Viet Nam has been named Asia’s Leading Destination for the eighth time and Asia’s Leading Heritage Destination for the fourth time at the World Travel Awards. (Photo: Thanh Dat/Nhan Dan Newspaper)

Diverse appeal of destinations

The World Travel Awards are organized to honor outstanding representatives of the tourism industry across Asia, Oceania and the Indian Ocean. In the 2026 edition, Viet Nam was named Asia’s Leading Destination for the eighth time and received the Asia’s Leading Heritage Destination title for the fourth time.

Graham Cooke, founder of the World Travel Awards, said: “The winners represent the very best in tourism quality and achievement. I would like to congratulate all the winners who have continued to raise standards and demonstrate outstanding achievements in tourism across this vast and promising region.”

Viet Nam’s achievements extended beyond the national level, with numerous destinations and localities leaving a strong mark in key categories at the 2026 World Travel Awards.

While Ha Noi was named Asia’s Leading Short Break Destination, Ho Chi Minh City continued to demonstrate its strength in urban tourism by winning the titles of Asia’s Leading Festival and Event Destination and Asia’s Leading Business Travel Destination. The Ho Chi Minh City Department of Tourism was also named Asia’s Leading Local Tourism Authority.

At this year’s World Travel Awards, Son La had two representatives among the winners. Ta Xua was named Asia’s Leading Emerging Destination, while Moc Chau received the title of Asia’s Leading Regional Nature Destination.

Phong Nha-Ke Bang in Quang Tri continued to receive recognition as Asia’s Leading National Park. Tam Chuc in Ninh Binh was also honored as Asia’s Leading Cultural Scenic Attraction.

The Viet Nam National Authority of Tourism said the results demonstrate the increasingly diverse appeal of Viet Nam’s tourism, spanning major cities and event hubs as well as natural, cultural and heritage destinations. Viet Nam’s advantages are no longer concentrated in a single group of tourism products but are increasingly evident across multiple areas, including culture, heritage, nature, leisure, urban tourism, events and business travel.

Increasing service delivery capacity

Often dubbed the “Oscars” of the tourism industry, the World Travel Awards were launched in 1993. The awards recognize outstanding achievements in tourism and travel worldwide.

Awards are assessed and presented at multiple levels, from regional to global, across various categories for destinations, tourism authorities, and tourism and travel businesses.

Alongside leading destinations, this year’s awards also honored numerous prominent Vietnamese tourism brands in the hotel, resort, aviation and travel sectors in leading Asia categories.

Vietnam Airlines was among the notable winners, receiving two titles: Asia’s Leading Airline for Customer Experience and Asia’s Leading Airline - Economy Class. Sun Group was named Asia’s Leading Integrated Tourism Group, while Sunset Town in Phu Quoc received the title of Asia’s Leading Tourism Development Project.

In addition, Van Don was named Asia’s Leading Regional Airport, while Ha Long International Cruise Port was honored as Asia’s Leading Cruise Port. Vietravel received the title of Asia’s Leading Travel Agency. Sun World Ba Na Hills was recognized as Asia’s Leading Theme Park.

Vietnamese brands also featured prominently in resort categories. InterContinental Danang Sun Peninsula Resort was named Asia’s Leading Luxury Resort, Salinda Resort Phu Quoc was named Asia’s Leading Boutique Resort, and Premier Village Phu Quoc Resort received the title of Asia’s Leading Villa Resort, among other honors.

The simultaneous presence of Vietnamese destinations, tourism authorities and tourism service providers at the 2026 World Travel Awards partly reflects the growing competitiveness of the country’s tourism industry, which is being built on an increasingly diverse ecosystem. In this ecosystem, the quality of destinations is complemented by service delivery capacity and the ability to provide experiences for visitors.

According to the Viet Nam National Authority of Tourism, the continued recognition of numerous Vietnamese destinations and tourism businesses at the 2026 World Travel Awards comes as the country’s tourism competitiveness continues to make positive progress in international rankings.

This demonstrates that the appeal of Viet Nam’s tourism is being recognized across a broad range of areas, from national, urban, heritage and natural destinations to tourism products and services. These achievements are helping Viet Nam leave a clearer mark on the regional and international tourism map.

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