Bai Dai Beach in Cam Ranh City is being developed into a high-class tourist and resort area in the southern province of Khanh Hoa. (Photo: VNA)Hanoi (VNS/VNA) — Vietnam has started to see recovery in thehospitality segment, according to Savills Vietnam.
Octobersaw the highest occupancy levels in Hanoi and HCM City since the second quarterof the year.
In Hanoi,average occupancies over the past two months were up almost 35 percent as localcorporate business gradually resumed, and long-term stay demand increased. Theaverage also includes properties used as quarantine facilities.
Meanwhile,“coastal destinations started to recover in May with improving traction andgrowing bookings, however the second wave of COVID-19 in Da Nang badly affectedthe high season," said Mauro Gasparotti, Director of Savills Hotels AsiaPacific.
NhaTrang and Phu Quoc have seen higher occupancies, especially over weekends whensome resorts run at low vacancies with travellers taking advantage ofpromotions.
Recentworld developments around COVID vaccines allow light at the end of the tunnel.The country's containment of the pandemic has reaffirmed investor appeal and nodoubt reassured potential travelers of just how safe Vietnam is.
"Still,the overall resort market is struggling to cross the 25 percent occupancy,apart from resorts located in drive-to destinations being 10 to 15 percentagepoints over the country average,” Gasparotti said.
Regardingthe recent local community transmission in HCM City, he added: “We have seen animpact on hotel booking cancellations in HCM City and the south, however, thelarger impact is on the MICE business, where several conferences have been puton hold or delayed due to concerns."
"Anysmall outbreak will cause fear to spread, however, as with previous outbreaks,the government is quickly containing the problem and hopefully the fear will beover soon. The speed with which this was dealt helped minimise economic damagewhile underlining how safe Vietnam is as a destination. We remain positiveabout the future of the industry, and especially in Vietnam,” he said.
Thepandemic has made the first 11 months of 2020 challenging for Asia Pacificregion hotels with the vast majority reporting poor performance or many forcedinto temporary closure. Occupancies and average daily rates (ADR) slumped withaverage room revenues down by half, according to Savills./.
