HCMC – Local tour operators have received bookings from thousands of tourists who wish to visit Japan, South Korea and the U.S. to watch blooming cherry blossoms.
Cherry blossom season tours sell well this year
By Dao Loan - The Saigon Times Daily
 |
| A group of Vietnamese tourists poses for photographs in front of cherry trees in Japan - Photo: Tu Khoi |
HCMC – Local tour operators have received bookings from thousands of tourists who wish to visit Japan, South Korea and the U.S. to watch blooming cherry blossoms.
Cherry blossom season tours will start in late March or early April. Last year, travelers canceled their bookings of Japan tours in the aftermath of the March earthquake and tsunami. But Japan tour sales are projected to get back on track this year.
Some providers of Japan tours reported 30-50% rises in bookings against the pre-tsunami period. Cherry blossom tours take in Japan as well as South Korea, the U.S. and Canada, among others.
Vietravel is one of the major travel firms specializing in arranging cherry blossom season tours. The HCMC-based firm is organizing on a 10-day tour that takes in Japan and the U.S. and departs on March 27 or April 8, a six-day Japan tour with departure between late March and early April, a four-day Japan tour with optional departure dates, and a Japan-South Korea tour.
There are 850 bookings for the cherry blossom tours this year. The price of a package tour ranges from VND40 million to VND88 million per person, down by VND2-4 million, according to Vietravel.
Samurai Tour, which mainly serves visitors to Japan, said this year it would arrange tours for three groups totaling 55 people though it previously had no groups of tourists. More than 100 customers are preparing to leave for Japan under the arrangement of Samurai Tour.
“Things are going well as the fear of the past disaster in Japan has faded. It is expected sales will increase further because individual customers tend to book tours at the last minute,” said Tran Thanh Hanh, director of Samurai Tour.
HCMC-based Samurai Tour also offers a discount of US$30-50 a person to those book cherry blossom season tours early this month or book for groups.
Saigontourist is offering a series of package tours to Japan, South Korea, the U.S. and even Canada during the cherry blossom festival. The country’s leading travel firm said it had taken 300 bookings, up 50% versus the pre-disaster period in Japan.
Tour operator Hoan My closed bookings for tours to the U.S and those to both Japan and the U.S. on February 21 after it took orders from over 200 guests.
Its tour price is between VND56 million and VND85 million per tourist.