Hanoi continues to strengthen its appeal to international visitors, including those from Japan

Room for further growth in two-way tourism

Vietnam-Japan relations continue to develop positively across a wide range of fields, with tourism considered one of the highlights of the Comprehensive Strategic Partnership between the two countries. Alongside ongoing cultural exchange activities, tourism cooperation is creating new growth opportunities for businesses and localities in both countries.

Speaking at a recent Vietnam-Japan tourism business-to-business networking event in Hanoi, organized by the Hanoi Department of Tourism in coordination with the Ninh Binh Department of Tourism and the Quang Ninh Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism, Tran Trung Hieu, Deputy Director of the Hanoi Department of Tourism, said tourism cooperation is making a positive contribution to the Comprehensive Strategic Partnership between Vietnam and Japan.

Promotional activities and cultural exchanges between the two countries have been held regularly, helping encourage tourism exchanges. In particular, the official visit to Vietnam by Japanese Prime Minister Takaichi Sanae on May 2, 2026 further highlighted the positive development of bilateral relations, creating favorable conditions for cooperation across a range of fields, including tourism.

Japan is currently one of Vietnam’s key international tourism markets. According to Tran Trung Hieu, Vietnam welcomes more than 800,000 Japanese visitors on average each year, with nearly 40% visiting Hanoi, equivalent to more than 300,000 arrivals. This places Japan among the capital’s top five international source markets. In the other direction, Vietnamese demand for travel to Japan continues to grow. In 2025, more than 700,000 Vietnamese traveled to Japan. These figures indicate relatively balanced two-way visitor flows, reflecting growing interest among people in both countries in each other’s culture, people, and tourism offerings.

Against this backdrop of growing exchange, Hanoi continues to serve as one of Vietnam’s key international gateways, welcoming nearly 8 million international visitors in 2025, accounting for about 37% of the country’s total international arrivals. Japanese visitors are increasingly seeking local cultural experiences, heritage exploration, MICE tourism, and high-quality leisure stays, all of which are strengths of Hanoi and nearby destinations such as Ninh Binh and Quang Ninh. A survey by the Hanoi Department of Tourism found that Japanese visitors highly value Hanoi’s cultural identity, extensive heritage resources, and distinctive tourism experiences.

From a market perspective, this suggests considerable potential for Vietnam to further strengthen its competitiveness and attract higher-spending visitors with strong expectations for service quality in the years ahead.

Turning business connections into concrete cooperation

While tourism promotion efforts in the past were largely focused on destination branding, the emphasis is now gradually shifting toward deeper business-to-business cooperation between tourism enterprises.

B2B exchanges, destination surveys, and product experience programs are becoming important tools for companies on both sides to better understand market demand, identify cooperation opportunities, and expand business relationships. The direct surveys conducted by Japanese travel companies in Hanoi, Ninh Binh, and Quang Ninh also reflect a shift in tourism promotion from destination branding to creating practical business cooperation opportunities between enterprises in both countries.

In Hanoi, the Japanese business delegation explored a variety of cultural tourism experiences, including West Lake lotus tea making, visits to the Temple of Literature and Bat Trang pottery village, and a journey on the “Hanoi Five Gates” train. These experiences highlight the city's efforts to deepen cultural tourism, enrich visitor experiences, and diversify tourism products for Japanese travelers.

Nhu Thi Ngan, CEO of Hanoi Tourism JSC, said the company plans to increase investment in inbound international tourism in 2026, with Japan identified as a priority market. According to Ngan, Japan is a large source market with high service quality expectations and strong potential for Vietnam’s tourism industry. As a result, developing experience-based products that match the needs, preferences, and interests of Japanese visitors will be an important focus in the coming period. Through the survey program across Hanoi, Ninh Binh, and Quang Ninh, Hanoi Tourism hopes Japanese partners will gain practical insights to help design and expand new tourism products, strengthening market connectivity and attracting more Japanese visitors to Vietnam.

Tran Trung Hieu said Hanoi’s tourism sector has also signed memoranda of understanding with Japanese tourism enterprises in recent years. He noted that this is a positive outcome of market promotion efforts, helping expand distribution channels and laying the groundwork for long-term cooperation programs between businesses in the two countries.

Early results from business connectivity activities show that cooperation potential is gradually being translated into concrete business opportunities. With considerable room for market growth and continued increases in two-way travel demand, stronger business partnerships and the development of products tailored to Japanese visitor preferences are expected to provide additional momentum for Vietnam-Japan tourism cooperation in the coming years.