On October 15, 2025, the Ho Chi Minh City Department of Tourism announced that the name Ho Chi Minh City was once again called at the 2025 World Travel Awards (WTA) ceremony — an award often referred to as the “Oscar of the global tourism industry” — held in Hong Kong (China). Ho Chi Minh City once again affirmed its irreplaceable position as “Asia’s Leading Business Travel Destination.”
1. Four titles – Four golden milestones on Asia’s tourism map
According to Ms. Bùi Thị Ngọc Hiếu, Deputy Director of the Ho Chi Minh City Department of Tourism, based on official information from the WTA 2025 website, the city was honored in four categories — a new record and a milestone marking the city’s proud development journey in tourism.
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- Asia’s Leading Business Travel Destination 2025 — maintaining the title for four consecutive years (2022–2025).
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- Asia’s Leading Festival & Event Destination 2025 — continuing to make its mark for four consecutive years (2022–2025).
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- Asia’s Leading City Tourist Board 2025 — the Ho Chi Minh City Department of Tourism honored for three consecutive years (2023–2025).
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- Asia’s Leading Coastal City Break Destination 2025 — a title awarded for the first time, belonging to Vũng Tàu, now part of the newly expanded administrative boundaries of Ho Chi Minh City.
Ms. Bùi Thị Ngọc Hiếu, Deputy Director of the Ho Chi Minh City Department of Tourism, stated that WTA 2025 has just honored the city’s tourism sector in four categories.
According to the Department of Tourism, Ho Chi Minh City’s repeated recognition at the “Oscar of the world tourism industry” is clear evidence of the city’s credibility, appeal, and sustainable development potential in tourism. This achievement is not only the result of continuous efforts to improve service quality and diversify tourism products, but also reflects the image of a dynamic, modern, and creative metropolis that still preserves a rich cultural identity — a key factor that helps the city maintain its distinctive appeal to both domestic and international visitors.
2. Vũng Tàu – A New Symphony of Vietnam’s Sea and Island Tourism
What made this year’s award ceremony especially remarkable was the appearance of the name Vũng Tàu, a locality that has just officially become part of Ho Chi Minh City following the administrative boundary adjustment. With the award “Asia’s Leading Coastal City Break Destination”, Vũng Tàu has written a new chapter for Vietnam’s sea and island tourism — a place where ocean waves blend with the heartbeat of a young, integrated, and creative urban center.
Vũng Tàu – “Asia’s Leading Coastal City Break Destination”
This title not only adds further brilliance to Vietnam’s “tourism map,” but also creates a strong momentum in Ho Chi Minh City’s tourism branding strategy, aiming toward the image of a “dual-identity metropolis”: a modern city and a jade-blue coastal city.
3. The Impressive Momentum of a Tourism Megacity
In the first nine months of 2025, Ho Chi Minh City welcomed more than 5.8 million international visitors and approximately 29 million domestic visitors, generating an estimated revenue of VND 184,629 billion — figures that are not merely dry statistics, but the vibrant pulse of a city rising powerfully on the global tourism map.
The city’s targets for 2025 — 10 million international visitors and 50 million domestic visitors — are no longer distant goals, but a journey advancing step by step each day.
Ho Chi Minh City welcomed more than 5.8 million international visitors and approximately 29 million domestic visitors.
The image of a “tourism megacity” that Ho Chi Minh City’s tourism sector is striving toward has been increasingly taking shape — a place that connects a triangle of identities: culture – waterways – modernity, embodying the spirit of a renewing, dynamic, and resilient Vietnam.
4. Vietnam – A Shining Star of Asian Tourism
Alongside Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam continues to affirm its position on the international tourism map as it is honored by the WTA in two major categories:
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- Asia’s Leading Destination 2025 – awarded for the 7th time.
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- Asia’s Leading Heritage Destination – awarded for the 3rd time.
In addition, numerous Vietnamese localities and enterprises are also featured on the list of honorees:
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Hanoi – Asia’s Leading City Destination; Asia’s Leading City Break Destination.
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Hoi An – Asia’s Leading Cultural City.
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Ninh Binh – Asia’s Leading Emerging Destination.
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Phong Nha – Ke Bang – Asia’s Leading National Park.
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Moc Chau – Asia’s Leading Nature Destination.
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Van Don – Asia’s Leading Regional Airport.
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Vietnam Airlines, VietJet Air and Bamboo Airways – three Vietnamese aviation brands shining together in the regional skies.
These titles are like brilliant frames in a cinematic landscape called “Vietnam Tourism – A Journey to Global Prominence.”
5. A Journey of Affirming Identity and Stature
According to Ms. Bui Thi Ngoc Hieu, Deputy Director of the Ho Chi Minh City Department of Tourism, in the context of increasingly intense global competition, maintaining cultural identity, preserving natural resources, raising service quality standards, and continuously innovating and creating are the “golden keys” for Vietnam to continue rising and becoming a “bright star on the Asian tourism map.”
In reality, Ho Chi Minh City’s tourism sector has moved beyond the “recovery” phase and entered a phase of “breakthrough.” If previously the city was mentioned mainly as an economic and financial center, today that image has been enriched with vibrant tourism colors: bustling festivals, poetic riverine spaces, dazzling night streets, and modern coastal resorts harmonizing with the rhythm of a young metropolis.
The four prestigious awards at WTA 2025 are not merely titles, but a strong affirmation of Ho Chi Minh City’s tourism branding strategy – “Vibrant Ho Chi Minh City” – a dynamic, integrated, and energetic city. It is the image of a modern metropolis in its development approach, youthful in creative thinking, rich in cultural identity, and open-armed in welcoming global visitors.
Ho Chi Minh City today is not only a “leading destination in Asia and the world,” but also a symbol of a new Vietnamese spirit – integrated but not assimilated, developing while still preserving core values.
Source of information: Compiled