reader Posted February 23, 2022 Posted February 23, 2022 From Vietnam News HÀ NỘI — The tourism industry is working hard to prepare for reopening on March 15, according to Nguyễn Trùng Khánh, director of Viet Nam National Administration of Tourism (VNAT). Khánh said the VNAT and local authorities were cooperating to revamp tourism facilities, which have been closed for two years. The authority is also calling for more training programmes and supportive policies to lure back workers who left the industry during the pandemic. It is also running the campaign “Live fully in Vietnam” and reaching out to international channels, including CNN and CNBC, to promote Vietnamese tourism to target markets. The authority has also suggested the resumption of the pre-pandemic visa waiver policy for tourists from 24 countries. “It is not price but the quality of tourism products and services that hold the key to a more competitive industry,” he said. The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism is consulting on new regulations to prepare for the reopening. According to the proposed regulations, foreign tourists can travel to Việt Nam by land, sea and regular international flights. They will no longer be restricted to only charter flights as in the pilot programme. Regarding compulsory medical insurance, the required minimum coverage will be reduced from US$20,000 to 10,000. Foreign tourists travelling by air will be required to have negative RT-PCR tests within 72 hours or negative quick tests within 24 hours before their arrival. After arrival, they must go straight from the airport to their accommodation where they must take quick tests within 24 hours. Foreign tourists arriving by land and by sea will take quick tests on arrival at border gates. If negative, tourists will be allowed to participate in tourism. Otherwise, they will be quarantined and treated at their accommodation. https://vietnamnews.vn/economy/1157460/tourism-industry-prepares-for-reopening.html tm_nyc and Lonnie 1 1 Quote
Members Lonnie Posted February 23, 2022 Members Posted February 23, 2022 Sort of strange timing when they have a record number of cases. https://vietnamnews.vn/society/1157712/viet-nam-registers-record-60355-coronavirus-cases-on-wednesday.html Việt Nam registers record 60,355 coronavirus cases on Wednesday Update: February, 23/2022 - 18:29 | A medical worker takes a sample for COVID-19 testing in Thanh Hoá Province. VNA/VNS Photo HÀ NỘI — The record for daily transmissions was broken again on Wednesday as the country registered 60,355 new COVID-19 infections. The new cases bring the country's tally to 2,972,378. There were a further 15,641 recoveries, bringing the total number of people given the all-clear to 2,320,722. Of the new cases, 17 were imported and quarantined upon arrival. Out of the new daily transmissions, 42,145 were in the community. Currently, 3,263 patients have severe infections with 13 on life support. The capital city of Hà Nội again registered the highest daily number of infections with 7,419, also a record for the city. Other localities with four-digit case numbers were Bắc Giang (2,998), Hải Dương (2,944), Hòa Bình (2,595), Bắc Ninh (2,505), Phú Thọ (2,499), Nam Định (2,203), Vĩnh Phúc (2,013), Quảng Ninh (1,868), Hải Phòng (1,816), Ninh Bình (1,739), Hưng Yên (1,617), Yên Bái (1,556), Nghệ An (1,525), Thái Nguyên (1,499), HCM City (1,451), Lào Cai (1,406), Thái Bình (1,385), Lạng Sơn (1,322), Khánh Hòa (1,296), Tuyên Quang (1,277), Đắk Lắk (1,262), Quảng Nam (1,097), Bình Định (1,059) and Hà Giang (1,057). The remaining transmissions were found in Đà Nẵng (918), Cao Bằng (873), Quảng Bình (825), Thanh Hóa (803), Bình Phước (731), Hà Tĩnh (694), Lâm Đồng (636), Điện Biên (560), Bà Rịa - Vũng Tàu (515), Hà Nam (448), Phú Yên (388), Cà Mau (378), Bình Dương (373), Lai Châu (371), Quảng Trị (327), Gia Lai (314), Đắk Nông (264), Thừa Thiên Huế (226), Bình Thuận (185), Kon Tum (155), Tây Ninh (142), Quảng Ngãi (108), Bắc Kạn (103), Bạc Liêu (98), Đồng Nai (92), Bến Tre (84), Vĩnh Long (69), Trà Vinh (50), Long An (49), Cần Thơ (41), Đồng Tháp (30), Ninh Thuận (19), Sóc Trăng (18), An Giang (14), Tiền Giang (12), Hậu Giang (9) and Kiên Giang (8). A further 91 COVID-related deaths were reported on Wednesday, taking the total number of fatalities to 39,719, accounting for 1.3 per cent of total infections. reader 1 Quote
reader Posted February 23, 2022 Author Posted February 23, 2022 I agree that it may at first glance seem counterintuitive. It appears, however, that health authorities in several SE Asia countries have been closely following the trend of Omicron infections in western countries and believe a turn downward is on the horizon. Thailand, which is also experiencing a surge, expects cases to peak by the middle of March. Likewise, a similar pattern can be seen in the Philippines. Both countries have--like Vietnam--recently announced plans to accelerate reopening to foreign tourists. Further, the symptoms of Omicron infections on citizens and visitors who have been vaccinated have been mild or non existent. The actions of all three nations suggest how critical tourism is to the recovery of their economies . Quote
Members Lonnie Posted February 24, 2022 Members Posted February 24, 2022 14 hours ago, reader said: how critical tourism is to the recovery of their economies Yes of course and I hope things return to normal. Quote
PeterRS Posted February 25, 2022 Posted February 25, 2022 I hope for the Vietnamese people that the infection rate quickly drops. Vietnam is a country which many tourists seem not to consider on S E Asia trips. I have only been 3 times now but have absolutely loved the country. Hanoi is a stunning city. I was not so keen on HCM City but I think that was more my lack of preparedness. The island of Phu Quoc perhaps surprisingly under Cambodia was a gem and my more recent trip 2 years ago to Danang, the glorious Hoi An and the old Imperial capital of Hue was one of my best trips in Asia. I did not venture to any gay establishments apart from one bar in Hanoi. Phu Quoc was purely a beach break and I was not looking for company although some of the boys working in the hotel were obviously gay. As soon as I arrived in Hoi An for my central Vietnam trip, however, the apps got busy and I arranged a meet up with a lovely guy for later in Danang. He stayed two nights with me and even accompanied me to the airport on departure. Apart from drinks and meals he wanted no cash, not even to get back to the city. Lonnie, tm_nyc and reader 3 Quote
spoon Posted February 26, 2022 Posted February 26, 2022 On 2/23/2022 at 8:48 PM, reader said: quick tests I wonder what they mean by quick test? Quote
