrivals 47.2%, and Taiwanese arrivals 116.3%. European arrivals increased 63.8%. Within Europe, the reported increases were 35.2% for the United Kingdom, 41.7% for France, 36.9% for Germany, 77.4% for Italy, 48.5% for Spain, 74.0% for Russia, 37.9% for Sweden, 31.8% for Switzerland, 40.3% for Denmark, 36.6% for Belgium, and 39.8% for Norway.
How travelers enter Vietnam
Air travel was the main arrival channel in 2024. The Viet Nam National Authority of Tourism recorded more than 14.8 million air arrivals, representing 84.4% of international visitors. Road arrivals were nearly 2.5 million, or 14.2%, while sea arrivals were about 248,100, or 1.4%.
The first quarter of 2026 showed a similar but not identical pattern. Air arrivals accounted for 82.3% of international visitors, land arrivals for 15.5%, and sea arrivals for 2.2%. The change in shares does not establish a trend in adventure travel, but it shows why air access, overland routes, and coastal or cruise gateways all remain relevant to tourism planning.
For Central Vietnam, access patterns are especially useful when evaluating multi-stop itineraries. The data confirms the size of air-reliant international demand, while the land and sea shares identify smaller channels that may support regional circuits. It does not quantify arrivals to any individual Central Vietnamese province or adventure attraction.
Spending and the adventure-tourism opportunity
The spending profile reported in Strengthening Australia-Vietnam Tourism Cooperation offers a useful view of the wider international visitor economy. Average accommodation spending per overnight international visitor was AUD 490. Average food and beverage spending was AUD 353, shopping was AUD 230, and transportation was AUD 223.
The same source distributed average spending as follows:
| Spending category | Share of average spend |
|---|---|
| Accommodation | 32.96% |
| Food and beverage | 23.78% |
| Shopping | 15.45% |
| Transportation | 15.01% |
| Recreation | 5.12% |
| Admission | 5.03% |
| Healthcare | 0.65% |
| Other | 2.00% |
Recreation represented 5.12% and admission 5.03% of average spending. Those categories are not adventure-tourism revenue figures, but they are the closest quantified indicators in the available tourism-spending data for activities and paid access. They suggest that experiences compete within a broader visitor budget that is led by accommodation, food and beverage, shopping, and transportation.
The visitor mix also includes travelers with measurable interest in active and outdoor experiences. Among Australian traveler preferences reported by Strengthening Australia-Vietnam Tourism Cooperation, road trips interested 49% of travelers, natural wonders 47%, and walking tours and cruises 39% each. Beach visits drew 57% interest, matching shopping at 57%. These preference figures describe Australian travelers and should not be generalized to every international market.
Operators, guides, and travel demand
Vietnam’s tourism supply included 3,921 registered inbound and outbound tour operators in 2023, according to Strengthening Australia-Vietnam Tourism Cooperation. The country had more than 37,000 tour guides, including more than 21,000 international tour guides. These counts describe the overall tourism workforce and operator base, not the number specializing in adventure activities.
The Australian market provides another demand indicator. Australian short-term resident returns from Vietnam reached 400,050 in 2024, up 42% year on year and 25% above pre-COVID levels. Vietnam was the eighth most popular destination for Australian travelers. Dining out ranked first among the reported preferences at 65%; beach visits and shopping each reached 57%; road trips reached 49%; natural wonders 47%; walking tours and cruises 39% each; street food 39%; and casual-to-mid-range dining 34%.
At destination level, B&Company’s summary of Viet Nam National Authority of Tourism and Tourism Information and Technology Center data reported that Ho Chi Minh City welcomed 6.1 million international visitors and 38 million domestic visitors in 2024. Hanoi recorded more than 28 million arrivals, including 6.65 million international tourists. Quang Ninh drew more than 19 million international and local visits. These are broad destination totals, so they should not be read as adventure-tourism counts or as measures for Central Vietnam alone.
Targets and the outlook
Vietnam’s planning framework gives adventure tourism an explicit policy position. B&Company’s summary of Decision 509/QD-TTg states that the 2026-2030 tourism plan names sports tourism and adventure tourism as emerging segments to prioritize. The spatial plan organizes the country into 6 regions, 3 growth poles, 8 dynamic areas, 5 major corridors, and 11 tourism centers.
The same planning summary reported a 2025 target of 25 to 28 million international visitors, 130 million domestic trips, tourism contributing 8% to 9% of national GDP, and more than 6.3 million tourism jobs. These were targets, not reported outcomes. Separately, the Vietnam National Authority of Tourism set a 2026 policy target of 25 million international visitors.
Early 2026 results provide context for that target: 6.76 million international arrivals were recorded in the first quarter, and 8.8 million in the first four months. The monthly figures remain estimates of measured arrivals for their stated periods, while the annual policy figure is a target. Keeping those categories separate is essential when using Vietnam adventure tourism statistics to plan products, capacity, staffing, or marketing in Central Vietnam.