Culture and the arts will be the bridge to promoting tourism in 2026
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Vietnam’s tourism industry aims to welcome 25 million international tourists and 150 million domestic tourists in 2026. To achieve this goal, promotion and advertising play an important role and need to be one step ahead…
According to the Vietnam National Tourism Administration, the highlight of tourism promotion in 2025 will be to diversify promotion formats by linking tourism with culture, art, cinema and major overseas events. Memorable activities include the Cannes Film Festival in France and the P4G Summit in Hanoi.
Through these events, the image of Vietnam’s destinations will be presented in a synchronized and detailed manner, in association with the message of being a safe and friendly destination, a rich cultural identity, and an increasingly attractive destination in terms of experiences. It is also an important channel for the tourism industry to understand market trends and expand its partner network as competition among destinations becomes increasingly intense.
It is not difficult to recognize that since the Foundation was established in 2025, promotion and advertising have become strategic pillars, creating a position and strength for Vietnam tourism that continues to advance, and solidifying the position of tourism as a major economic sector.
In 2026, the Vietnam National Tourism Administration collaborated with local governments and companies for the first time to hold a ceremony to announce the Vietnam Tourism Promotion and Promotion Program for 2026, integrating all domestic and international activities of the central government, local governments, and companies.
Nguyen Trung Khanh, Director-General of the National Tourism Administration, said the global tourism industry has entered a new competitive cycle, with destinations competing not only in resources but also in identity, brand story and ability to conquer tourists’ emotions.
In this context, actively building and implementing systematic, professional, and strategic promotion and advertising programs will be an important factor in determining each country’s position.
At the Southeast Asia Tourism Forum (ATF2026) to be held in Cebu (Philippines) at the end of January 2026, Ho Anh Huong, Deputy Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism, also affirmed that the core strategy of Vietnam’s tourism in recent years is to be culture-based.
Rather than pursuing quantity, the tourism industry will focus on quality and sustainable efficiency by building high-quality tourism products based on cultural foundations, promoting infrastructure development and developing new attractive destinations.
According to the vice minister, Vietnam can learn from the experiences of ASEAN countries and at the same time choose similar but different development paths to create its own unique attractiveness. This direction is reinforced in Politburo Resolution No. 80-NQ/TW on Vietnam’s cultural development, which clearly recognizes cultural and human development as the basis for rapid and sustainable growth and an important source of motivation.
In fact, many of Vietnam’s cultural tourism products have established themselves in the international market. Destinations such as Halong Bay, Trang An, the ancient capital of Hue, and the ancient capital of Hoi An are not only captivating with their landscapes and historical depths, but also crystallize their own cultural values. Realistic art programs such as “Memories of Hoi An” and “Essence of the North”, water puppet shows and craft village tours are becoming increasingly popular among international tourists.
In addition, many travel companies are focusing on developing cultural heritage tours in major destinations such as Hanoi, Hue, Hoi An, Ho Chi Minh City, and Ha Giang. These products not only include tourism and entertainment, but also incorporate activities that allow visitors to gain a deeper understanding of local history, culture and community life.
In 2026, Vietnam Tourism Board plans to carry out 16 tourism promotion and promotional activities abroad. The local government carried out 21 activities. Businesses and business organizations participated in 39 activities.
Regarding market orientation, in addition to traditional nearby markets, the tourism industry will focus on effectively exploiting high-quality and distant markets in Western Europe, Northern Europe, and North America. At the same time, we are expanding our potential markets such as Australia, Russia, Eastern Europe, and Southern Europe. In particular, new potential markets such as the Middle East and India are being identified as new growth engines.
In China, a major tourist sending market, Vietnam plans to roll out a series of large-scale promotional activities throughout 2026. The program to introduce Vietnamese tourism in China will be held in the second and third quarters, in conjunction with participation in famous travel fairs such as Tourism Plus Shanghai, ITE Hong Kong, BITE Beijing, China International Tourism Industry Expo Guangzhou and CITM Shanghai.
At the same time, Vietnam tourism continues to grow strongly in Japan through the Vietnam Festival series held in Osaka, Tokyo, and Nagoya. Vietnam Tourism – Cultural Festival in Kanagawa; and participation in Japan’s largest tourism trade fair, Tourism EXPO Japan…In South Korea, SITF Seoul and International Travel Fair Busan will continue to introduce resort products, golf, family travel, and MICE tourism.
2026 will be a year of significant expansion of promotional activities in ASEAN, South Asia, and the Middle East. In particular, our promotional programs in India and the Middle East target high-spending customer segments, wedding tourism, healthcare combined tourism and MICE tourism.
In Europe, where high-spending tourist groups gather, Vietnam will develop a series of intense promotional activities, from ITB Berlin, IMEX Frankfurt, Top Resa Paris and WTM London to programs to introduce Vietnamese tourism in Western Europe, Northern Europe and Russian-speaking markets. In addition, the Cannes Film Festival carries out activities to promote Vietnam’s tourism through films, contributing to the subtle and emotional spread of the image of Vietnam’s destinations.
2026 can be said to be the beginning of a new era for promoting tourism in Vietnam. Each activity is not independent, but linked together in a holistic, synchronized, and well-thought-out strategy.
The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism, Vietnam National Tourism Authority, local governments, enterprises, airlines, overseas Vietnamese communities and international partners will jointly create a unified promotion network to strongly promote Vietnam’s image as a safe, attractive, unique and inspiring destination to tourists around the world.
