On the afternoon of November 18, the Department of Culture and Sports organized a conference on cooperation and development links between Hai Phong’s tourism sector and the aviation sector. Vice Chairman of the Hai Phong City People’s Committee Nguyen Minh Hung, Director General of the Vietnam National Authority of Tourism Nguyen Trung Khanh, and Director General of the Civil Aviation Authority of Vietnam Uong Viet Dung co-chaired the conference.
The conference was attended by representatives of the city’s departments and sectors; tourism and business associations; leading investor groups and enterprises such as Sun Group, Vingroup, Geleximco, Doji, BRG and Hyundai; major travel, accommodation and transport businesses from Hai Phong and the provinces of Quang Ninh, Ninh Binh and Hung Yen. Representatives of Cat Bi International Airport and leaders of Vietnam Airlines, Vietjet Air, Vietravel Airlines and Sun Phu Quoc also attended.
Speaking at the conference, Vice Chairman Nguyen Minh Hung emphasized that tourism is an integrated economic sector with strong intersectoral and interregional characteristics and is not limited by administrative boundaries. Strengthening linkages, especially with the aviation sector, is therefore an inevitable trend to expand markets and improve competitiveness. The relationship between tourism and aviation was affirmed to be symbiotic, with the two sectors providing mutual support for development.
Hai Phong currently has a synchronized transport infrastructure system comprising all five modes of transport. Cat Bi International Airport plays an important role in the northern region, meets 4E airport standards, can accommodate large aircraft such as the Boeing 787 and Airbus A350, and is also a fully equipped backup airport for Noi Bai International Airport.
The conference focused on assessing operations and exploitation at Cat Bi International Airport and discussing effective, practical cooperation initiatives between the two sectors to expand the flight network connecting Hai Phong with destinations at home and abroad.
According to a report from Cat Bi International Airport, during 2016–2019 the airport served 51,302 flights and 7.91 million passengers. In 2019 alone, it handled 16,013 round-trip flights and 2.46 million passengers, a sharp increase compared with 2016. During the Covid-19 period (2020–2021), passenger numbers fell to 2.8 million and flight frequency decreased by 39%. Since 2022, air transport has recovered clearly, especially in the domestic segment, with 18,247 flights and 2.95 million passengers, exceeding pre-pandemic levels.
However, from late 2023 to the present, the impact of the global economic downturn and airlines’ resource restructuring has led to the temporary suspension of many routes from Hai Phong. Cat Bi International Airport now has seven airlines operating seven domestic routes and four international routes connecting to Bangkok, Incheon, Nanning and Lijiang.
At the conference, airline representatives said they were stepping up the development of night-flight products to reduce peak-hour congestion and lower costs. To support this product, tourism businesses and service providers need to coordinate to expand airport, accommodation, and nighttime dining services and attract customer groups from tourist areas, golf courses, industrial parks, experts and MICE travelers.
The airlines also discussed the need to open new routes to Hai Phong and outlined difficulties in implementation. Many proposals for support mechanisms and cooperation with tourism businesses and neighboring localities were put forward to develop distinctive tourism products, attract air travelers and help drive Hai Phong tourism growth in the coming period.
Source: Hai Phong City Electronic Information Portal