Among them were 315 passengers aboard Vietnam Airlines aircraft VN120 from Frankfurt, Germany, and 150 others aboard Cathay Pacific Airlines CX 767 aircraft from Hong Kong.
They were happy being welcomed by city authorities and impressed by the beauty of Vietnam and the hospitability of local people.

The city's tourism industry is trying to improve the quality of services, diversify products, ensure visitor safety, and keep service prices stable.

In 2012 HCM City received 3.8 million foreign tourists, representing a year-on-year increase of 8.5 percent, and accounting for 56 percent of the total number of foreign visitors to Vietnam.

Its revenue reached VND68 trillion, or 42 percent of the country's total revenue from tourism services.