Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc has asked the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism to work with cities and provinces on post-COVID-19 tourism recovery scenarios.

The tourism sector has resumed services in the new normal stage (Photo:VNA) 

He said suitable measures are needed to promote tourism in line with the developments of the pandemic, and the management work should be enhanced to ensure service quality.

Vietnam is forecast to witness a 80% drop in the number of foreign tourist arrivals in 2020 if the COVID-19 pandemic is not controlled by the end of the year, according to the Vietnam National Administration of Tourism (VNAT).

The administration said following a 33% growth in January, the number of foreign holidaymakers fell sharply by 22% in February and 68% in March.  

Travel companies also reported that over the past five months, the number of tourists halved due to the impact of COVID-19. They are expected to face difficulties not only in 2020 but also the years beyond.

At least 90% of small- and medium-sized travel firms have suspended operations, while state-owned businesses are operating on low capacity as the coronavirus shut down travel.