Vietnam ranks 3rd globally in package tour searches on Google

Tourism experts said the trend highlights strong demand for Vietnam, while AI, short-form videos and big data are increasingly shaping how travelers discover destinations and choose tourism products.

The figures were presented at a conference on applying artificial intelligence and big data to sustainable tourism development held in Hanoi on Thursday by the Vietnam National Authority of Tourism and Vietnam Television Cable Corporation.

AI reshapes how travelers choose tourism products

Google Vietnam experts shared the latest data on travel search trends and tourist behavior at the conference.

The experts also highlighted the growing role of AI in how travelers search for information and select tourism products.

Short-form videos are becoming an important source of inspiration, helping generate travel demand and influence travel decisions.

Combining digital platforms, AI and content creators can help tourism businesses reach travelers throughout their journey, from searching for information and developing travel ideas to selecting and purchasing products, thereby improving promotional effectiveness and supporting sustainable tourism growth.

Tran Nguyen, deputy CEO of the Sun World division at Sun Group, said the impact of AI was also evident in the changing behavior of international visitors to Vietnam.

Several years ago, as many as 70-80 percent of travelers from Northeast Asian markets such as South Korea and China traveled to Vietnam through large tour operators.

The trend has now reversed, with most travelers choosing to travel independently. At Phu Quoc Airport in southern Vietnam, 80 percent of South Korean visitors to Vietnam travel independently after searching for information online and watching short videos produced by KOLs and KOCs.

European travelers also make extensive use of YouTube and Google to plan their trips.

Meanwhile, the number of Vietnamese travelers visiting Sun Group destinations continues to decline despite promotional programs offered by the company.

Nguyen said tourism businesses urgently need accurate, sufficient and clean big data to better understand customer demand and make more informed decisions.

AI to turn data into value

Pham Van Thuy, deputy director of the Vietnam National Authority of Tourism, said digital transformation and AI are bringing profound changes to the global tourism industry, from how travelers search for information and choose destinations to how they book services and how countries build and promote their tourism brands.

Vietnam’s tourism sector therefore needs to modernize its tourism promotion through technology and digital data, with data becoming a new foundation for tourism promotion.

The Vietnam National Authority of Tourism considers data a strategic asset for the sector and aims to manage it according to the principles of being accurate, sufficient, clean, up-to-date, unified and shared.

AI, with its ability to process huge volumes of data, analyze behavior and forecast demand, will serve as a tool for turning data into value.

Emphasizing the importance of AI and big data in sustainable tourism development, Deputy Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism Ho An Phong said Vietnam is still making slow progress in applying the technologies to tourism compared with other countries.

He called for the practical application of AI and big data, with specific products and solutions developed and responsibilities clearly assigned to different stakeholders across the tourism sector.