Foreign tourists at Trang An tourist site in Ninh Binh

Released by the World Economic Forum (WEF) every two years since 2007, the TTCI 2019 analysed 140 economies and scored each according to their performance on the following six pillars – Air transport infrastructure, ICT readiness, Price competitiveness, International openness, Travel & tourism prioritisation, and Safety and Security.

When it comes to price competitiveness, Vietnam ranks 22nd, rising 13 places while in terms of air transport infrastructure, the country has improved by 11 places, growing to 50th from 61st.

Spain holds the top spot in the ranking, followed by France, Germany and Japan. In Southeast Asia, Singapore was ranked as the most competitive travel and tourism economy while Vietnam was placed 5th.

In 2019, Vietnam's tourism industry aims to welcome 103 million visitors, including 18 million international visitors and 85 million domestic tourists.

According to the Vietnam National Administration of Tourism Administration (VNAT), in the first eight months of this year, the number of foreign visitors to the country rose by 8.7 percent year on year to 11.3 million, with highest growth rate seen in visitors from Asian countries and territories, especially the Republic of Korea, Thailand and Taiwan. -VNA