Photo: VNA

Dishes like pho and bun cha, floating markets in the Mekong Delta, mountain towns like Sa Pa and Da Lat, and the ancient imperial capital in Hue lured 12.6 million visitors from all over the world last year. Visitor numbers were spurred by Vietnam’s extension of its electronic visa system, which made obtaining a visa much easier and expanded 30-day tourist visits to 90 days. 

At the same time, Vietnam extended its visa waiver to 13 countries, including Germany, the Republic of Korea, France, the UK, Italy and Spain, and allowed citizens of those countries to stay in Vietnam up to 45 days (compared with 15 days previously). In the last quarter of 2023 the number of tourists from Spain surged 90%, from Italy 68%, from France 52%, and from the UK 49%.