Booking.com, one of the world’s leading online travel companies, has released its latest search data trends that shed light on Vietnamese travelers’ preferred destinations for the upcoming holiday season1. With more travel restrictions being lifted and the world opening up again, this year marks a promising return of travel for Vietnamese travelers who are ready to get back out there and make the most of their holidays.
A marked preference for a festive vibe in metropolitan cities followed by beach destinations
Data from Booking.com reveals that Vietnamese travelers are searching for metropolitan cities of Vietnam when it comes to short vacations, with Ho Chi Minh on top of the list followed by Hanoi. With 2000 miles of coastlines Vietnam is known for its beautiful beaches. It is no surprise that beach destinations remain a favorite for Vietnamese travelers for the upcoming holiday season with 6 out of 10 destinations in the most-searched list being beach cities.
Top 10 most searched cities by Vietnamese travelers for domestic travel with check in dates between December 23, 2022 to January 1, 2023
- Ho Chi Minh (+2)
- Hanoi (+4)
- Vung Tau (+2)
- Danang (+3)
- Dalat (-4)
- Hoi An (+8)
- Nha Trang (-3)
- Phu Quoc (+6)
- Quy Nhon (-6)
- Ha Long (+10)
When it comes to the top 10 regional destinations searched by Vietnamese travelers, Khon Kaen, Bangkok and Singapore are the most searched destinations for upcoming holidays. According to Booking.com’s Travel Confidence Index 2022, 45% of Vietnamese travelers plan to take regional trips (of up to 8 hours of travel time) to popular holiday destinations close to Vietnam and Khon Kaen, Bangkok and Singapore fall in this category. Given its proximity to Vietnam, it is no surprise that 4 out of 10 most searched regional destinations by Vietnamese for the holiday period between Christmas and New Year Eve belong to Thailand.
Top 10 most searched destinations by Vietnamese for international travel with check in dates between December 23,2022 to January 1, 2023
- Khon Kaen, Thailand (+372)
- Bangkok, Thailand (-20)
- Singapore, Singapore (-20)
- Seoul, South Korea (+29)
- Taipei, Taiwan (-17)
- Tokyo, Japan (-15)
- Sydney, Australia (+11)
- Chiang Mai, Thailand (+335)
- Phuket Town, Thailand (+87)
- Melbourne, Australia (+37)
Exploring the world is back on the list again. As per Booking.com’s 2023 Travel Predictions travelers are embracing ‘off-grid’ style vacations to escape from reality and more are looking for trips that leave ‘out of comfort zone’ or offer culture-shock experiences. When it comes to the top 15 searched destinations globally, HCMC of Vietnam made it to 12th place with a remarkable increase in search.
Top 15 most searched destinations globally by all travelers with check in dates between December 23, 2022 to January 1, 2023:
When it comes to the top 15 destinations searched by global travelers overall for the holiday season, London, UK and Paris are the most searched destinations. Ho Chi Minh City climbed up by 2985 spots securing the 12th spot among destinations for global travelers. Being one of the first countries in the world to have lifted restrictions on Covid-19 since March 15, 2022, Vietnam has since attracted a great number of tourists.
- London, UK (+2)
- Paris, France (-1)
- Dubai, United Arab Emirates (-1)
- Amsterdam, Netherlands
- Barcelona, Spain (+2)
- Roma, Italy
- New York, USA (-2)
- Tokyo, Japan (+38)
- Prague, Czech Republic (+1)
- Wien, Austria (-2)
- Madrid, Spain (+2)
- Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam (+2985)
- Berlin, Germany (+4)
- Budapest, Hungary (+2)
- Istanbul, Turkey (+4)
Varun Grover, Country Head, Vietnam at Booking.com comments: “The last few years have taught us that travel should not be taken for granted. After two years of travel restrictions, travelers are feeling overwhelmingly more optimistic about traveling. It is encouraging to see Vietnamese travelers exploring different destinations both within Vietnam and abroad with a more positive outlook towards travel. As people remain enthusiastic and book their holiday travel, Booking.com will continue to make it easier for everyone to create their unique travel memories as they experience what these different destinations have to offer during the year end and beyond”
METHODOLOGY
¹ This report looks at search sessions between 17 October 2022 and 30 October 2022, with check-in dates between 23 December 2022 and 01 January 2023. For comparison figures we looked at search sessions between 18 October 2021 and 31 October 2021, with check-in dates between 24 December 2021 and 2 January 2022.
