#Vietnam safe to travel around, tourism officials assure

.

Vietnamese tourism officials have stressed that the nation has the new coronavirus epidemic under control and it is a safe travel destination.

In a letter sent to foreign partners in multiple languages on Wednesday, Nguyen Trung Khanh, director of the Vietnam National Tourism Administration (VNAT), has affirmed that the country’s tourism sector has been actively responding to the Covid-19 epidemic.

"Since the outbreak of the disease last December in China and the Vietnamese government declared it an epidemic on February 1, Vietnam has controlled the epidemic well. The treatment and prevention measures have been effective, so there is no spread of Covid-19 in the community," the letter says.

Of 16 people infected with the virus so far, seven have been discharged from the hospital.

.

.

The letter says the administration has cooperated with localities and travel agencies to take urgent measures to prevent and minimize the risk of infection and ensure safety for tourists. Tourist attractions have been sanitized, and face masks and brochures on preventing any infection are being handed out to visitors.

Vietnam’s tourism sector constantly prioritizes the safety of international tourists, it notes, adding that tourist attractions, historical sites and restaurants remain open to serve them.

The letter allaying visitors’ concerns over the Covid-19 has been written in the context of a dramatic drop in tourism since Vietnam first confirmed two Covid-19 infections on January 23.

Hanoi had seen 19,300 international tourists cancel hotel bookings as of February 6. Khanh Hoa Province, home to travel hotspot Nha Trang where 70 percent of tourists are Chinese, now has 5,000 empty rooms and 5,000 unemployed tourism staff, local data shows.

 The Covid-19 epidemic could cost Vietnam $5.9- $7.7 billion in Q1 tourism revenues this year, or about 25 percent of the industry's revenue last year, the VNAT estimates.

The Civil Aviation Authority of Vietnam suspended flights to and from China starting early this month.

The epidemic has struck at a time Vietnam has enjoyed a tourism boom, with visitor numbers last year growing 16.2 percent year-on-year to a record high of 18 million. The United Nations World Tourism Organization has put Vietnam seventh among world’s 10 fastest-growing tourist destinations.

The Covid-19 outbreak, with its epicenter in China’s Wuhan City, has so far infected more than 60,000 and killed 1,369 people, almost all of them in China. It has been detected in around 30 countries and territories so far.

Source - VN Expess

Disneyland raises ticket prices by 3% to $154 a day

Walt Disney Co. raised admission prices by 3.4 percent at its Disneyland resort in California, but the increase was smaller than in years past despite coming after the opening of a costly Star Wars-themed land last year.

A single, peak-day ticket now costs $154, the company’s website showed Tuesday, up from $149. Last year, the single, peak-day price rose 10 percent. Annual passes also increased, with the highest-priced Premier access rising to $2,199, up 5 percent since June and 13 percent from a year ago.

Disney, the world’s largest theme-park operator, has been trying to find ways to manage crowds and keep its resorts more accessible by offering lower prices during off-peak times, such as weekdays in the winter when kids are in school. The company has also expanded its offering of annual passes, as it invests billions of dollars in new attractions.

“A visit to our parks is the best value in entertainment bar none, and we offer flexible ticket choices to enable families to choose what’s best for them,” Disney said in a statement.

Last year, Disney opened Star Wars-themed lands at its Hollywood Studios park in Orlando, Florida, and at the original Disneyland in Anaheim, California, at a cost of $1 billion each.

Attendance at the company’s domestic resorts was flat in the fiscal year that ended in September, and up 2 percent in the most recent quarter.

The company also increased prices for annual passes at its Orlando parks, according to the website WDW News Today.

Disneyland is the second-most-visited theme park in the world, after the company’s Magic Kingdom in Orlando. It attracted 18.7 million guests in 2018, according to the Themed Entertainment Association.

Source - TheJakartaPost

Ryanair Holdings said demand for air travel within Europe could receive an unlikely boost if the Chinese coronavirus epidemic persists, prompting people to holiday closer to home.

Trends from 2003, when travelers shunned Asia after the Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome outbreak, suggest consumers may begin to alter their travel habits, Ryanair Chief Financial Officer Neil Sorahan said in an interview.

"People tended to stay close to home," Sorahan told Bloomberg Television on Monday. "They holidayed in Europe as opposed to heading as far afield as Asia and elsewhere."

The coronavirus that spread from Wuhan in recent weeks has killed more than 360 people and infected 17,000. Dozens of nations and airlines are restricting travel, with almost 10,000 flights canceled through Jan. 31, according to data provider Cirium, even though the World Health Organization has so far said that such limits aren't needed to control the advance.

SARS affected 26 countries, resulting in close to 800 deaths from about 8,000 cases, according to the WHO. Fitch Group said in a note that a prolonged outbreak of the coronavirus would weigh on the tourist economy in Thailand, affecting not only Chinese demand but travel from elsewhere. As of Monday the Southeast Asian country had 19 confirmed cases, Fitch said.

For Ryanair, a surge in European travel would bolster margins as it grapples with the grounding of Boeing Co.'s 737 Max jet. The discount giant reaffirmed that deliveries from a 200-strong order won't commence until September or October, so that fuel-efficiency savings won't be realized until late in the fiscal year starting in April.

Chief Executive Officer Michael O'Leary said he expects Boeing to compensate Ryanair for lost revenue from the Max both this fiscal year and next, and that the focus will be on revising the order price. The carrier has specified a high-capacity variant that will take longer to certify than the baseline model.

Ryanair has also issued proposals for the purchase of bigger Max 10 jets seating up to 230 people, O'Leary said, while adding that it may be too early for Boeing to give the matter serious consideration. He said the planemaker needs to target orders from major clients such as his own company and Southwest Airlines Co. to rein in Airbus SE's lead in the narrow-body sector.

Ryanair posted net income of 88 million euros ($98 million) for the third quarter through December from a year-ago loss, aided by last-minute sales over the Christmas holidays. Bookings are 1% up on last year, with planes 96% full, so an increase in regional travel would push up fares.

Shares of Europe's biggest low-cost carrier were trading 5.2% higher at 15.68 euros as of 1:11 p.m. in Dublin, where it is based.

Source - TheNation

Eurail adds two countries to its unlimited global train pass

For the first time in 61 years, all three of Baltic countries will be accessible for travelers to visit with a single train pass, Lonely Planet reported.

In 2020, Estonia and Latvia have been added to the list of countries non-Europeans can travel to with the Eurail Global Pass.

Now consisting of 33 countries, the list already includes destinations like Rome, Venice, Barcelona, Paris and London.

The all-in-one, unlimited train ticket allows travelers to ride all local trains, high-speed trains and night trains across Europe, run by participating operators.

Eurail Global Pass holders can now ride Latvia’s local operator, Pasažieru vilciens, from its main hub in Riga, and Estonia’s operator Elron from the capital city of Tallinn to other domestic destinations.

They will also receive an up to 50 percent discount on ferry tickets from Riga to Stockholm and Germany, and from Tallinn to Stockholm and Helsinki.

Travelers can choose between two Global Pass options: The Continuous Pass and the Flexi Pass. The former allows for unlimited travel over 15 days, while the latter allows for three, five or seven days of unlimited travel within a month.

While the Eurail Global Pass is only available to non-Europeans, European travelers can get similar benefits with the Interrail Pass.

Source - TheJakataPost

UAE launches multi-entry tourist visas for all

The United Arab Emirates on Monday introduced a multiple-entry visa scheme valid for five years for all nationalities, with the aim of turning the Gulf state into a tourism hub.

"#UAE Cabinet, approves new amendment for tourist visas in #UAE," the government of Dubai Media Office tweeted, referring to Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, the UAE prime minister and ruler of Dubai.

"The new tourist visa will be valid for 5 years and can be used for multiple entries and is open for all nationalities," the Dubai Media Office wrote.

Sheikh Maktoum said on Twitter that the UAE currently attracts 21 million tourists a year.

Travelers from Africa, some South American countries, Arab states outside the Gulf, and European states from outside the European Union and former Soviet Union previously needed visas.

In October, Dubai is to host Expo 2020, a big-budget global trade fair.

Source - TheJakartaPost

Lao Domestic Tourism Targeted for 2020

The Lao government has announced it will begin promoting domestic tourism next year as a way to boost tourism in addition to attracting foreign arrivals.

In a succession of visit year campaigns, 2018 saw Visit Laos Year, which helped the country attract large numbers of overseas visitors. Following the campaign’s success, this year was dubbed Vist Laos-China Year 2019, and included bilateral activities and tourism promotion between Laos and China.

The apparent success of the previous two visit year campaigns has prompted the government to go for a third, with the yet to be named domestic tourism year happening in 2020.

Sources say the campaign may be dubbed Lao Thiao Lao 2020, meaning “Lao visit Laos Year 2020”.

Vientiane Times reported that the department of Tourism Marketing under the Ministry of Information, Culture, and Tourism, is working on a campaign to encourage Lao people to travel within the country, as part of the national socio-economic development plan for 2020.

Consultation with tourism operators has already begun, while an exact target for visitor numbers has not yet been released.

International Tourism Target Set

In 2020, the government expects to attract around 4.7 million international visitors and raise more than US$ 900 million in revenue.

More than 756,900 Chinese visitors came to Laos this year, an increase of about 26 percent over the same period in 2018, with the Vist Laos-China Year being hailed as a success by authorities.

Newly appointed Lao Minister of Information, Culture, and Tourism Mr. Kikeo Khaykhamphithoune, recently met with Trip.com Group CEO Ms. Jane Sun for discussion on ways the website may assist tourism in Laos.

Source - Laotion Times

.

 

INSTALL APP

 

Visa ‘Runners’ denied entry at Laos, Vientiane

For decades tourists, or ex-pats who are below the retirement visa age limit, have extended their stay in #Thailand by so-called ‘visa runs.’

One example is when people travel to a nearby country to apply for a tourist visa and extend their stay for another two to three months.

This is commonly called a ‘visa run.’

Companies providing ‘Visa Runs’ leave every tourist town in Thailand on a daily basis in convoys of mini-vans and coaches to head for the nearest border.

Tourists typically travel to border towns such as Aranyapratet on the Cambodian border, Nongkhai on the Lao border, Mae Sai or Mae Sot on the Burma border, Vientiane in Laos or to Penang near Malaysia’s border.

Visa runs may be a unique (or even traditional) part of Thailand’s tourism scene.

But, now reports are coming in of tourists and ex-pats being DENIED new visas at Vientiane, on the Laos border.

The Royal Thai Embassy at Vientiane, usually one of the easiest to pass through with a new stamp, has begun turning foreigners away.

Yesterday one American reported to a Visa Forum, ‘Just got denied my second tourist visa at Vientiane. Have one visa in my US passport and 3 exempt stamps. The guy simply said ‘my boss didn’t give you a visa, you have to go back to your country.’

Another American in the same queue was also denied and new visa.

When his Thai girlfriend asked for an explanation she was told that there is a ‘new rule’ and foreigners can only have ONE tourist visa every twelve months.

One tourist visa would only be enough to qualify for a three month stay. IE, one two-month visa plus a thirty day extension at a local immigration office.

At that point it is usually time for the famous VISA RUN, but not any more it seems.

Not for these two Americans it isn’t.

Please share your recent visa run experiences in the comments below.

Source - BangkokJack