Foreign reporters to get free tours of northern Vietnam attractions

The Vietnam National Tourism Administration (VNAT) has announced that the reporters will be able to register for free visits to popular tourist destinations in northern Vietnam, including Hanoi, Ninh Binh and the world-famous Ha Long Bay.

The reporters are in town to cover the second summit between US President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, scheduled for Wednesday and Thursday next week.

Around 2,600 journalists from news agencies around the world, including prominent ones like Reuters, AP, AFP, NHK and Yonhap have reached Hanoi to cover the historic event.

The free tours, to be arranged by leading travel agency Saigontourist, is an effort to give Vietnamese tourism a boost.

Ha Van Sieu, deputy head of VNAT, said the Trump-Kim Summit was a "historic opportunity" for Vietnam’s tourism as the event is the center of  global attention.

"Vietnam should take advantage of this opportunity to promote the image of the country as a beautiful, peaceful and friendly destination," Sieu said.

The country’s tourism industry hopes to welcome 17-20 million foreign visitors a year by 2020, earning an annual revenue of $35 billion and contributing 10 percent to the country’s GDP.

Last year a record 15.4 million visitors came to the country, a whopping 20 percent increase from 2017.

A report published last year by the United Nations World Tourism Organization ranked Vietnam’s tourism growth the fourth highest in the world.