The Ho Chi Minh City Tourism Association has asked the Vietnamese government to extend the visa waiver for tourists from 5 Western European countries namely France, Italy, Germany, the UK, and Spain.

Foreign tourists visit Ben Thanh Market in HCMC (Photo: VNA)

Ms Nguyen Thi Khanh, Vice Chairwoman of the Association, remarked that the visa waiver programme for the countries will end next month.  However, it should be extended by 5 years to June 30 2022.

The visa-free policy should be for five years instead of one to enable travel firms to organise promotion and marketing campaigns in the five markets.

In addition, the maximum stay per entry for these tourists should be doubled to 30 days.

The longer stay would be of help to tourists besides boosting their spending in the country.

Neighbouring countries have simplified their visa procedures to attract more foreign visitors.

The number of tourists from the 5 countries rose by 12 % year-on-year in the 1^st quarter to more than 240,000, according to statistics released by the Viet Nam National Administration of Tourism.

(Source: VNA/ DA NANG Today)