On the third day of Tet, Ha had a difficult journey with her family to Moc Chau (Son La). Firstly, most of the resorts that Ha contacted informed her that they were fully booked. It took her a lot of time to find a shabby hotel at a price that was almost double the normal rate.
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Since I didn’t do any preparation in advance, I only looked for a room while on the way. I didn’t expect that there would be so many people traveling on Tet, so I didn’t bother to check the situation beforehand. When I arrived, I was shocked to find that all the hotels, guesthouses and homestays were fully booked. They said that the rooms were reserved before Tet, and because there were too many people, many places were fully booked as early as the 30th day of Tet. I even considered going to a different destination, but luckily I found a room and continued the journey,”
said Ha.
After the accommodation incident, Ha’s family had a hard time moving around and finding restaurants to eat. Ha said that the streets were packed with people and cars were back to back. If they missed a point they needed to find, it was difficult to make a U-turn. Moreover, many restaurants and attractions were overwhelmed by the large number of customers, making it impossible to provide satisfactory service.
“It’s really a battle for customers to fight for and keep their places. Because there was no staff, customers had to take their own food and pay for it themselves. Sometimes, the owners couldn’t even control the situation. If a customer didn’t pay, they couldn’t handle it in time,”
Ha said.
Similarly, Nguyen Thi Ngoc Hai’s family (Ba Dinh District, Hanoi) went on a spring trip to Ha Giang on the third day of Tet. The initial plan of Hai’s family was to stop at any suitable place along the route for eating and resting. However, when they arrived, they couldn’t find any hotels or resorts with available rooms.
“I have been to Ha Giang several times before, but it was on other occasions during the year. Knowing that there are many hotels and resorts here, I thought that there was no need to book in advance. However, when I arrived, my family couldn’t find a place to stay and had to move down to the city center to find accommodation at tourist destinations,”
Hai said.
Nguyen Thi Hoa (Nam Truc, Nam Dinh) also shared her experience of visiting Chua Huong on the opening day of the festival. Hoa and her family encountered overcrowding in most services and transportation.
“Our family of 5 had to wait in line for a long time to buy cable car tickets and ferry tickets along the Yen stream. The weather on the festival day was rainy, making the wait extremely uncomfortable, and the trip was delayed for many hours,”
Hoa said.
The ferry service at Chua Huong was fully booked on the 6th day of Tet. (Photo: Ngo Tran)
Ngo Minh Tuyen, owner of a homestay in Moc Chau, said that this year, due to a high demand for spring travel, guests who wanted a room had to book in advance before Tet. He had to reject many orders from customers.
Therefore, Tuyen advises people to prepare in advance before going on a spring trip to ensure a smooth journey. Transportation, dining, and rest should be planned early.
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Families of 3-4 people can still easily find accommodation, but larger groups need to prepare in advance. After the post-Tet holiday period, around the 8th day of the lunar year, the number of guests will decrease, and room rates will also decrease. People need to plan and consult their intended itinerary to have the most convenient spring trip possible,
he said.
Prosperous New Year travel
According to the Vietnam National Tourism Administration, from February 8th to 14th (from the 30th day of the last lunar month to the 5th day of the first lunar month), the tourism industry served about 10.5 million domestic visitors (an increase of 16.6% compared to the same period last year), including about 3.5 million overnight visitors (an increase of 75% compared to the same period last year).
The Lunar New Year holiday also saw a significant increase in the number of international visitors to many localities. Specifically, Danang welcomed nearly 177,000 visitors; Hanoi received nearly 103,000 visitors, more than double compared to the same period last year; Ninh Binh received nearly 100,000 visitors; Quang Nam received 97,000 visitors, an increase of 42%; Quang Ninh received 89,767 visitors; Ho Chi Minh City received 75,000 visitors, up 15.4% compared to the same period last year; Kien Giang received 44,370 visitors, more than 4.8 times higher than the same period last year…
The trend of independent travel, small groups, families, and self-booking services at destinations increased this year, especially at destinations near Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City.
