Fearful travellers divert to safe Vietnam
HO CHI MINH CITY - It's a good time to be a hotel operator in communist Vietnam's
biggest city.
A multinational company had been planning a meeting in Bali drawing participants from
around the world. Then came the bombing in the Indonesian resort in October, killing
more than 180 people, many of them tourists.
The company decided to shift its plans to Bangkok. That became a problem after several
Western countries issued travel warnings on possible similar Muslim militant attacks in
Thailand and several other Southeast Asian nations.
Finally, the organizers looked to Vietnam.
They aren't alone in their choice. Ho Chi Minh City, still known by its pre-independence
name of Saigon, is cashing in on the perception that Vietnam is one of the safest travel
venues in a region jittery about further terror attacks.
The suicide bombing of an Israeli-owned hotel in Kenya and attempted downing of an
Israeli chartered flight on Thursday has further deepened travel angst.
"Vietnam appears to be the safest place in Southeast Asia," said Bertrand Courtois,
executive assistant manager in charge of rooms at Sofitel Plaza Saigon in the southern
commercial hub.
"The Japan leisure market is coming back very strongly," he told Reuters in an interview.
European tourists who had already paid for tours in Asia to countries such as Indonesia
were rebooking to Vietnam rather than cancelling their trips, Courtois said.
Stephen O'Grady, general manager of the Caravelle Hotel in Ho Chi Minh City, told
Reuters he's had to turn customers away on at least seven days this month.
"We look to finish the month at 86 percent [occupancy]," he said. That compares with 65
percent in November last year.
New destination
The business crowd has been particularly robust, in part due to a huge expansion in trade
following last December's trade pact with the United States, industry experts say.
O'Grady said that in addition to Vietnam's reputation as a safer country, "it's a new leisure
destination in people's eyes."
The travel industry was also reaping the benefits of promotions by state-run Saigon
Tourist and private groups such as hotels and airlines, he noted.
Hotel operators say their bookings into March look healthy, with O'Grady forecasting the
Caravelle to reach up to 90% occupancy in March 2003 from 81% a year ago.
Overall for Vietnam -- seen to be secure in large part due to the tight controls the
government exerts -- tourism is looking rosy.
The country of 80 million with one of the most vibrant economies in Asia expects to
receive up to 2.6 million foreign visitors by the end of this year, up from 2.3 million in
2001.
Of those, Ho Chi Minh City, home to seven million people, should see a rise of 16% in
international tourists from a year ago, Nguyen Thi Lap Quoc, director of the city's tourism
department told Reuters.
"Vietnam has been voted as a destination of safety for visitors and this is particularly
impressive after September 11 and the Bali bombing," she said, referring to the suicide
attacks on New York and Washington in September last year.
But she said tourism officials weren't yet ready to hype the safety aspect in promotions --
hotels in the bustling, traffic choked metropolis still display pre-2000 banners declaring
Vietnam as the destination of the "new millennium."
"We're keeping the safety image in mind at the moment but we haven't adopted it as a
slogan," she said.
Reuters - November 30, 2002.
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