After seeing a strong decline of outbound travel in 2020, the tourism industry is now brighter as travelers are eager to go abroad again.
The Outbox Company released “How Vietnamese Are Reconnecting With Outbound Travel?” report, about the trends and behaviors of Vietnam outbound travelers. The report is in the syndicated report series of Outbox Insight, one of the two key areas that The Outbox Company focuses on after rebranding.
Declining concerns lead to increasing travel demand
“Vietnamese travel sentiment” report in June of Outbox showed that concern about the safety of a destination was decreasing over time. In October 2021, the figure was 8.21 points (on a 10-point scale). After only 1 month, the level of concern about safety dropped to 7.85 points and continued to decrease to 6.15 points in May 2022. As sentiment is back, Vietnamese begin to include overseas destinations in their travel plans.
Along with pent-up demand, domestic and international tourism has grown rapidly. According to “How Vietnamese Are Reconnecting With Outbound Travel?” report from Outbox, 88.5% Vietnamese tourists took both domestic and outbound trips in the first nine months of 2022.
65% Vietnamese travelers spend more for outbound travel
Through the survey, Outbox saw that Vietnamese tourists have changed in behaviors and trends while traveling abroad.
They are willing to spend more as a way to help release their pandemic stress. 65% of travelers surveyed said they spent more on overseas trips than in 2019.
Before COVID-19, 48% of Vietnamese outbound travelers preferred guided group tours from travel agents. However, this option fell in popularity, with only 20% of travelers chosen for their outbound trip last summer. They now prefer to take their self guided outbound trips solo, with family members or friends.
Whether before or after the pandemic, the cost of the trip is always the top concern of tourists. Besides, due to COVID-19 impact, in addition to cost, people especially care about the safety of a destination. Top 5 must-do activities of Vietnamese outbound travelers are sightseeing (72.09%), exploring local cuisines (66.8%), shopping in malls (57.3%), visiting amusement parks (51.8%), and visiting cultural attractions (48.8%).
Vietnamese travelers are shortening planning time for outbound trips in less than a month (62% in 2022 compared to 29.3% in 2019). They are increasingly seeking flexible bookings. The reason is because everything is unpredictable. Shorter planning times and flexible bookings can help them reduce risk.
The new middle class with higher consumption
Outbox’s report states that Vietnam’s new middle class will make an important contribution to the development of outbound tourism. They have good income (more than 15 million VND or 750 USD), higher daily spending (from 30 USD) and good education. Nearly 60% of the population in Vietnam under 35 years old are better educated and earning higher incomes than previous generations.
Not only do they spend more while traveling, they also have an awareness of environmental protection and the sustainability of the destination. These make up a promising market for many destinations.
2022 marks the first stage of travel recovery, with all the delayed demand busted in excitement. Nevertheless, somehow people are still very cautious about traveling abroad. Some forecasts say 2023 will see even more optimism in tourism. Businesses and destinations need to grasp new trends and changes in tourist behavior early to achieve good results in the coming time.
