Ho Chi Minh City firms offer cheaper tours for New Year
Sunday, November 30, 2014, 15:02 GMT+7
Many tour operators in Ho Chi Minh City now offer tours with tempting discounts for the upcoming New Year holiday thanks to the record gasoline price cut in late November.
As Tuoi Tre reporter observed, many companies throughout HCMC have launched domestic tours with notable cost reductions in time for the coming New Year holiday.
According to representatives of several local operators, the number of tour buyers for Christmas and New Year has seen a 15-30% rise compared to the same period last year.
A number of tours which depart on New Year Day have been fully booked, they said.
Ngoc Hai, residing in the city’s District 10, said with regret that he just missed an opportunity to order a discounted New Year tour to the north for a worthwhile taste of the landscape and the Noi Bai- Lao Cai Expressway.
“I thought I had plenty of time to book the tour, as the New Year is still one month away. Now I have few options but the VND10 million (US$471) tour, as that with an almost VND3 million discount is fully booked,” he added.
Most local operators provide this tour as transport by road helps cut costs.
Tran Thi Bao Thu, of travel firm Fiditour, said the Hanoi- Trang An- Lao Cai- Sa Pa tour, which costs VND6.9 million ($325) and is set to depart on January 1 and 4, 2015 now has no vacancy after being launched for a few days.
Several travel firms have reported a sharp rise in the number of tour buyers as the New Year is around two months away from Tet (Vietnam’s traditional Lunar New Year), which begins on February 19.
A large number of clients have booked tours since early November and are offered packages with hefty discounts.
Meanwhile, scores of outbound tours to such Southeast Asian countries as Singapore and Thailand which don’t require visas, have been booked early and their costs remain almost the same as those launched on normal days.
Mounting price cutting pressure
The domestic tour departments of local travel firms asserted as local air carriers now have more planes, they have added new flights, cut prices and saved more seats for tour companies, which has resulted in sharp price drops compared to previous years.
CEO of a major travel firm in HCMC said his company and many others are currently under mounting pressure in minimizing their tour prices.
“Clients now compare price quotations at several firms before deciding on a tour for the most reasonable price. So we both offer them best prices and keep improving our service quality to keep our current clients and draw new ones,” he noted.
Most firms now offer discounts of between VND1.5 million and 4.9 million (up to $231) for domestic tours travelling by air during the holiday.
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