Vietnam reopens borders to all international flights

Starting 15 February, the frequency of regular international flights will be restored to pre-pandemic levels

From 15 March, Vietnam will fully reopen its air, land, and sea borders, lifting all travel restrictions imposed in 2020. This was the result of several ministries supporting the Ministry of Culture, Sports, and Tourism’s proposal to reopen international tourism in Vietnam.

VnExpress International reported that the defense, foreign affairs, health, public security, tourism, and transport ministries met Tuesday and reached an agreement. With this, there will be no need for foreign tourists to book tour packages with designated travel agencies per the ongoing passport trial program established in November 2021.

Under the program, approximately 9,000 international visitors arrived with several pre-set conditions and constraints.

The health ministry’s protocol implements that international visitors arriving by plane would be quarantined for one day in their hotel or housing facility until they are able to provide a negative COVID test result, after which they would be monitored for 14 days.

According to Tuoi Tre, Dinh Viet Son, deputy head of the Civil Aviation Authority of Vietnam (CAAV), stated that starting 15 February, the frequency of regular international flights will be restored to pre-pandemic levels.

More: Vietnam beach province reopens and prepares to welcome back tourists

Until recently, the Southeast Asian country implemented strict border controls against COVID-19. This had a significant impact on its tourism sector, which accounted for 10 percent of the country’s GDP.

From March 2020 until the end of 2021, Vietnam closed its borders save for Vietnamese repatriates, foreign experts, diplomats, investors, skilled workers, and students.

The nine-day Lunar New Year celebration attracted approximately 6.1 million people across Vietnam, according to Xinhua. This was the biggest holiday of the year and the number of domestic travelers surpassed the 5 million mark recorded in December 2021, bringing in USD 1.1 billion.

Japan and South Korea still prohibit flights from Vietnam, and despite Vietnam’s proposal, China has refused to resume regular flights with the country.

The Property Report editors wrote this article. For more information, email: [email protected].