What now for Vietnam’s hospitality real estate?
World tourism is on track to rebound with international tourist arrivals, reaching 80% of pre-pandemic levels in the first quarter of this year, according to the UN World Tourism Organization (UNWTO).
That momentum, however, has yet to lever up Asia Pacific (APAC), the only region lagging with 54% of total international tourist arrivals in the quarter as compared to 2019.
The absence of Chinese tourists, cautious border control in Asian nations, not to mention concerns of health, cost, and weather among travelers are some of the key factors that have impaired the recovery of Asian tourism throughout 2022. The road to recovery of tourism across Asia Pacific is poised to accelerate this year as most destinations, particularly China, have re-opened.
Colliers Hospitality Insights of Q1/2023 projected that 2023 would continue to witness a recovery in travel, with hotel demand across the APAC region continuing to abound and improved indexes of room occupancy, average daily rate (ADR), and revenue per available room (RevPAR).

Tourists on the Golden Bridge at Ba Na Hills in Danang city, central Vietnam. Photo courtesy of Sun Group.
Where is Vietnam in regional tourism?
‘Revenge travel’ (a media buzzword originated in 2021 when the world began to reopen, and people decided to make up for lost time) combined with personal savings during the lockdown in 2021 drove an upsurge in travel among Vietnamese in 2022, with 101.3 million domestic arrivals, according to the Vietnam National Administration of Tourism, or VNAT.
Popular destinations such as Phu Quoc Island, Dalat, Sapa, Danang, and Halong were the most desired places to visit last year. But spending per domestic tourist pales. Statistics from VNAT in 2022 revealed a Vietnamese tourist spends $51 per day (about VND1.2 million) and has a shorter length of stay, 3.62 days on average.
Although international flights resumed in March 2022, Vietnam was among the markets with the lowest number of foreign tourists in Southeast Asia last year. International arrivals in 2022 were five times lower than that of 2019, though foreign tourists spent more than twice, and the average length of stay doubled that of a domestic tourist.
In the first three months of 2023, the number of foreign arrivals in Vietnam stood at 2.7 million, one-third of the nation’s target of 8 million arrivals, and less than half of Thailand’s 6.15 million arrivals. Not to mention imbalanced inbound and outbound visitors as more Vietnamese choose to travel abroad thanks to lower airfare and convenience.
Lacking Chinese tourists is not the only reason. The fact that Vietnam's tourism is not as thriving as neighboring countries had been a topic of much debate before the pandemic. In 2019, Vietnam had 10% returning tourists, much lower than that of Thailand (82%) and Singapore (89%). The figure even dropped to 5% in 2022.
Besides the over-dependence on some tourist-generating regions (Russia and China, for example), the roots lie in visa policies and long-existing bottlenecks of the industry, namely the asynchronous transport and tourism infrastructure, not to mention a lack of varieties, distinctive positioning, well-executed destination marketing overseas, and labor shortage post-pandemic.
Promising prospects
However, potentials loom large in the mid to long term. At a national level, Vietnam has set a target to fully recover its tourism by 2025, with 18 million international tourists in a total of 134 million tourists. By 2030, the country aims for 195 million tourists, including 35 million foreign tourists, with a diversification of source markets namely India, the Middle East, European countries, Australia, New Zealand, Canada, and the US. Visa relaxations were also proposed, potentially to extend the visa exemption up to 90-day stay for e-visa and 45 days for a unilateral visa, issuing e-visas to all countries to relax entry and stay requirements for foreigners.
There are also multiple discussions in the country to improve the quality of tourism, as well as developing new models such as wellness tourism, eco-tourism, medical tourism, MICE, and bleisure (business + leisure). Vietnam has all it needs for tourist attraction thanks to its natural beautiful landscape, cultural richness, and gastronomic delights from street food to modern Vietnamese cuisine.
“The key is quality and standardization of tourism services without losing the authenticity of Vietnam to cater to the new travel tastes of an increasingly affluent population, both domestically and internationally,” said Morgan Ulaganathan, head of asset services & hospitality advisory, Colliers (Vietnam).
What now for Vietnam hospitality real estate?
For real estate investors, hospitality properties have long been considered a lucrative and long-term profitable investment. “Vietnam has good fundamentals for developing hospitality properties. There is the rise of the middle class, increasing accessibility to travel thanks to improved infrastructure, the country’s openness to international trade which drives business travel, events, and conferences, etc. Investing in hospitality real estate is a smart bet,” said David Jackson, CEO of Colliers (Vietnam).
Though the tourism recovery in Vietnam lags behind other Asian markets and uncertainties remain due to the economic slowdown, not to mention the hospitality real estate market freeze, pockets of opportunities are present in Vietnam.
In 2019, occupancy rates in hospitality establishments (hotels, resorts and villas) reached 52%, saying on average, each of the 30,000 accommodation establishments was filled with more than half of the rooms. Thanks to domestic travelers, in 2022, this figure improved most clearly in coastal locations namely Ho Tram, Danang, Nha Trang and Phu Quoc. Data from Google shows search demand with the keywords of Dalat, Phu Quoc, Nha Trang, Vung Tau, Phan Thiet, and Hoi An increased by 75% year-on-year.
Over the past 10 years, hotel supply in Vietnam has been growing three folds and roughly 100 new hotel projects are in the pipeline for the next three years. Mid-scale and luxury room supply grew the strongest, up 6.7 times from 2009 to 2022, while villas and resort shophouses increased 20% and 34% respectively in 2022 year-on-year. The number of international hotel brands is expected to double in the next three years, from 127 in 2022 to 261 projects in 2025.
“There is an increasing market concentration, where domestic players with the dominated ownership of hospitality property collaborate with reputable international hotel brands to standardize and raise the bar of quality for hotel services, as well as the value of hospitality properties,” Jackson said.
M&A and collaboration activities, though slowing down last year, are expected to be a deal-making rush in the coming quarters. With capital waiting to be deployed and current favorable valuations, foreign investment funds are playing a smart bet to expand their market shares before hotel revenues meet their full potential with the recovery.
For instance, agreements were announced by Sun Group and IHG; Accor, Ennismore, and TNR; and BRG and Hilton. Recently, the issuance of Decree 10/2023/ND-CP on ownership certificates with a term for properties built on commercial and service land set initial conditions for the revival of the condotel, office-tel, resort villas across Vietnam, promising growth spurt in the years to come.
“For now, smart moves should include improving EBITDA, IRR, Cap rates, etc. with minimal investment and focusing on superior marketing, revenue management, and distribution,” said Ulaganathan. He also added that the development of hospitality real estate projects should weigh in ESG ( environmental, social, and governance) to ensure Vietnam’s long-term global tourism competitiveness. “And last but not least, targeting the right mix of domestic and international tourists is critical to optimize occupancy and room rates.”
- Read More
Indonesia promotes nickel-based EV battery production
Indonesia is advocating regulations to encourage electric vehicle (EV) manufacturers to switch from the commonly used lithium-based batteries to nickel-based ones.
Southeast Asia - Fri, August 8, 2025 | 1:54 pm GMT+7
BRICS countries account for over 35% of Malaysia’s total foreign trade turnover
Malaysia’s trade with BRICS nations climbed to RM818 billion ($193.47 billion) in 2024, making up 35.2% of the country’s total global trade, according to the Ministry of Investment, Trade and Industry (MITI).
Southeast Asia - Fri, August 8, 2025 | 1:52 pm GMT+7
Vietnam consumer finance major F88’s stock hits ceiling price on UPCoM debut
The stock of F88 Investment JSC (F88), a leading consumer finance company in Vietnam, hit its ceiling price of VND888,800 ($34) on Friday, the first day of trading on the Unlisted Public Companies Market (UPCoM).
Companies - Fri, August 8, 2025 | 1:32 pm GMT+7
US tariff unlikely to dent Vietnam’s long-term FDI appeal: broker
The U.S. tariff gap between Vietnamese goods and those from four other Southeast Asian countries would not erode Vietnam’s competitive edge in manufacturing and investment, said Hanoi-based Vietcombank Securities (VCBS).
Economy - Fri, August 8, 2025 | 12:24 pm GMT+7
Land clearance for Vietnam's North-South high-speed railway project to start on December 19
Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh has requested localities to start land clearance en masse for the gigantic North-South high-speed railway project on December 19.
Economy - Fri, August 8, 2025 | 11:52 am GMT+7
Vietnam might launch pilot digital asset exchange in August
A digital asset exchange might be launched in August on a pilot basis, Deputy Minister of Finance Nguyen Duc Chi told a government press meeting on Thursday.
Finance - Fri, August 8, 2025 | 11:25 am GMT+7
Vietnam’s steel giant Hoa Sen spends $34 mln on land near Long Thanh airport for urban development
Hoa Sen Group (HoSE: HSG), Vietnam’s top producer of coated steel products, has spent VND900 billion ($34.3 million) acquiring land for a major urban development project in the southern province of Dong Nai.
Real Estate - Fri, August 8, 2025 | 8:22 am GMT+7
Halal market presents major opportunities for Vietnamese businesses
The global Halal market is projected to reach $5 trillion by 2030, with Malaysia alone expected to hit $113.2 billion, said Shariza binti Abdul Rasheed, Halal product manager at Maybank Malaysia.
Economy - Thu, August 7, 2025 | 9:18 pm GMT+7
Steel major Hoa Phat to pour extra $130 mln into central Vietnam plant
Vietnam’s leading steelmaker, Hoa Phat Group (HoSE: HPG), will increase investment in its Dung Quat 2 iron and steel production complex by VND3.4 trillion ($129.7 million) as part of an expansion plan.
Industries - Thu, August 7, 2025 | 8:03 pm GMT+7
Vietnam’s army-backed construction firm proposes 14 offshore wind power projects
Lung Lo Construction Corporation (LLC), under the Ministry of National Defense, has submitted investment proposals for 14 offshore wind power projects with a combined capacity of 9,000 MW.
Energy - Thu, August 7, 2025 | 5:07 pm GMT+7
Vietnam's agri major Hoang Anh Gia Lai fined for bond information disclosure failure
Vietnam's agri major Hoang Anh Gia Lai JSC has been fined VND92.5 million ($3,528) for failing to disclose bond-related information as required by law.
Companies - Thu, August 7, 2025 | 4:31 pm GMT+7
Northern Vietnam province accelerates $2.2 bln LNG-to-power project
Quang Ninh province will hand over 4.9 hectares of reclaimed land to the Quang Ninh LNG-fuelled power plant project before August 11, local authorities stated at a meeting on Wednesday.
Energy - Thu, August 7, 2025 | 4:17 pm GMT+7
Vietnam's seafood firms ride profit wave ahead of US tariff hike
Vietnam’s seafood companies reported surging profits in Q2/2025, driven by importers ramping up purchases ahead of new U.S. reciprocal tariffs.
Economy - Thu, August 7, 2025 | 2:21 pm GMT+7
Le Anh Tuan appointed new CEO of Dragon Capital Vietfund Management JSC
Dragon Capital Group, Vietnam's largest asset manager, has appointed Le Anh Tuan as CEO of its arm Dragon Capital Vietfund Management Joint Stock Company (DCVFM), starting from October 1, 2025.
Companies - Thu, August 7, 2025 | 2:01 pm GMT+7
Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand expand local currency transaction network
Bank Indonesia, Bank Negara Malaysia, and Bank of Thailand have added new Appointed Cross Currency Dealer (ACCD) participating banks to broaden services for bilateral transactions in local currencies across the three nations, Bank Indonesia said in a statement on Tuesday.
Southeast Asia - Thu, August 7, 2025 | 12:48 pm GMT+7
ASEAN to sign MoU on regional power grid implementation
ASEAN member states are set to sign an MoU on the implementation of the ASEAN Power Grid during the bloc’s Energy Ministers’ Meeting this October.
Southeast Asia - Thu, August 7, 2025 | 12:43 pm GMT+7
- Travel
-
Ha Long, Hoi An, Sa Pa honored as top Southeast Asian destinations by Gulf News
-
The mesmerizing opening of the Xoe Festival at Fansipan, Sa Pa
-
Northern Vietnam province plans 720-ha int’l airport to tap tourism boom
-
At least 38 people die in northern Vietnam boat capsizing incident, 10 rescued
-
Rixos debuts in Southeast Asia on Vietnam’s 'Pearl Island'
-
Phu Quoc enters Travel + Leisure’s top luxury destinations