At a press conference in Hanoi on January 10, the officials said that Vietnam plans to welcome 5 million foreign and 21.5 million local tourists this year and the figures are expected to increase to 6 million and 23.5 million in 2010, respectively.

To reach this target, Vietnam will reduce prices of air tickets, hotel services and souvenirs, with the national flag carrier Vietnam Airlines being the pioneer in lowering airfares.

The country will host a series of festivities, including the Year of Tourism in the Central Highlands that features celebrations of Da Lat city as well as flower, gong, coffee and wine festivals.

The year 2009 will also see an international fireworks competition in the central city of Da Nang, the Nha Trang Sea Festival in central Khanh Hoa province, days of Mekong-Japan culture and tourism in Can Tho city, the third Asia Indoor Games, a food and hotel fair in Ho Chi Minh City, and a joint programme to promote tourism in Vietnam, Laos and Cambodia in HCM City.

In 2010, visitors will have the opportunity to join in the 1,000th anniversary of Hanoi, the Hue Festival, and the Miss World pageant in Khanh Hoa province, as well as international film, puppetry and circus festivals.

During the press briefing that was held within the framework of the ASEAN Tourism Forum 2009, Singapore and Myanmar also introduced measures to promote tourism development in their respective countries.