Why it seems like ‘everyone’ in Australia is travelling to Vietnam | Vietnam holidays

Georgia Quinn is adamant that Vietnam has been slept on as a holiday destination. The lifestyle-based content creator says she has loved the country since she first visited as a backpacker 15 years ago. “It wasn’t off the beaten path but it definitely wasn’t as popular as, say, Thailand or Bali,” she says.

That’s changing.

“Everyone” Quinn has spoken to has either just returned to Australia from Vietnam or has plans to visit, she says. On her latest trip last month she was taken aback by how many new developments had sprung up in the coastal city of Da Nang. “It seems like that’s becoming … I’d almost call it like the Gold Coast of Vietnam,” she says.

The number of Australians she bumped into during her two-week holiday also stood out: “It doesn’t surprise me at all that people are finally realising that it’s such an amazing place to go.”

Australian Bureau of Statistics data shows that a decade ago Vietnam was the fifth most common south-east Asian destination for short-term overseas travel. By 2024 it had jumped up two spots to become the third most visited country in the region, overtaking Singapore and Malaysia. The total number of Australian residents returning from short trips to Vietnam has more than doubled since 2016, from 246,000 to 528,000 this year.

The number of passengers flying to Vietnam on Jetstar has increased by more than 30% since 2023, with the airline offering 15% more flights. The travel aggregator Expedia has also experienced year-on-year growth in accommodation searches for cities including Hanoi, Ho Chi Minh City and Phu Quoc from 2025 to 2026.

“I’ve seen a lot of Australians, increasingly, visiting Vietnam,” says Dr Truc Le, a senior lecturer in marketing and tourism at Griffith University. “And I think it’s not accidental.”

He cites a “very strong alignment” between what Australian travellers want and what Vietnam offers.

People still want to travel despite global uncertainty and cost-of-living pressures, Le says. That means, instead of long-haul trips to “iconic” destinations such as Paris or Venice, places closer to home are more viable. Price-to-quality ratio is important to Australians, Le says, and Vietnam offers “premium experiences at mid-range prices”.

The Australian dollar has also maintained significant buying power in Vietnam. Indexed to exchange rates in 2025, the Australian dollar has experienced particular growth against the Vietnamese dong compared with the US dollar and the euro.

An event coordinator, Mandy Lan, 25, chose Vietnam primarily for its affordability. Far from a typical backpacking experience, “I was going to Michelin star restaurants for breakfast, lunch and dinner,” she says. She also took advantage of Vietnam’s reputable tailoring industry, commissioning five custom-made garments for $250. Lan’s two-week trip at the end of 2025, minus flights, cost less than $1,500. Quinn budgeted $6,000 for her and her partner, flights inclusive, for their long-awaited holiday together.

Although Vietnam’s prices are an easy draw, Le says travellers are also looking for authentic experiences that aren’t overcrowded. Quinn says that it’s not as though there aren’t any touristy things to do in Ho Chi Minh City but it’s such a bustling city that visitors can blend in. She found herself in the shops of many local designers, enjoying the contemporary “Y2K” style and learning the stories behind the brands. She noticed that many were newly established.

Duong Dong, a co-founder of the travel company Broken Compass, attributes this trendiness to Vietnam’s young population – the median age is 33. Le says younger generations are reshaping how Vietnam’s distinctive cultural identity is expressed. This identity is “a blend of deep-rooted traditions, regional diversity, and a socialist-oriented market system”.

While it can present inconsistent service quality and regulatory complexities within the tourism industry, Le says this enhances authenticity as business practices are “more relationship-based”.

Two co-founders of Urbanist Travel, Chau Nguyen and Brian Letwin, point to the influx of millennial and older gen Z Vietnamese who are returning to Vietnam to establish their own businesses. They are taking the things they’ve learned from international universities and restaurants and creating something new, Letwin says.

Linh Phan, the founder of the travel company Hidden Saigon, says: “You also have a diaspora community from the second generation who are taking over their parents’ restaurants and changing them up.”

All four guides agree that this has transformed Vietnam. Letwin describes the new food, fashion, music and clubs as having a “nonconformist” feeling.

This cultural shift appeals to travellers, Letwin says. Phan says she never expected to see tourists at her local coffee shops but now they’re “full of them”.

Australians in particular are “fascinated” by dynamic expressions of cultural identity, Le says.

The detrimental impact of over-tourism on Bali’s environment and culture looms heavily over Vietnam’s flourishing travel industry – it is one of the fastest-growing sectors of the economy. But Phan finds solace in the fact that “trendy” local venues know their true audience. “Tourists and expats come and go but it’s the locals who, you know, make their business,” she says.