Vietnam’s Civil Aviation Administration and the State Secretariat of Civil Aviation of Cambodia (SSCA) last week signed an agreement to launch the direct flight in the coming time, which will be operated by Cambodian national flag carrier Angkor Air.

Chhay Sivlin, president of the Cambodia Association of Travel Agents, said that the new route will cater to increasing travel demand and contribute to bilateral economic and tourism cooperation.

Vietnam is one of Cambodia’s biggest tourism markets, she was quoted by the Khmer Times as saying.

Biltaeral trade between the two countries reached $4.6 billion last year, an increase of 23.2 percent from the previous year. The governments have targeted two-way trade of $5 billion by 2020.

Currently Vietnam Airlines operates 56 flights a week on the Hanoi - Siem Reap, Ho Chi Minh City - Siem Reap and Ho Chi Minh City - Phnom Penh routes.

Da Nang in central Vietnam is one of the country's biggest cities that attracts many foreign visitors. Last year, it received 7.6 million tourists, 2.87 million of them foreigners, a 23.3 percent increase year-on-year.

Earlier this year, the New York Times ranked the city among 52 best places to go in 2019, dubbing it "the Miami of Vietnam."

Tourists enjoy the blue sea in Da Nang in central Vietnam.
Photo by VnExpress/Nguyen Dong

According to the kingdom's Ministry of Tourism, Cambodia welcomed about 260,000 Vietnamese tourists in the first four months of this year, a 1.2 percent rise year-on-year, making Vietnam the second biggest tourism market for Cambodia, after China.

The minister said Cambodia aims to attract about 1 million Vietnamese tourists a year by 2020. Currently, about 900,000 Vietnamese tourists visit Cambodia every year.

Citizens of ASEAN member nations can travel within the region without applying for visa and stay as a tourist for a maximum of 30 days.

Top Sokpheak, spokesman for Cambodia's tourism ministry, said increasing the number of international flights is a priority for the government.

Earlier this year, national flag carrier Vietnam Airlines had announced its plan to launch new routes from Vietnamese tourist destinations to Siem Reap, Phnom Penh and Sihanoukville in Cambodia.