Laos eyes 2.7 million foreign tourists during Visit Laos Year 2024

Source:  Vientiane Times, August 25, 2023

The government has set a goal of attracting 2.7 million foreign visitors and generating US$401 million in tourism revenue during Visit Laos Year 2024, according to the Ministry of Information, Culture and Tourism.

Director General of the ministry’s Tourism Marketing Department, Mr Khom Douangchantha, told the Vientiane Times the ministry is preparing national and local activities and other events, involving businesses participating in the Visit Laos Year 2024 tourism promotion programme.

“The ministry is encouraging travel agents to organise special programmes and arrange discount schemes for visitors during Visit Laos Year 2024,” he said.

“We are also focusing on the improvement of services for tourists, building new visitor facilities, and creating new tourism products.”

The ministry is promoting tourism on social media platforms, local media channels and in other countries, in a bid to attract a large number of visitors, while the creation of a logo and slogan for Visit Laos Year 2024 is also underway.

In 2025 the government hopes to attract even more foreign tourists and has set a target figure of 2.9 million, with a goal of US$434 million in tourism revenue, Mr Khom said.

The ministry is now providing training for more than 200 tour guides across the country so they are better prepared to assist visitors during Visit Laos Year 2024.

Tour guides from various provinces are learning about the tourism regulations, immigration law, and basic first aid, as well as building their knowledge of French, English, Chinese and Vietnamese to improve communication with visitors from these countries, according to the Institute of Mass Media, Culture and Tourism.

The government has organised previous promotional campaigns to attract tourists, including two Visit Laos Years, Visit Laos-China Year and Lao Thiao Laos, which drew many visitors.

During Visit Laos Year 2018, visitor arrivals topped 4.1 million, up 8.2 percent compared to 2017.

During Visit Laos-China Year 2019, Laos welcomed 4.58 million international visitors, representing an increase of 9 percent over 2018.