Is this your first Vietnam trip? One-third say no: survey Two Japanese tourists pose with a selfie stick on the Nguyen Hue pedestrian street in Ho Chi Minh City. Tuoi Tre It is common to hear foreign tourists assert they will never return to Vietnam after having several bad experiences there, and you may wonder if there is any available statistical data to shed light on the situation. The Vietnam National Administration of Tourism (VNAT) took the question into consideration, launching a survey in October and November last year to find the answer. It eventually found out that only one-third of the international tourists surveyed had made at least one previous trip to Vietnam, the VNAT said at a press conference in Hanoi on Friday. Around 18.1 percent of the respondents were making their second Vietnam trip, while 5.77 percent said they were visiting the country for the third time. Tourists who had visited Vietnam more than three times accounted for 9.11 percent, according to the survey findings released at the event. The total tourist-return rate of Vietnam, according to the survey, was thus 32.98 percent in 2014. Obviously, around 67 percent of the holidaymakers surveyed had been to Vietnam for the very first time. The VNAT said it issued 13,980 questionnaires written in six different languages to international tourists and overseas Vietnamese. The respondents were randomly selected as they were leaving Vietnam after finishing their trip at seven international gateways, including three airports, two seaports, and two border gates. The VNAT also polled 1,000 international tour organizers and 63 local tourism departments countrywide. The survey also found that the spending of an international tourist who spent the night in Vietnam averaged $1,114.40 per trip. Same-day visitors who did not stay overnight in the country spent $125.74 on average, according to the poll. Vacationers from Australia and New Zealand spent the most, $1,667 per trip, as most of them had a long stay in Vietnam. On the contrary, Asian tourists had shorter visits, and thus spent less, $861. Those from Asia had the highest spending per day, $126.4, compared to the $97.8 of European holidaymakers. Total tourist spending topped $8.39 billion last year, according to the survey. Lodging accounted for the largest proportion of the budgets of overnight tourists, whereas the same-day visitors opened their wallets mostly for souvenir purchases. Asia thus remains an important and prioritized market for Vietnam’s tourism, the VNAT said. Survey respondents were also asked to rank their satisfaction with their Vietnam trips, and most of them replied with “excellent” and “good” ratings, according to the poll. Only a few had average, poor, and awful satisfaction levels. VNAT chief Nguyen Van Tuan hailed the necessity of conducting the survey, as it would help the administration set norms for the country’s tourism development. TUOI TRE NEWS