Tourist arrivals to Ho Chi Minh City reached some 2.8 million in the first half of 2017, a 14.7% increase year-on-year.

Since the beginning of 2017, the city has organized monthly events to attract and retain visitors, including festivals of Ao dai (Vietnamese traditional long dress), southern land cuisine and southern fruits, among others.

A number of new tourism products have been introduced recently in the city, including medical tourism and craft trading streets.

The city welcomed 5.2 million foreign tourists in 2016, making it the first ever locality to reach the milestone of 5 million overseas visitors nationwide. The southern hub expects receive 5.6 to 6 million international tourists by the end of 2017.-VNA