Buzz
Coming soon, international travelers to Vietnam, Thailand, and Cambodia may only need to use a single visa (entry permit) instead of applying multiple times. This is a new progressive step, bringing convenience to travelers and tour companies.
Heading towards visa exemption
Mr. Nguyen Van Tuan, Director General of the Vietnam National Administration of Tourism (under the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism), affirms Vietnam's desire to connect with Thailand and Cambodia to simplify procedures, as both countries have already implemented a shared visa for international tourists.
In reality, international travel agencies have repeatedly proposed the need for a unified visa for tourists to facilitate easier travel, but it has yet to be implemented. However, since late December 2012, Thailand and Cambodia have taken a step forward by signing the ACMECS agreement (similar to the 'one visa for many countries' agreement in Europe), allowing tourists from 35 countries and territories mutually agreed upon by both parties to use a shared visa. Accordingly, tourists can apply for a visa at a designated location such as an embassy, consulate, or customs checkpoint of either Thailand or Cambodia, and then stay in the other country and vice versa. The countries and territories agreed upon by Thailand and Cambodia are attractive markets with large numbers of tourists, including European countries, Australia, the United States, Japan, China, South Korea, among others. These are also the leading tourist markets exploited by Vietnam.
Before the Prime Minister's request, the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Ministry of Public Security, and other relevant ministries and agencies had studied the possibility of connecting with Thailand and Cambodia to enable international tourists to use a single visa when traveling to the three countries. The Ho Chi Minh City Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism had previously proposed to the National Administration of Tourism to recommend to the Government to promote the establishment of the 'Year of Nations - a single destination' program (Thailand, Laos, Cambodia, Myanmar, and Vietnam), moving towards a shared visa or visa exemption to attract international visitors.
Mr. Dinh Ngoc Duc, Deputy Head of International Cooperation Department – Vietnam National Administration of Tourism, stated that the administration warmly welcomes this initiative and will expedite proposals and connections, especially at the international tourism exhibition in Ho Chi Minh City in September. Tourism leadership emphasizes collaboration to use a single visa with Thailand and Cambodia as the first step in a series of efforts by ASEAN countries aiming to implement a common visa for the entire bloc.
Thriving tourism enterprises
Mr. Le Xuan Huong, Director of Vision Vietnam Travel Company, evaluates: The prospect of international travelers being able to use a single visa when traveling to three countries in the near future is an effort to attract visitors to Vietnam. “Attracting visitors from Thailand, Cambodia is clearly beneficial, and the number of visitors will increase even though for foreign visitors, visas are not a major issue,” Mr. Huong said. However, he also believes that Vietnamese tourism will only truly change when there are many accompanying conditions, not just visa exemptions for guests, especially the need to change the promotion process. “Subjectively speaking, I find tours in Vietnam much more interesting, but tourists still flock to Thailand simply because they promote themselves too well, while we cannot do this,” Mr. Huong emphasized.
The director of a major travel company in Hanoi also shares this view. According to him, this is a breakthrough change. “We may lose a source of revenue from visa applications, about 50 USD/person, but what we gain is much greater. He estimates: On average, one international visitor to Vietnam requires 7 service personnel. If the number of visitors increases, then employment and income for Vietnamese people will continue to rise, which is very commendable.
ASEAN – a potential tourism market
With an area of 4.46 million km2, a population of over 600 million people, and GDP reaching over 2,000 billion USD, ASEAN is a potential tourism market. The number of international visitors to ASEAN in recent years has been increasing. In 2012 alone, nearly 90 million international visitors were welcomed, an increase of 9.73% compared to 2011, of which intra-bloc international visitors accounted for nearly 50%.
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Source: Travel Handbook by Mytour – Courtesy of: Nguoilaodong
MytourJune 26, 2015
