Việt Nam and Austria have been talking shop. The Việt Nam-Austria Tourism Forum, held in Austria on October 13 under the theme "Connecting Destinations, Building Bridges", brought together diplomats, tourism officials and travel businesses from both countries with one goal: more visitors travelling in each direction.
The numbers explain the interest. Việt Nam welcomed more than 21 million international visitors in 2025, with 17.7 million arriving in the first nine months alone — a 14.5% jump year-on-year. The country is targeting around 25 million foreign arrivals for the year, leaning on its beaches, cave systems, heritage sites and food. Its trophy cabinet backs the pitch: six-time World's Leading Heritage Destination, seven-time Asia's Leading Destination and four-time Asia's Best Culinary Destination.
Austria sees an opening as its own tourism strategy shifts. The country's Vision T strategy pushes year-round, sustainable growth that balances local community interests with preserving natural and cultural resources — and Asian markets are a growing priority. Austria's Federal Ministry representative Ingrid Zimmermann noted Việt Nam's rising appeal among Austrian travellers, pointing to its natural beauty, heritage and hospitality, and urged businesses to use the forum to find partners and build concrete programmes. Tourism, she added, is a significant employer in Austria's rural and mountainous regions.
On the Vietnamese side, Thanh Hóa province made a specific pitch to the Austrian market. The province's officials highlighted nature exploration, hiking, heritage tours and local-life experiences as the draws most likely to resonate with Austrian travellers, and said it plans to assess demand and develop tailored tour programmes. FLC Group's EU representative argued the two countries' strengths complement each other neatly: Austria has the Alps, historic cities and musical heritage; Việt Nam has a long coastline, dramatic bays, mountains and diverse regional cultures — a natural basis for two-way tour products.
One gap could shape everything: flights. There are currently no direct services between Vienna and Việt Nam, so travellers from both countries transit through hubs such as Frankfurt, Paris, Istanbul or Doha. Vietnamese Ambassador Vũ Lê Thái Hoàng flagged improved air connectivity as key to growing visitor numbers, and pointed to the 55th anniversary of diplomatic relations in 2027 as a natural moment to build momentum.
Why it matters for travellers: even without a policy change, forums like this tend to translate into new routes, more packaged itineraries and better-served secondary destinations. If Thanh Hóa pushes into the European market as promised, expect to hear more about its coastline and heritage sites as an alternative to overloaded Hạ Long Bay and Hội An. And if direct Vienna–Việt Nam flights ever materialise, the 12-plus-hour transit shuffle through the Gulf or Frankfurt disappears for good. Austrians get an easier path to Southeast Asia; Vietnamese travellers get a nudge towards the Alps and Austria's cities as a two-centre European trip. Watch this space ahead of the 2027 anniversary year, when both countries have an incentive to announce something tangible.
