Vietnamese are set to lead the way in Asia when it comes to leading the Covid-19 tourism bounce-back according to a recent regional survey conducted by digital travel platform Agoda. The study revealed that 87 percent of survey respondents in Vietnam are currently planning a trip in the year ahead. This places the nation ahead of Indonesia (78%), Taiwan (59%) and Thailand (50%).

This travel confidence underscores the country’s confidence in the work that has been done to contain the Coronavirus and the work under way to rebuild its vital tourism sector, which last year was worth $31.4 billion and contributed around six percent of the nation’s GDP.

Agoda is supporting local travel in Vietnam, launching its fully integrated GoLocal domestic travel campaign here in Vietnam and signing up thousands of accommodation partners looking to offer great domestic travel deals to travelers from Vietnam traveling their homeland.

“The GoLocal campaign reflects initiatives such as VNAT’s program that stimulate domestic travel demand by using creative content and messaging to inspire as many Vietnamese travelers to explore their own country, reconnect with their culture and discover hidden gems. We will encourage them to safely learn to travel again and help our customers to find the widest choice and best value deals to do so. We’re going all out to make this campaign a true success, so our partners can ride this wave of increasing demand, and strive for better times ahead,” said Errol Cooke, Vice President Partner Services, Agoda.

When it comes to motivators for these travels, the study shows a solid rebounding of both business and leisure travel, with 57% of respondents indicating that the year ahead would include some combination of both work and leisure travel, while 42% of respondents said the months ahead would see them ‘leisure traveling only’ as Vietnam plans its summer and school holiday vacations.

The country’s 3200-kilometer coastline is proving an irresistible draw for 42% of respondents who opted for beach destinations as their holiday type for their next trip, with 37% citing a need to return to nature as their driving force in choosing where to vacation.

When it comes to destinations, Danang edged out Dalat by the narrowest of margins to scoop top spot as the country’s most-desired getaway choice  with respondents looking for either a refreshing dip in the sea or the cooler climes of the hilltops as respite from the heat of the summer. Nha Trang polled third, with respondents looking to visit the seaside-city, while Ho Chi Minh City and Hanoi rounded out the top five planned destinations.

As for travel activities, Vietnamese travelers have defined themselves as seekers of the nation’s ‘Famous Attractions’ first and foremost (30%), followed by a need for Relaxation (24%), while a desire to taste the country’s storied regional cuisines polled third (21%).

Almost a third of Vietnamese indicated a strong preference for resorts as their accommodations-of-choice, ahead of four and five star hotels (23%). Budget-conscious travelers saw one to three starhotels poll third, nudging out boutique hotels and private accommodations.

Further highlighting Vietnam’s tremendous efforts in combating Corona has been the willingness of travelers to fly at this time.  Agoda’s study indicated that 71% of Vietnamese respondents were likely to travel by air for their next trip indicating a high level of trust that Vietnamese people are showing in the preventative measures being taken by authorities at key transport hubs, and above the global average of 57%. Meanwhile, a quarter of respondents indicated that they are likely to travel by road or rail for their next trip.