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| On self-guided tours, family members snapped photos for keepsakes |
Trend among many tourists
Kicking off their holiday, Mr. Huynh Van Diep's family (from Binh Đinh) chose to drive themselves to Hue for a travel experience. The 400-km journey included several stops at rest areas for meals. On May 1st, after checking into a homestay, they eagerly headed to the tourist attractions.
Mr. Diep shared: “Not just me, my wife and children all love Hue, from its scenery and cuisine to its culture and pace of life. During our three-day stay, we made a long list of places to visit, eat, and enjoy, and set out to experience them all.”
Post-COVID-19, self-guided travel has flourished and continues to enjoy popularity, especially during holidays. With the development of technology offering various conveniences, along with diverse information and supporting devices, many tourists, particularly the younger generation and families, tend to prefer self-guided tours.
During the 30th April - 1st May holiday this year, along with family groups, many couples and young friend groups traveled to Hue via self-guided tours, using motorcycles, private cars, or renting vehicles to explore the land of Huong Ngu ( Huong River and Ngu Mountain) Vo Thanh Tung (27, from Quang Ninh) shared that he used to book tours through travel agencies for his experience.
Package tours offer many advantages, particularly because travel agencies organize everything in advance. Travelers do not have to spend time searching for lodging, dining options, or attractions, and they benefit from guides who provide helpful insights about the destination. Today, tourists can also easily find cheap flight tickets and affordable accommodation packages directly from hotels and resorts.
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| A foreign family visited Hue over the April 30 – May 1 holiday to enjoy a tourism experience |
Those who have visited Hue on self-guided tours say that thanks to technological support and a wealth of traveler reviews available via social media, it is easier than ever to find destinations, accommodations, and dining options. With its wide range of attractions and entertainment, Hue is well-suited to self-guided tours, which offer greater freedom in exploration, flexibility in scheduling, and cost savings.
”The information about programs, festivals, and cultural events in Hue is well publicized. Thanks to these media channels, my friends and I found it easy to explore the city. Renting a motorbike in Huế also helped ease our worries about traffic congestion during peak holiday hours," Thanh Tung shared.
As we observed, during the April 30 – May 1 holiday, in addition to the Imperial City and other heritage sites, tourist destinations like Thanh Toan Bridge, Thuy Xuan Incense Village, beaches, streams, and waterfalls were packed with visitors. Besides, with many festivals taking place — such as Hue: Capital of Cuisine (Thương Bac Park), Countryside Market Festival (Thuy Thanh Commune, Huong Thuy), and the Highland Market Fair (A Luoi District) — tourists had no shortage of options for exploring Hue.
So that tourists could leave with cherished memories
According to Ms. Tran Thi Hoai Tram, Director of the Department of Tourism, Huế is an attractive destination for the April 30 – May 1 holiday in 2025, offering a rich blend of cultural, culinary, and leisure tourism activities that combine traditional heritage values with modern festival tourism, as part of the Four Seasons Festival – National Tourism Year Hue 2025. To best serve both residents and tourists, Hue's tourism sector is implementing a comprehensive set of measures for enhancing the Hue tourism brand. These include developing unique, high-quality tourism products; ensuring service quality, safety, and security; and boosting tourism promotion.
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| Tourists flocked to Thanh Toan Tile-Roofed Bridge for a taste of rural market festivities |
To better serve the varied needs of tourists, local travel companies in Hue surveyed and developed new tourism offerings right prior to the holiday. Several travel businesses are exploring new opportunities through self-guided tour products, focusing on the psychology of this customer segment. These offerings cater to solo travelers or small groups who prefer flexible itineraries and personalized experiences.
Ms. Dương Thi Cong Ly, Vice President of the Travel Association and Director of the Hue branch of Vietnamtourism–Hanoi JSC, shared that alongside traditional tour offerings, self-guided travel is on the rise, prompting travel agencies to adapt to this growing trend. Tourism businesses are also ramping up marketing efforts on online platforms to attract more individual tourists, while also introducing new products such as the music-themed double-decker bus for for night tours around Hue.
According to the Department of Tourism, Hue is expected to welcome approximately 300,000 tourists during the April 30 – May 1 holiday, including nearly 60,000 international tourists and over 240,000 domestic tourists. The total number of overnight stays is estimated to reach nearly 100,000, with approximately 30,000 international tourists and 70,000 domestic ones. The total tourism revenue is projected to be over 600 billion VND, with hotel occupancy expected to surpass 96%.
The tourism sector has launched a hotline to promptly receive, advise, support, and address feedback from tourists. In parallel, it is collaborating with local authorities to strengthen legal awareness among tourism businesses across the city to enhance service awareness and foster a professional, courteous business culture centered on tourist satisfaction.