Expanded Visa Exemptions Open New Markets for Vietnam Tourism
	Vietnam’s Tourism Soars with 14 Million Foreign Arrivals in Eight-Month Span

From January to June 2025, nearly 690 million international travelers journeyed worldwide - 33 million more than the same period in 2024 - marking a 5% increase year-on-year and about 4% above pre-pandemic levels.

Vietnam is one of the favorite destinations for international tourists. (Illustrative Photo)

The strongest growth was seen in Japan and Vietnam (both +21%), followed by Morocco (+19%), South Korea (+15%), and Malaysia and Indonesia (both +9%). UN Tourism Secretary-General Zurab Pololikashvili emphasized that international tourism continues to demonstrate robust growth and resilience despite global challenges, contributing to local economies, job creation, and livelihoods. He also underlined the need to ensure that such growth remains sustainable and inclusive through collaboration with local stakeholders.

Regional Performance and Revenue Growth

According to the latest World Tourism Barometer, Africa saw the highest regional growth at 14%, while Asia-Pacific continued its recovery, growing 11% and reaching 92% of pre-pandemic levels (still 8% lower than 2019). Northeast Asia led with 20% growth but remains slightly below 2019 levels.

Japan and Vietnam were the top performers at +21%, followed by South Korea (+15%), Morocco (+19%), Mexico and the Netherlands (+7%). Malaysia, Indonesia (+9%), and Hong Kong (+7%) also grew but have yet to surpass pre-pandemic arrivals.

Visitor arrivals to South Korea increased by 15%, according to UN Tourism (Illustrative Photo)

Europe welcomed nearly 340 million visitors (+4% from 2024, +7% from 2019), with Central and Eastern Europe rebounding strongly (+9%) though still 11% below 2019. The Americas saw mixed results: South America grew 14%, Central America +2%, while North America was flat due to slight drops in the US and Canada. The Caribbean also stagnated due to weaker demand from the US market.

The Middle East declined 4% compared to 2024 but remains 29% higher than 2019. Major destinations such as France and Spain posted +5% growth.

Travel to Middle East (Illustrative Photo)

Travel demand was supported by air traffic, with IATA reporting a 7% increase in both international passenger volumes and seat capacity in the first half of 2025. Global hotel occupancy reached 69% in June (70% in June 2024) and 71% in July, on par with last year.

International tourism revenues surged at major destinations: Japan (+18%), the UK (+13% in Q1), France (+9%), Spain (+8%), and Turkey (+8%). In 2024, global tourism revenues rose 11% to a record USD 1.734 trillion, 14% above pre-pandemic real terms, reflecting strong global spending.

Tourism Confidence Outlook for Late 2025

Despite growth, the September UN Tourism Confidence Index survey highlighted rising transport and accommodation costs, as well as broader macroeconomic factors, as the biggest challenges for international travel in 2025. Travel inflation is projected to ease from 8% in 2024 to 6.8% in 2025 but remains well above pre-pandemic levels (3.1%) and global headline inflation (4.3%).

Travelers are expected to focus more on value for money, favor closer destinations, shorten stays, or reduce spending. Economic and geopolitical uncertainty continues to weigh on confidence, with weaker consumer sentiment ranked as the third most influential factor, followed by broader geopolitical risks, trade tariff hikes, and travel restrictions.

The young generation now frequently uses AI as a companion on every trip.

UN Tourism’s Global Tourism Confidence Index for September-December 2025 improved slightly to 120 points (on a 0–200 scale, where 100 = unchanged performance), compared to 114 in May-August. About half of surveyed experts expect better results for the rest of the year: 44% forecast “better” and 6% “much better,” while 33% expect stable performance and only 16% foresee a decline.

Optimism for the full year has also strengthened, with 60% of experts in September predicting improved results for 2025, up from 49% in May.

Despite global uncertainty, international tourism demand is expected to remain resilient for the remainder of 2025, with UN Tourism maintaining its forecast for 3–5% growth in international arrivals.

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