Vietnam Welcomes 1st Tourists To Resort Island After 2 Years

HANOI, Vietnam (AP) — More than 200 foreign tourists arrived on Vietnam’s largest Phu Quoc island on Saturday, the first to visit the Southeast Asian country after nearly two years of border closure due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

The fully vaccinated travelers from South Korea will spend their holidays in hotel resorts without a mandatory 14-day quarantine. They were tested on arrival, and once the negative results are returned, they can join activities on the island including sightseeing, shopping and entertainment events that require vaccine certificates.

“The program is among the country’s efforts to revive its tourism industry while reopening and developing the economy step by step under a new normal context,” said Nguyen Trung Khanh, chairman of Vietnam’s Administration of Tourism who welcomed the charter flight on the airport tarmac.

According to the Health Ministry, all staff members working in service facilities and 99% of Phu Quoc’s adult residents have been fully vaccinated for COVID-19. The island is planning to vaccinate children aged 12 to 17 next month.

Vietnam closed its border in March 2020, shortly after confirming its first COVID-19 case.

Since then, it only allowed only several international flights a week with foreign experts, diplomats and returning Vietnamese nationals. Those international arrivals must undergo a 14-day quarantine in designated hotels or government-run facilities.

Vietnam is the latest Asian nation to start opening up to fully vaccinated visitors. Thailand had begun by limiting tourists to its southern Phuket island before expanding to other areas, including Bangkok, since Nov. 1. The Indonesian island of Bali opened to arrivals last month with some restrictions including testing and a five-day hotel quarantine, and Malaysia opened up Langkawi island under a pilot bubble program.

Dubai Ranked Ninth Most Expensive City For International Travelers

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates - Visitors traveling to Dubai this summer are likely to spend about $1,523.82 or Dh5,500 in three days, higher than what they would spend in many other holiday destinations in the world.

The emirate has been ranked the ninth most expensive city for international travelers in the latest annual TripIndex by travel site TripAdvisor.

The priciest is Cancun, Mexico, followed by Zurich, Switzerland (2nd); New York City (3rd) ; London, UK (4th); Punta Cana, Dominican Republic (5th); Paris, France (6th); Tokyo, Japan (7th) and Toronto, Canada (8th). Singapore is the tenth priciest city for a summer holiday.

The index helps travelers discover destinations that offer the best value for their money by comparing the cost of a three-day trip during the summer in nearly 60 key tourist cities around the world.

The index factors a four-star hotel stay, an organised tour or activity at local attractions, a round-trip taxi ride, as well as lunch and dinner.

For those looking to take a summer escape outside the country, travelers will do their wallet a favour if they head to places like Hanoi, Vietnam, where a three-day stay can cost only $732 (Dh2,688), the cheapest in the world.

In Hanoi, a traveler will likely spend an average of $15.97 for lunch, $45.36 for dinner and $4.10 for a two-mile taxi ride.

Warsaw, Poland is the second cheapest city to travel to, with a three-day vacation estimated to be around $739.38.

In Sharm el Sheikh, Egypt, the third least expensive city to explore during the summer, a three-day stay will likely cost around $820.26.

Bangkok, Thailand, another popular destination among UAE residents, is the fourth cheapest city, where a traveler on a budget will spend around $822.36, nearly half of what they would spend in Dubai.

Taking the fifth spot is Mumbai, India, where lunch will cost around $20.88 per day or the overall three-day spending will be approximately $846 on average.

Also worth checking out are Lisbon, Portugal, which is the sixth least pricey city for summer travel, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia (7th); Marrakech, Morocco (8th); Manila, Philippines (9th) and Berlin, Germany (10th)