Move over Thailand: Aussies visiting Vietnam up 130 per cent

Interesting article... looks like a lot of tourists are moving over to Thailand's tourism competitor, Vietnam.

http://www.smh.com.au/travel/traveller- ... 1e948.html


-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Move over Thailand, Vietnam is coming through

Siren song of an unassuming beauty

Jane E. Fraser
May 8, 2011

Diverse, unspoilt and inexpensive, Vietnam is luring Australians тАФ be they families, adventurers or cruisers тАФ away from larger Asian destinations.

Move over, Thailand, Vietnam is coming through. Australian visitor numbers to this small but culturally rich country are up almost 130 per cent, according to official figures, and wholesalers are reporting surging demand.

Vietnam has a persuasive combination of cheap prices, cheap airfares, quality hotels and diverse experiences to add to its reputation for having some of the most welcoming people in the world.

The Vietnam War is taking less of the focus (see box) and the country suffers none of the unrest that plagues some of its neighbours.

Vietnam is far from beating main competitor Thailand in terms of numbers - Thailand receives about 670,000 Australian visitors a year, while Vietnam gets about 280,000 - but many in the industry say it is the destination du jour.

The huge increase in traffic is especially noteworthy given Vietnam has no tourist office in Australia, which limits the amount of promotion it gets.

Vietnam has been one of Intrepid Travel's best-selling destinations in recent months, with a 185 per cent increase in bookings. The general manager of sales for Intrepid, James Thornton, says the country appeals to a broad audience.

"As with many emerging destinations, the backpackers have laid the foundation and now other types of travellers want to see what all the fuss is about," he says. "Vietnam is now slowly catering for these other markets - for example, families, people seeking beach getaways and sports enthusiasts who are interested in diving and golf holidays.

"In addition, we've seen an increase in low-cost carriers flying into Vietnam from Australia."

The managing director of Discover Asia, Trevor Lake, says Vietnam's swelling popularity is due to the realisation the country has good tourism infrastructure.

"There never really was a problem but there is always an apprehension towards a 'new' destination," Lake says.

He says Vietnam has lower comparable prices than neighbouring countries such as China and Thailand, yet has kept its focus on creating quality product, such as opening hotels in converted heritage buildings.

"They're making good money out of tourism so they're not being greedy," he says. "Vietnam isn't being ruined like some places in Asia. It may happen eventually but it isn't happening at the moment."

Vietnam also benefits from being a relatively small country, so travelling from one place to another is easy and inexpensive.

Lake says the country has just as much scenic and cultural diversity as larger Asian countries, along with sincere warmth towards visitors.

"Everything is just going in its favour; there are no negatives with Vietnam," he says. "It's such a pleasant place to go. You don't feel threatened; you feel comfortable, feel safe."

Lake says Jetstar flights have helped to raise awareness of the country, though few passengers opt for the cheapest fares.

Upgrading is common among travellers heading to Vietnam because of such low prices and the strength of the Australian dollar.

"People are looking for the quality rather than the cheapie holidays," Lake says.

Travellers are also starting to go much further afield, immersing themselves in the country rather than doing the "eight-day highlights of Vietnam" kind of trip.

Growing quickly in popularity are cruises on the Mekong River, which are being added on to land-based trips and attract people who might not otherwise travel to Vietnam.

"It's a new market and it's being catered for by good vessels, it's a good product," Lake says.

APT says demand for luxury river cruising in Vietnam has been such that it has added new departure dates this year. There are now 57 departures a year for its 12-day Ho Chi Minh City, Mekong and Angkor package, which includes eight days of cruising.

A new product for Discover Asia is traditional sampan boat trips. The rattan-covered boats have a bedroom and living area and are staffed by a small crew, with passengers able to design their own itinerary and dine at restaurants along the way. Lake says sampan trips are ideal for families, for a few nights or longer.

Intrepid Travel says its most popular trip is the 10-day Vietnam Express Southbound, from Hanoi and Halong Bay, taking in Hoi An and Hue on the way to Ho Chi Minh City and the Mekong Delta.

Many travellers also choose to combine travel to Vietnam with neighbouring Cambodia, to take in the Angkor Wat temple complex.

Fighting fades

FEW Australian travellers to Vietnam are looking for war history and sites, says the managing director of Discover Asia, Trevor Lake. Apart from Vietnam veterans, who travel to specific places, the war is not a major focus.

"People rarely consider that nowadays, it's certainly not part of the normal sightseeing," Lake says. "We have a generation of people who never lived through the war in Vietnam."

Australia's military involvement in the Vietnam War began in 1962 and ended in 1973. The Australian War Memorial museum confirms almost 60,000 Australians served in Vietnam; 521 died as a result and more than 3000 were wounded.

Read more: http://www.smh.com.au/travel/traveller- ... 1e948.html

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Beachlover

Interesting article... looks like a lot of tourists are moving over to Thailand's tourism competitor, Vietnam.

---

The time to have visited Vietnam was about 20 years ago. This will merely serve as the last nail in the tourism coffin.

Beachlover's off to visit the family?

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by thonglor55

Beachlover's off to visit the family?

---

Moron, if Beachlover, as he has told the forum so many times is an Australian of 'Asian' origin then it is highly likely that he has family in a lot of Asian countries. Unlike you who without doubt popped out of a back street laboratory after some experiment went wrong!

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by combat

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by thonglor55

Beachlover's off to visit the family?

---

Moron, if Beachlover, as he has told the forum so many times is an Australian of 'Asian' origin then it is highly likely that he has family in a lot of Asian countries.

---

Unlike you, combat (still doing the bully boy tactic of calling people names, I see) I pay attention to what Beachlover posts about his family and he has written about them in a number of posts (this is one) where it is VERY clear from what he says that his family are refugees from Vietnam who settled in Australia:

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Beachlover

I don't have to live through a military occupation as one of my grandparents did. I don't have to go to war against communist insurgents as my Dad did. I don't have to live in a shitty little hut sharing one small room with several siblings as my Mum did. I won't have to sell my home to put the kids through university as some of my Aunties/Uncles are having to do now...

---

- the original thread is global-forum-f12/the-only-graph-that-really-matters-t20870-15.html. Australia took in large numbers of Vietnamese refugees from 1976 onwards - a matter of record.

However, no apology is necessary combat old boy.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by thonglor55

I pay attention to what Beachlover posts about his family and he has written about them in a number of posts

---

Read my comment, I said it is highly likely that he has relatives from all over Asia. Get a life and get over your phobic neurosis about Beachlover and his ancestry. You must lead a very boring, lonely life to have so much time on your hands to trawl through old posts trying to prove how cagey you are.

http://media.sacbee.com/smedia/2011/...ffiliate.4.jpg
A Vietnamese worker in familiar colours sweeps the floor in one of Saigon's newer huts: Bitexco Financial Tower

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by combat

You must lead a very boring, lonely life to have so much time on your hands to trawl through old posts trying to prove how cagey you are.

---

You really do enjoy bullying, don't you.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by thonglor55

You really do enjoy bullying, don't you.

---

With the likes of you it's more like trying to pet a crocodile....

combat displays typical and classic bully behavior:
The purpose of bullying is to hide inadequacy, and people who bully to hide their inadequacy are often incompetent.
Bullying is obsessive and compulsive; the serial bully has to have someone to bully and appears to be unable to survive without a current target.
Despite the facade that such people put up, bullies have low self-confidence and low self-esteem, and thus feel insecure. Low self-esteem is a factor highlighted by all studies of bullying.
Bullies are seething with resentment, bitterness, hatred and anger, and often have wide-ranging prejudices as a vehicle for dumping their anger onto others.
Bullies are driven by jealousy and envy. Rejection (which cannot be assuaged) is another powerful motivator of bullying.
Since childhood, bullies have learnt that they can avoid the unpleasant consequences of bad behaviour through the instinctive response of denial, blame, and feigning victimhood.

She's a nasty piece of work but more to be pitied than anything else.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by combat

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by thonglor55

You really do enjoy bullying, don't you.

---

With the likes of you it's more like trying to pet a crocodile....

---

Ah, so you admit the bullying is selective!!

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by thonglor55

I pay attention to what Beachlover posts about his family and he has written about them in a number of posts (this is one) where it is VERY clear from what he says that his family are refugees from Vietnam who settled in Australia...

---

You deserve a little credit for doing your homework instead of taking a half-arsed stab at the air like the other "genius" stalker. Not confirming if you're right or wrong but if you think what I wrote lets you arrive at a conclusive result then you obviously don't know your history...

1. Vietnam isn't the only Asian country to have had a military occupation.

2. You don't have to be Vietnamese to have had to fight communists in Asia.

3. Australia's taken plenty of immigrants from other Asian countries.

4. Combat's right. My parents and relatives originated from multiple Asian countries and I'm not especially tied to any one so the chances of anyone guessing the exact combination are slim.

There! Throw that mix into your fat, bald, crusty excuse for a noggin and let's see what shite you come up with in your next pathetic piss poor attempt. :rolling:

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Beachlover

There! Throw that mix into your fat, bald, crusty excuse for a noggin and let's see what shite you come up with in your next pathetic piss poor attempt. :rolling:

---

Becareful Beachlover, Tonguetied will be throwing his toys about again and shouting "Bully, bully, bully" :occasion9:

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by combat

Becareful Beachlover, Tonguetied will be throwing his toys about again and shouting "Bully, bully, bully"

---

Indeed, Little Sir Echo. And what's your excuse for joining in the bullying, or are you also a narcissist?