Tourism businesses and authorities in Khanh Hoa province are swiftly making infrastructure and personnel preparations to welcome international tourists back as Vietnam is set to completely reopen to foreign travellers from March 15.

Khanh Hoa, home to one of the most beautiful coasts in central Vietnam and experienced in the pilot reopening to foreign visitors, is now confident in reactivating tourism, Lao dong (Labour) newspaper reported.

The tourist site on Diep Son Island of Van Ninh district is undergoing repair and upgrade. Its owner, Trinh Minh Dai Anh, said during over two years full of pandemic-caused difficulties, he has striven to maintain the site’s operations with the hope for tourism revival.

The entire infrastructure of this site has been upgraded since the Lunar New Year holiday, he went on, noting that all residents and businesses in Khanh Hoa are now ready for resuming tourism activities in the new normal.

Travel companies and hotels in the province are also ramping up preparations for international tourism restoration.

Hoang Thi Phong Thu, Chairwoman of the Pegas Misr Vietnam Travel Co. Ltd, said her business is building a personnel recruitment plan to serve tourists from Russia, a major source of foreign visitors to Khanh Hoa.

She also proposed the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism (MCST) swiftly issue detailed guidelines on international tourism reopening, adding that the important thing is countries’ governments should reach consensus early on the resumption of air routes linking with traditional markets such as Russia, the Republic of Korea, and Japan.

Nguyen Duc Tan, General Director of the Anex Vietnam Travel and Trading Co. Ltd, which has engaged in the pilot scheme to receive Russian visitors back since late 2021, also expressed his optimism about tourism reactivation.

He hoped the Government and Foreign Ministry will soon reach agreement with the Russian side about the plans and conditions for travel resumption.

Many other enterprises in Khanh Hoa expressed their hope for easing entry regulations for foreign workers in the tourism industry.

To prepare for the reopening, the Khanh Hoa Tourism Association has organised an inter-sectoral survey team and instructed accommodation facilities, tourist attractions, transport and travel companies, along with shops, in how to serve foreign tourists and take anti-COVID-19 measures.

Nguyen Thi Le Thanh, Director of the provincial Tourism Department, said basing on the initial success in reopening domestic tourism, Khanh Hoa has been working to attract international travellers back.

It views the domestic market as the key factor in tourism recovery and also keeps a close watch on guidelines from the Government and the MCST so as to make appropriate moves in international tourism reactivation, she added./.