Khanh Hoa falls short of high-quality hotel rooms

The number of tourists coming to Khanh Hoa Province by air, especially on chartered flights to Nha Trang City, is on the rise, causing a severe shortage of high-quality accommodation facilities for tourists.
Nguyen Van Thanh, director of Khanh Hoa Tourism Promotion Center, said that around 470,000 international tourists came to the province in the January-October period, up 27% year-on-year.
Russian tourists traveling on chartered flights accounted for a high proportion and often stayed in three- to five-star hotels, pushing up the demand for high-quality hotel rooms, according to Thanh.
“Khanh Hoa has around 10,000 Russian tourists a month, so the supply of three- to five-star hotels is insufficient and travel firms have to seek one- or two-star rooms instead,” Thanh said.
“Khanh Hoa is expected to have an additional 4,000 three- to five-star rooms next year.”
Hoang Thi Phong Thu, chairwoman of Anh Duong Co. that partners with Pegas Touristik Co. to bring Russian tourists to Vietnam, said that as the supply of high-quality hotel rooms in Nha Trang is not enough, her company has to seek two-star hotels for tourists.
“We have signed contracts with over 20 hotels. We will still look for more rooms and may use one-star rooms if they meet our requirements,” Thu said.
Khanh Hoa has around 15,000 hotel rooms, with 6,000 meeting three-star standards or higher.
In addition to scheduled and chartered flights flying from Russia and South Korea, Khanh Hoa will welcome more flights taking tourists from Hong Kong and China in the coming time. As a result, it is not easy to supply tourists with sufficient good rooms.
Anh Duong Co. has struck deals with 140 hotels nationwide, mainly in coastal localities like Khanh Hoa, Binh Thuan, Ninh Thuan and Phu Quoc Island, to serve more Russian visitors to Vietnam.
In addition to Khanh Hoa, Phu Quoc is facing a shortage of hotels. “We need around 500 rooms a day but can find only 200 on Phu Quoc,” Thu said.
The first chartered flight taking Russian tourists to Phu Quoc is scheduled for December 17.
Pegas Touristik Co. plans to bring one million tourists to Vietnam in the next five years. Within six months, from last month to April, there will be over 100,000 Russians coming to Vietnam..