Vietnam attends major travel fair in France

A traditional musical instrument performance at the Vietnam pavilion. (Photo: VNA)

Hanoi – Vietnam took part in the IFTM Top Resa International & French Travel Market 2024 (Top Resa 2024), a major event for all those in the travel and tourism industry which opened on September 17 in Paris, France.

Located in a prominent area for Asia-Pacific countries, the Vietnamese pavilion was decorated in a traditional style with art performances by domestic artists, making a strong impression and attracting a large number of French visitors and international tourists.

The pavilion was a joint effort of the Vietnam Cultural and Tourism Association in Europe (VCNT), Vietnam Airlines, the Vietnam Cultural Centre in France, and 10 Vietnamese businesses operating in the French market.

Returning after the COVID-19 pandemic, the Vietnamese pavilion provided comprehensive information about the development of the country's tourism industry, destinations and a wide range of unique and diverse products, highlighting the country's attractive investment environment with great potential in tourism.

Speaking at the opening, Ambassador Dinh Toan Thang expressed confidence that the return of Vietnamese businesses to Top Resa 2024 will garner significant interest from partners. During the three-day event, tourism companies were expected to establish new relationships with French and regional partners, contributing to attracting more international tourists in the near future, he noted.

Nguyen Tien Hoang, head of Vietnam Airlines' branch in France, said that the fair is an important opportunity for the participating companies to seek new partners, especially those in tourism, to jointly develop and create travel programmes that bring more customers, particularly European customers, to Vietnam in the future.

Michel Jean-Richard, director of Parfum du Monde, a French company specialising in group travel with Vietnam among its regular destinations, said that before the COVID-19 pandemic, it sent around 30-50 groups to Vietnam each year. He affirmed that despite the post-pandemic challenges, he believes Parfum du Monde is on the right track and is confident that many regions in Vietnam still have the potential to attract tourists.

Top Resa, one of the largest professional tourism and travel fairs in the world, is held annually in Paris in the second half of September. According to the organising board, this year’s edition has attracted the participation from over 1,600 brands from various countries and territories around the world. It is not only a venue for professional meetings, exchanges, information updates, and business agreements between global travel and tourism operators, but also features workshops and discussions on three topics, namely environment, digitalisation, and inclusion in the travel and tourism industry./.