Published:  22:10 Monday - February 18, 2013

After welcoming over 4.6 million foreign arrivals in the first 11 months of this year, the tourism sector has overtaken its yearly target by 400,000 visitors.

The figures showed a year-on-year increase of 36.5%, reported the General Statistics Office.

In the reviewed period, the number of visitors to Vietnam has increased sharply over the same period last year. Noteworthy was the number of tourists from China with 833,000 arrivals, up by 76.7%, followed by those from the Republic of Korea and Japan, up 38 and nearly 23%, respectively.

The number of visitors from ASEAN countries also increased markedly with 234,000 arrivals from Cambodia, double the figure in the same period last year.

According to experts, the increase is attributed to the tourism sector’s policies of promoting tourism in key markets, especially visa exemptions for visitors in the last three months of the year.

In addition, in 2010, Vietnam, as Chair of ASEAN organised many cultural and art activities for Hanoi’s 1,000 th birthday which attracted numerous tourists to Vietnam.

The tourism sector is now planning to welcome 5.5 million foreign visitors and about 31 million domestic tourists in 2011.

DLO