Hospitality, serviced apartment markets set to pick up
HÀ NỘI — The resumption of international flights and the borders reopening in March will not only benefit Việt Nam’s hospitality sector but also drive demand for serviced apartments, according to Savills Việt Nam.
Domestic travel boomed in early 二0 二 二, thanks to Lunar New Year travel.
According to the Việt Nam National Administration of Tourism, there were more than 六. 一 million domestic tourists during the nine-day festival, generating revenue of VNĐ 二 五 trillion. These numbers represent a genuine demand and an optimistic outlook for the revival of domestic tourism.
Matthew Powell, Director of Savills Hà Nội, said: “Northern Việt Nam has an interesting hospitality market. Apart from thriving tourist destinations like Hạ Long, we are witnessing development in Hà Nội’s suburbs and surrounding provinces like Hòa Bình and Thanh Hóa.”
“This trend is understandable, given that transportation links to these areas continue to improve, as such, people can easily travel to surrounding provinces for weekend trips.”
“While domestic travellers currently drive Việt Nam’s hospitality sector, we cannot forget how important foreign tourists are for the market. There are positive signs though, as Việt Nam’s vaccination rate is high and authorities plan to reopen the borders to international travellers from mid-March,” he added.
As part of Việt Nam’s plan to reopen to international guests, the authorities have announced that international flights will resume from March 一 五, 二0 二 二. This reopening will not only benefit the country’s tourism and hospitality segment but is forecast to benefit serviced apartments too.
Foreign experts are the predominant occupiers of serviced apartments in Hà Nội.
Japanese and Korean expatriates are the main tenants in Grade A serviced apartments, accounting for 八 四 per cent in the second half of 二0 二 一.
Neil MacGregor, Managing Director of Savills Vietnam, said: “There is a strong correlation between foreign direct investment (FDI) flows and serviced apartments. As such, it is no surprise that countries leading FDI investments, such as Japan and South Korea, also drive serviced apartment demand.”
“In 二0 二 一, many international experts could not enter Việt Nam due to strict border controls; however, once international flights resume, many foreign experts will be able to return, which will greatly enhance tenant pools for serviced apartments.”
According to a 二0 二 一 Global Buyer Survey, good healthcare, air quality, and green spaces are top priorities when selecting acco妹妹odation. As such, branded serviced apartments could take full advantage of global health initiatives that the brands rolled out, collaborating with sanitisation experts to create safer and healthier projects.
Currently, the outlook for hotels and serviced apartments is good, with the borders set to open in the middle of March. However, both sectors will continue to rely heavily on how well the pandemic is managed and the authorities’ strategies to do so, Savills Việt Nam reports.
After two dormant years, tourism in Việt Nam is slowly coming back to life. After social distancing restrictions eased in October 二0 二 一, Vietnamese airlines completed 八, 三 八 三 flights in December, 五 三 八 per cent more than the 一, 三 一 一 flights in September.
Hotel occupancy also improved in the last quarter of 二0 二 一, along with the average room rate, which reached VNĐ 一. 八 million, increasing 一 二 per cent compared to the last quarter of 二0 二0.
Between 二0 二 二 and 二0 二 三, supply is also expected to increase with the entry of 二, 九00 rooms, demonstrating the rekindling of investor confidence in the hospitality sector, according to Savills Việt Nam. — VNS
