Vacationers at Sam Son Beach in Thanh Hoa Province,
central Vietnam, May 1, 2021. Photo by VnExpress/Dinh Tung. 

Crowds descending on Vietnam's major resort towns over the four-day holiday last weekend brought with them millions of dollars in tourism revenues. 

Lao Cai, home to famous highlands town Sa Pa, received 64,000 visitors during the national holiday (April 30-May 3), four times higher than the same period last year, provincial data shows. The northern province raked in VND208 billion ($9.03 million) in tourism revenue during the time.

Also in the north, Ninh Binh, with UNESCO heritage site Trang An Landscape Complex, welcomed over 65,000 visitors, up 47.5 percent, earning VND120 billion.

Kien Giang authorities said the Mekong Delta province's Phu Quoc Island received over 91,000 visitors, three times higher than last year's same period, and tourism revenues of VND101.2 billion.

Phu Quoc, dubbed ‘pearl island’, has become a top tourist destination after it built an international airport in 2012 and the government rolled out a 30-day visa-free policy for foreigners in 2014.

Thom Islet in Phu Quoc, Vietnam's largest island off the
southern coast. Photo by VnExpress/Khanh Tran.

Da Lat, a popular resort town in the Central Highlands province of Lam Dong, received over 145,000 visitors, up 180 percent. Many of its downtown streets were jammed last weekend by holiday crowds. Da Lat was the most sought for holiday destination by Vietnamese travelers during the national holiday, according to Booking.com, the world's biggest accommodation website.

In the central region, Da Nang, home to long, sandy beaches such as My Khe, welcomed 75,000 tourists, 10 times higher year-on-year.

Last year, the holiday to celebrate the Reunification Day (April 30) and Labor Day (May 1) saw Vietnam's top tourist destinations just reopening after weeks of nationwide social distancing.

After more than a month of no Covid-19 community transmissions, 38 domestic cases have been confirmed by the Health Ministry since April 27. The resurgence of community transmissions came as Vietnamese entered the four-day holiday that wrapped up Monday, seeing top tourist destinations in Vietnam overrun by holiday crowds.

The latest outbreaks prompted local authorities to suspend pedestrian streets and night markets while many tourist and religious sites have also been closed to prevent crowds amid the high risk of community transmissions.