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e-Review of Tourism Research (eRTR), Vol. XX, No. XX, XXXX
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Jaeyeon Choe
Swansea University, UK
Giang Phi
VinUniversity, Vietnam
Sustainable Tourism Development in Vietnam: A Critical Review
Vietnam has achieved enormous economic growth after a series of reforms in the 1980’s,
leading to foreign direct investment and the development of the tourism sector. A tourism
industry emerged and has burgeoned with the increase of inbound international tourists. In
this introductory paper, we critically discuss the three pillars of sustainable development –
economic, environment and social elements and how they are addressed in Vietnam tourism
research. As well as introducing the special issue papers, primarily written by local scholars,
we suggest future research directions. In this special issue, the papers offer Vietnamese
scholars’ voices, their interpretations, methodological approaches, and conceptualisations, as
they explore sustainable tourism practices and development in Vietnam. These papers
provide meaningful insights for future tourism development and research directions.
Key words: Vietnam, Sustainable Tourism Development, Social Sustainability
Jaeyeon Choe
School of Management
Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences
Swansea University
Fabian Way, Swansea
SA1 8EN
The United Kingdom
Phone: [44] 01792 295601
Email: jaeyeon.choe@swansea.ac.uk
Giang Phi
Department of Tourism Management and Innovation/Entrepreneurship
College of Business and Management
VinUniversity
Vinhomes Ocean Park
Gia Lam District, Hanoi
Vietnam
Email: giang.ptl@vinuni.edu.vn
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Introduction
Since the start of the century, Vietnam has achieved enormous economic
development, following a series of political reforms in the 1980s, which led to the growth of
the tourism sector and foreign direct investment. A tourism industry emerged and has
burgeoned with rapidly increasing international tourist numbers. In 2019, Vietnam welcomed
18 million international tourists and 85 million domestic tourists (Quang, Tran, Tran,
Nguyen, & Nguyen, 2022). From 2015 to 2019, the number of international tourists to
Vietnam increased by an average of 22% per year (Tourist Information Center, 2020). As the
middle class within the country expanded with greater purchasing power, lucrative domestic
tourism markets have emerged as well. Whilst the COVID-19 pandemic and border closures
for almost two years significantly slowed down international tourist arrivals, the closures to
outbound travel from Vietnam fuelled domestic tourism growth and tourism product and
destination diversification.
Following the tourism industry’s rapid growth, there has been an increasing number
of tourism degree programmes offered within the higher education sector, including new joint
degree programmes with Western universities such as Arizona State University, and the
Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology (RMIT). In 2018, VinUniversity began operations
and signed cooperative agreements with Cornell University and the University of
Pennsylvania to launch tourism degree programmes and a tourism research centre in Hanoi.
The internationalisation of universities and tourism programmes have supported quality
tourism higher education in Vietnam and supported greater recognition of the tourism sector
in Vietnamese society. These programmes are a key dimension of tourism professionalism in
Vietnam, and the foundation for indigenous research training and scholarly output. Over the
past decade, an increasing number of Vietnamese scholars have published in ‘mainstream’
tourism journals such as the Journal of Sustainable Tourism, Tourism Geographies, and
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Current Issues in Tourism. Vietnamese scholars have begun to initiate and share their
research, analyses, and interpretations about the country’s tourism opportunities, challenges,
and other issues. They are also engaging domestically and internationally with other tourism
scholars at conferences, international research associations and books. In 2022, the book
‘Vietnam Tourism: Policies and Practice’ (Bui et al., 2022) published by CABI was the first
tourism book written entirely by a group of Vietnamese-origin scholars and covers a wide
range of topics and cases linked to sustainable tourism development in Vietnam. Despite this
progress, many Vietnamese scholars still face challenges in publishing in English language
journals, participating in ‘mainstream’ international conferences, and leading discussions on
academic communities such as Trinet. These challenges may range from language barriers,
cultural differences, a lack of research training, a lack of recognition, a lack of time to do
research, a lack of international networks and a dearth of funding opportunities.
This special issue, ‘Sustainable Tourism Development in Vietnam’ emerged from a
conference entitled, ‘Sustainable Tourism Development for Southeast Asia’ that was held at
Vietnam National University, Hanoi in 2019. The conference provided a unique opportunity
for Southeast Asian tourism scholars to share research ideas on sustainable tourism
development and provide a space to network with international colleagues. The conference
was supported by the ‘Tourist Project’ funded by the EU (Erasmus+ Programme). There has
been growing momentum in Vietnamese tourism research by a new generation of Vietnamese
scholars, who focus on sustainable tourism development within the Vietnamese context. It is
important that their understanding of the development of tourism in Vietnam, and their
knowledge of both historical and present developments are added to the existing literature,
which has been dominantly by Western viewpoints. In this introductory paper, we critically
discuss the three pillars of sustainable development – economic, environment and social
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elements in Vietnam tourism research, and suggest future directions as well as introducing
the special issue papers, primarily written by local scholars.
Economic Sustainability
Following the ‘Đổi Mới’ policy in 1986, which shifted Vietnam from a centrally
planned economy to a market oriented one, tourism was among the first economic sectors
opened to foreign investment and privatisation (Bui & Phi, 2022). Because of supportive
policies and incentives from the government, Vietnam tourism experienced unprecedented
growth since the beginning of 21st century and is now one of the Southeast Asia’s top tourist
destinations. The economic development of Vietnamese tourism was largely influenced by
neoliberalism, fuelled by the belief that tourism is a commodity for modern consumption, and
that the ‘invisible hand’ of the free market would create the best conditions for economic
growth (Smith, 2005). Advocates of neoliberalism argued that tourism could support market-
led growth and in turn, poverty alleviation, by acting as an export sector to generate foreign
exchange earnings and to attract foreign investment, with trickle-down impacts on the local
economies (UNWTO, 1998). Subsequently, a number of research projects focused on
tourism’s contribution to economic growth, GDP and poverty alleviation in Vietnamese
provinces and to Vietnam as a whole (e.g., Nguyen & Nguyen, 2013; Shih & Do, 2016;
Truong, 2013). However, whilst it is evident that the tourism industry has contributed to
Vietnam’s economic growth and GDP, there is little evidence that tourism has helped poverty
reduction. More research should explore if and how tourism can contribute to poverty
alleviation and benefit marginalised communities.
Despite the seemingly strong tourism growth, Vietnam tourism also faces issues
such as a declining visitor yield and overcrowding pressures at popular tourist destinations
during peak seasons. Right before the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, a consultancy report
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by the World Bank Group (2019) pointed to the key areas that needed improvement to
enhance Vietnam tourism’s competitiveness. These include (i) enhancing coordination of
destination planning and product development, (ii) diversifying tourism products and visitor
source markets, (iii) developing tourism workforce skills, (iv) strengthening local tourism
value chain linkages, and (v) improving visitor flow management. However, research on
Vietnam tourism in these areas are still in the infancy stage with few projects looking into
Vietnam tourism branding (e.g., Bui, Perez & Bureau, 2010; Tran, Nguyen & Tran, 2020)
and local tourism value chain analysis within the context of poverty alleviation (e.g., Nguyen,
2015). The government and destination authorities should develop sustainable planning and
placemaking models for cities and provinces, as well as rural and peripheral areas
(Giampiccoli & Mtapuri, 2021). Government supported projects such as large resort
developments in seaside tourism destinations, such as Phu Quoc, Da Nang and Na Trang also
have primarily benefitted local elites. More research should explore if and how local people
and communities experience the benefits of these development projects.
Concurrently, the shift towards the digital economy transformed Vietnamese tourism
by increasing “the variety and volume of tourism products, services and experiences, with on-
demand functionality accelerating the speed of economic transactions, market awareness and
feedback” (Dredge et al., 2019, p.1). Given that a large portion of Vietnam tourism is made
up by small-and-medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), digital transformation has created both
opportunities and challenges for Vietnam tourism businesses and destinations to effectively
engage with digital technologies to remain competitive. The COVID-19 pandemic has
heightened the need for digital transformation by Vietnamese businesses and destinations, as
the integration of technologies can create innovative tourism products/services and ensure the
health and safety for travellers. While much attention has been placed on digitalisation in the
manufacturing and industrial sectors, there is little research exploring the challenges and
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obstacles for Vietnam tourism businesses to digitalise (see e.g., Tran et al., 2022; Nguyen et
al., 2020), especially for small-scale tourism businesses in remote and rural villages. While
the economic contribution of tourism is visible, inequality and development gaps between
local elites and small scale businesses in rural regions remain large and problematic, which
needs to be re-oriented to a more sustainable direction.
Environmental Sustainability
Rapid tourism industry growth in Vietnam has led to numerous environmental and
cultural issues and conflicts. Vietnam ranks low in average, in comparison, to other
developing countries in Southeast Asia, in almost all aspects of environmental sustainability
(Nguyen, Ho, Nguyen & Le, 2019). Vietnam suffers from serious level of air pollution, a lack
of wastewater treatment and the little compliance with environmental regulations (Nguyen et
al., 2019). Thus, there has been an increasing attention on environmental concerns among
tourism scholars, due to the consequences of rapid tourism development in Vietnam (e.g.,
Mai & Smith, 2015). Environmental degradation in the Vietnamese context is unique because
of the historical and colonial background to tourism development. According to Pham, Bui,
Do, and Jones (2022), “the physical environment has been significantly degraded, first by the
establishment of plantation and extraction economies of the colonial times, followed by
military conflicts and wars in the 20th century” (p. 85). While ecotourism was introduced in
Vietnam in the mid-1990s in order to protect the natural resources and heritage, it is affected
by “regulations dating back to the colonial period and carried on by the postwar socialist state
of Vietnam” (Pham et al, 2022, p. 100). While coastal and marine tourism cities are the
largest and fastest growing segment of the tourism industry in Vietnam, city infrastructure
has been developed without a solid-waste management capacity (Tsai, Bui, Tseng, Lim &
Tan, 2021). Thus, solid waste is poorly managed and has caused the floating pollution at
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important natural tourist sites, causing significant economic losses. In Vietnam, an estimated
1.8 million tons of plastic waste is also generated every year, and “the country is one of the
top five countries responsible for about 13 million tons of plastic released into the ocean per
year” (Nguyen et al., 2019, p. 83). Resorts and beaches in popular tourist destinations are
often flooded with plastic waste and bags.
Another major issue related to the tourism and environmental sustainability in
Vietnam is ethnic minority groups’ lives in rural and remote regions. Many of the ethnic
minority communities live in rural villages, and their lives and livelihoods rely on the natural
resources. They have been affected the most by forest closures and exploitation, including
“land disputes involving tribal minorities, and the state and private logging interests which
have become frequent and intense” (Pham et al, 2022, p. 95). While they have not
experienced the full benefits of the country’s development and modernisation, ecotourism has
become an important means for them to diversify their income sources away from
agriculture. While it is important to develop ecotourism in remote areas with biodiversity or
unique landscapes (Pham et al, 2022), there are often gaps between planning for sustainable
tourism and the reality (Duong et al., 2022). Based on a case study in Đắk Lắk, Duong et al.,
(2022) emphasise that there are too many repetitive eco-tourism products in rural areas. They
argue that future tourism products should be developed, utilising unique local natural and
cultural heritage resources. These include sustainable ‘eco-wellness’ tourism, agri-tourism,
and gastronomy tourism products, etc.
Pham et al. (2022) suggest that it is crucial to find a balance between the rapid
development of tourism activities and the preservation of the authentic natural and “socio-
cultural elements of the ethnic minorities that make the area attractive for tourists” (p. 95).
This balance must generate and sustain diversified income sources for the ethnic minority
groups. However, this requires appropriate funding allocation, tourism activities, policy and
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legal frameworks, environmental co-creation, stakeholder participation and community
awareness (Tsai et al., 2021). Civil construction debris, the tourist flow, the support of
political leadership, cost-sharing and mutual strategy adoption, and technical cooperation are
also key success criteria for environmentally sustainable tourism development (Tsai et al.,
2021). Reflecting on the existing environmental issues, the Vietnam tourism industry should
be developed towards an environmentally sustainable direction in the post COVID period.
Local scholars should conduct more critical research on environmental impacts, the role of
tourism activities and provide practical and long-term strategies and solutions.
Social Sustainability
The social sustainability element of sustainable development has gained little
attention in Vietnamese tourism research. This is not surprising as the social sustainability
aspect has not picked up the full momentum in tourism studies, compared to the economic
aspects and environmental of sustainability (Choe, O’ Regan, Kimbu, Lund, & Ladkin,
2022). However, there are a growing number of scholars focusing on inequity and
imbalanced geographical distribution in tourist income/benefits (e.g., Coles & Morgan, 2010;
Scheyvens & Biddulph, 2018) in developing countries where tourist incomes often stay in
capital cities and among local elites; or foreign investors, which causes economic leakage.
Equality, equity and empowerment and poverty alleviation are important elements of
socially sustainable development (Eizenberg & Jabareen, 2017). Though the social
sustainability framework may not yet be explicitly used, the tourism research in Vietnam has
explored alternative tourism forms and practices such as pro-poor tourism (PPT) and
community-based tourism (CBT) as a means for reducing inequity and poverty. Existing
studies often emphasise poverty alleviation through tourism in rural regions, and strategies to
distribute tourist income to marginalised populations (e.g. ethnic minority communities).
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During the early 2000s, many development agencies and international organisations in
Vietnam utilised CBT as part of their poverty reduction strategies (Phi & Pham, 2022). Such
tourism forms remain important options to help locals diversify their income sources and
become less vulnerable to the risks associated with subsistence agriculture and fisheries (Phi
& Whitford, 2017). However, these forms of tourism, which involve capacity building,
cultural revitalisation and confidence building for poor rural communities require further
research. Alternative tourism practices continuously face challenges of social inequality, poor
(re)distribution of tourism income and exclusion of marginalised communities.
Vietnam based scholars now recognise that there are numerous challenges to achieve
social sustainability through tourism projects in Vietnam. For example, the marginalised
communities often lack members with business and language skills, tourism knowledge, and
capital for producing quality/unique products (Holden et al., 2011; Huynh, 2011; Truong et
al., 2014). The lack of opportunities to learn foreign languages creates difficulties in daily
tourism operations; direct marketing relationships with tourists; and building connections to
external tour operators and companies (Phi & Pham, 2022). Due to a lack of regulation and
policies concerning local control and distribution of tourism profit, external investors can
easily take over local tourism resources. For example, in Pù Luông, Thanh Hóa province, a
large amount of local land has been purchased by investors from Hanoi and other parts of
Vietnam to build commercial homestays (Phi & Pham, 2022). In Sapa, Lào Cai province,
many external tour companies have taken over existing tourism enterprises, creating
significant economic leakages (Phi & Pham, 2022). Without adequate attention on the
distribution of tourism benefits (Deller, 2010), feelings of scepticism, jealousy, and distrust
can arise, and negatively affect community cohesion (Simpson, 2008). Drawing on from their
pro-poor tourism research in Sapa, Truong, Hall and Garry (2014) also note that the tourism
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sector only benefits the non-poor and often results in conflicts of interest among community
members.
Nguyen, d'Hauteserre and Serrao-Neumann (2021) stress that there are barriers to
community empowerment given the traditional dependence on government, in the top-down
political system in Vietnam. Drawing on research on local tea tourism in Thai Nguyen
province, Nguyen et al. (2021) stress that locals have knowledge in traditional tea cultivation
acquired over generations, have capabilities, creativity, and self-learning through life
experiences and have the ability to recognise local issues in order to participate and
contribute their ideas to tourism development. However, they lack the confidence to engage
in democratic decision-making, due to locals’ dependence on government support and their
perceived lack of formal education (Nguyen et al., 2021). Poverty reduction and equity
through tourism can only be achieved by valuing the perspectives of those who are
experiencing poverty (Truong et al., 2014). Marginalised locals should be included in
decision making processes, development plans, project design and implementation (Truong et
al, 2014). Government projects often are designed without listening to what poor people
need, and how they interpret the role of tourism as a means of poverty alleviation (Holden et
al., 2011; Pleumarom, 2012; Truong, 2013b). This can be substantially different from the
views of academics and policy-makers (Truong et al., 2014). Capacity development, specific
policies and regulations, and training programmes should be developed with the goal of
ensuring long-term social equality, and the objective of suiting the needs and strengths of
locals (Phi & Pham, 2022). Pro-poor tourism discourses and initiatives may not be successful
if the realities on the ground and the voices of marginalised and poverty-stricken people are
not considered (Pleumarom, 2012). It is important to provide the structural avenues where
poor locals can express their voices, and exercise power (Nguyen et al., 2021). More research
should listen to their voices and the voices of those who truly understand the perceptions and
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experience of the marginalised communities in remote regions in Vietnam. Solutions should
be based on their viewpoints. Tourism research should systematically use the social
sustainability principles to contribute to the literature development. Further research can also
explore whether such approaches can help contribute to the achievement of some of the UN’s
Sustainable Development Goals such as ‘No. 1: No Poverty’.
The Special Issue
This special issue includes four academic papers and one industry perspective paper.
Most papers include Vietnamese scholars as authors. Tourism research in Vietnam has been
traditionally written within a Eurocentric approach (Jones & Bui, 2022) while tourism
scholarship remains highly Anglo-Western-centric (Tucker & Hayes, 2021). Sin,
Mostafanezhad, and Cheer (2022) critique Anglo-Western centrism in tourism theory and call
on tourism scholars to make a radical shift toward more inclusive epistemology and praxis.
Thus, through this special issue, we hope to contribute to a more decentred tourism
scholarship, which is more open and sensitive to diversified and culturally relevant
knowledge(s) (Tucker & Hayes, 2021). The papers in this special issue offer Vietnamese
scholar’s voices, interpretation, methodological approaches and conceptualisation on
sustainable tourism practices and development in Vietnam, which could provide meaningful
insights for future development and research directions.
In Sustainable tourism development in Vietnam: A critical review, Jaeyeon Choe and
Giang Phi provide an overview of sustainable tourism development in Vietnam, and explore
economic, environmental and social sustainability elements. They find that Vietnamese
tourism has a strong focus on economic aspects, but increased attention has also been given
to the environmental issues. Choe and Phi further emphasise that social sustainability should
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receive more attention by scholars, practitioners and authorities to ensure a better balance in
the sector.
In A potential model for a private travel company-community partnership in
Community-Based Tourism: the case of Mekong Rustic, Vietnam, Andrea Giampiccoli, Long
Hong Pham and Oliver Mtapuri recognise that CBT needs to be properly implemented for
sustainable tourism development to occur in the Mekong region. They argue that while the
government is often regarded as a key player in promoting CBT development, the private
sector can also play a crucial role. Using a case study of the Mekong region, the article
analyses private companies’ critical role in CBT in a private sector-community CBT
partnership model. The findings reveal that private organisations can effectively help small
family businesses participate in CBT, help improve their facilities, products, services, and
marketing, as well as expanding their business networks.
In ‘E-learners’ needs for sustainable tourism higher education: the case of Vietnam,’
Huu Tuan Tran, Minh Nghia Nguyen, Thuy Van Nguyen and Hong Hai Nguyen identify
factors determining the learners’ needs in a tourism e-learning programme. The study
conducted 1,109 surveys in the central coastal region of Vietnam. Using the Technology
Acceptance Model, the study found that the e-learning environment, perceived ease of use,
perceived usefulness, playfulness, and information technology skills had a positive impact on
the learners’ needs. These findings provide useful managerial implications for e-learning of
tourism programmes, which contributes to the sustainable development of higher education
as well as the tourism sector.
In Sustainable tourism in Vietnam: a social-ecological analysis, Huong Bui and
Chung Nguyen synthesise literature outlining both social and ecological sustainability aspects
in the utilisation of natural and cultural resources in tourism development. Along with the
ecological realm of governing marine and forest resources in tourism, the authors discuss the
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social aspects of sustainability concerning cultural heritage conservation, community
engagement, and visitor management. The article also provides important historical
perspectives of sustainable tourism development in Vietnam.
In an industry perspective piece, Industry perspectives: Vietnam confronts dual forces
in tourism development: sustainable initiatives versus megaproject, Gary Bowerman provides
practical and insightful notes on the sustainable practices within Vietnamese tourism and
draw in the COVID context. Bowerman emphasises that Vietnam’s growth has been ‘carbon-
intensive and polluting’ with 335 plant and animal species in Vietnam endangered due the
impact of air pollution. He stresses that a priority should be to incentivise green foreign direct
investment. He argues that youthful Vietnamese consumers are constantly seek to integrate
new leisure, dining, and travel experiences into their lifestyles; and they are also rethinking
the meaning and purpose of travel.
Tourism in Vietnam has been rapidly growing with the aid of supportive policies and
government aided projects. However, given the history of colonisation and conflict, some
critical Vietnamese scholars point out that the top-town tourism projects and management
style should be changed, to give more voice to the private sector and community
organisations. This, they believe, will help build more sustainable futures. More active
collaborations and partnerships amongst public and private sectors (i.e., SMEs) and
community organisations should also be encouraged for sustainable tourism practices (Tseng
et al., 2015).
The COVID-19 pandemic has offered a unique opportunity for those involved in
Vietnam tourism to look back, revise and rethink a more sustainable direction for the future
growth of Vietnamese tourism. As Southeast Asian governments and tourism authorities
reassess industry priorities, local voices are coming to the fore, to demonstrate the potential
of domestic tourism to foster social entrepreneurship and diversified livelihoods (Adams et
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al., 2021). In terms of economic sustainability, there is an opportunity to further develop and
strengthen domestic tourism post COVID-19, through relevant product development and
marketing strategies. They require businesses that were previously reserved for international
tourists, to cater for and market to domestic tourists. Future research can explore how
Vietnam tourism can build a stronger balance between benefits created by the domestic and
international tourism market, so as to create a more resilient tourism sector.
In terms of social and environmental sustainability, the temporary suspension of
international travel during COVID-19 has led to welcome discussions about the meaning,
politics, and social/environmental practices of sustainable tourism development in Vietnam.
Frameworks for future policies and research in the social sustainability area can draw from
emerging literature on inclusive tourism practices, which focus on supporting economic and
social inclusions of marginalised populations (Scheyves & Biddulph, 2018). The voices of
minority groups in empirical fieldwork research remain significantly lacking in the existing
literature. Studies utilising participatory and inclusive research approaches can help
understand environmental and social sustainability issues and contribute to more meaningful
sustainable futures. Minority culture-specific environmental sustainability should also be
explored in future research. Actual measurements of tourism’s environmental and social
impacts should also be examined in future research. In addition, future research can explore a
new voluntary environmental code of conduct, which links to governmental environmental
policies and may better support the mitigation of environmental degradation caused by
existing and planned tourism development projects.
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