Tourism industry gets new growth push under Politburo Resolution 26

The targets were set in Resolution 26 on developing tourism into a spearhead economic sector in the new era, signed by To Lam, General Secretary of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of Vietnam.

The resolution defines tourism not simply as a service industry but as a broad-based economic sector capable of generating high added value and creating spillover effects across trade, transport, agriculture, cultural industries, the digital economy and other sectors.

After nearly a decade of implementing the Politburo’s Resolution 08, Vietnam’s tourism industry has made significant progress in markets, infrastructure, products, human resources, promotion and digital transformation.

However, the Politburo said development remains below the industry’s potential. Tourism products lack depth in some areas, added value is limited, destination and business management capacity needs to improve, and links among regions and sectors remain insufficiently coordinated.

That has led to a new requirement under Resolution 26 that the local tourism industry must not only attract more visitors, but also generate more quality and value from each visitor.

Tourism shifts from volume to value

One of the most important changes is the shift in the development model from volume toward quality, smart tourism, green growth and innovation.

The resolution identifies culture as the core foundation, while identity and quality of visitor experiences are seen as competitive advantages. It also calls for greater use of science and technology, innovation and digital transformation across the tourism value chain.

This means future tourism competitiveness will depend not only on how many attractions a destination has or how many visitors it receives, but on its ability to turn cultural, natural and human resources into high-quality products, distinctive experiences and higher added value.

The resolution stresses the need to expand products targeting higher-spending and longer-staying visitors, alongside medical and wellness tourism, culinary and cultural tourism, the night-time economy, marine and island tourism and other emerging models.

Instead of focusing simply on “more visitors,” the tourism industry is therefore being encouraged to focus on visitors who stay longer, spend more and generate wider economic benefits for local communities.

Tourism is becoming a wider economic ecosystem

Another notable aspect of Resolution 26 is its view of tourism as a broad-based economic ecosystem.

Tourism development is to be linked with trade, services, transport, cultural and creative industries, agriculture, the digital economy and the night-time economy, while also connecting with cultural preservation, environmental protection and sustainable development.

The resolution defines tourism development as a task for the entire political system, with the State playing a management role, businesses serving as the leading force, and local people participating in and benefiting from tourism.

This places greater demand on cross-sector and regional coordination and on mobilising social resources for tourism development.

The approach is particularly important because a tourism destination cannot develop through a single product or industry alone. A visitor’s trip involves airlines, roads, accommodation, food, shopping, culture, entertainment, digital payments and many other services.

When these links are connected into an ecosystem, visitor spending can spread more widely instead of remaining concentrated in a few traditional tourism services.

Ambitious targets till 2030

Resolution 26 sets ambitious targets for the industry’s next stage of development.

By 2030, the tourism industry is expected to contribute 10-12% of GDP directly, remain among the leading tourism markets in Southeast Asia in terms of scale and growth, and welcome 45-50 million international visitors and 160 million domestic tourists. Total tourism revenue is targeted at US$80-90 billion.

The resolution also calls for the development of three major tourism growth poles — Hanoi, Ho Chi Minh City and Da Nang — along with 10 key tourism hubs, 20 national tourism areas and around 1.5 million accommodation rooms.

The industry is expected to create about 2.3 million direct jobs and 3.5 million indirect jobs.

Another goal is to establish a comprehensive smart tourism ecosystem, a national tourism database and a national digital tourism platform.

By 2045, Vietnam tourism is projected to contribute 14-15% of GDP directly, rank among the world’s 30 most competitive tourism markets and welcome 70 million international visitors.

Technology becomes part of Vietnam tourism competitiveness

One of the resolution’s notable features is that it does not treat digital transformation simply as an external support tool. Instead, data and technology are being placed at the centre of tourism management.

Resolution 26 suggests a national tourism database, a national digital tourism platform and a smart tourism management system, along with greater use of AI, the Internet of Things and data analytics. The aim is to support forecasting, policymaking, destination management, promotion, product development and more personalised visitor experiences.

At the same time, the resolution calls for greener tourism and greater resilience to natural disasters, diseases and major regional and global disruptions.

This means that being smart and green is no longer simply an additional feature of tourism products, but increasingly part of how the sector is managed and operated.

A new phase for tourism industry

Vietnam’s tourism industry has demonstrated strong recovery and growth since the COVID-19 pandemic. In 2025, the country welcomed 21.2 million international visitors, surpassing the 2019 figure and increasing 20.4% from 2024. The industry set a target of welcoming 25 million international visitors in 2026. These results provide an important foundation for the next stage of development.

Resolution 26, however, makes clear that the next phase is not simply about recovering or growing faster. It is about changing the development model so that tourism creates greater economic, cultural and social value.

That means moving from attracting visitors to building experiences, from exploiting resources to creating value, from developing individual destinations to building connected ecosystems, and from traditional management to data- and technology-driven governance.

That is the shift envisioned by the Politburo’s Resolution 26 for Vietnamese tourism, from an important economic sector to a new growth driver, with culture as its foundation, technology as its tool, and quality and added value as its measures of success.

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