Vietnamese Ambassador to Greece Vu Binh has met Ms Olga Kefaloyanny, Greek Minister of Tourism, to seek ways to promote tourism cooperation between the two countries.
During the meeting, the Greek minister praised ideas raised by the Vietnamese ambassador on how to enjoy Vietnam’s age-old culture and beautiful natural sceneries, study its magnanimous history, and seek economic cooperation and cultural exchange between the two countries.
Ambassador Vu Binh informed the Greek minister that different types of tourism, including medical tourism, meetings, incentives, conferences, and exhibitions (MICE) had attracted many foreign tourists to Vietnam, thanks to high quality and competitive services.
Minister Olga Kefaloyanny pledged to deliver the information from the ambassador to Greece’s large travel agents and the Association of Greek Tourism Enterprises (SETE), saying that she would consider sponsoring a meeting among travel agents from the two countries.
According to Ambassador Vu Binh, the number of Vietnamese tourists to foreign countries has been rising. In 2012, some 3.5 million Vietnamese people went abroad for tourism. According to the Vietnam Society of Travel Agents (VISTA), outbound tourism in 2012 increased by 20% compared to 2011, and the growth is expected to increase by 15% annually in the 2013-2020 period.
During the meeting, Ambassador Vu Binh informed the Greek minister of the results of the visit to Greece by a delegation from VISTA.
He confirmed that he would do his utmost to promote the two-way tourism between Vietnam and Greece, contributing the multi-lateral cooperation between the two countries.
The Vietnamese Embassy in Greece has also worked with representatives from travel agents in Corfu Island and with Greece’s large tourism company, Manessis, which promptly decided to make a tour to Vietnam one of its tourism products in 2014.