Foreign arrivals to Vietnam hit record high despite pollution, floods
Vietnam is on track to receive a record high of 21 million foreign tourists in 2025, reflecting the country’s strong recovery from the Covid-19 pandemic, its Culture Ministry said, despite chronic air pollution and deadly flooding.
With a long coastline, natural landscapes and a rich history and culture, Vietnam has emerged as one of the most popular tourist destinations in South-east Asia.
The country on Dec 15 marked the arrival of the 20 millionth foreign tourist of 2025, with a ceremony held on Phu Quoc Island, the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism said in a statement late on the same day.
The number of foreign arrivals in 2025 will beat the previous record of 18 million set before the pandemic in 2019, and is up 19.3 per cent from 2024, the ministry said.
Vietnam’s capital Hanoi has topped the list of the world’s most-polluted cities on several occasions in 2025, while other top tourist sites like Hue, Hoi An and Nha Trang suffered heavy flooding.
In 2021, Vietnam reported fewer than 160,000 foreign arrivals, the lowest in recent history, due to Covid-related travel restrictions.
China was the largest source of foreign tourists to Vietnam during the first 11 months of 2025, accounting for a quarter of the total, according to data from the National Statistics Office.
By Khanh Vu & David Stanway – Reuters – December 16, 2025