Myanmar has chosen Vietnam as a partner in opening up its tourism industry.

Myanmar is planning to restart domestic tourism in the third quarter of this year. This is seen as the initial phase of the country's tourism recovery. According to a statement from an official of Myanmar's Ministry of Hotels and Tourism on June 20, this move is part of a plan to rescue the tourism industry from Covid-19.

According to the plan, the Myanmar government expects the country's tourism industry to recover by 20 to 22% during this period. The Ministry of Hotels and Tourism is also negotiating with the Ministry of Culture and Religion to reopen temples, cultural sites, and scenic spots in order to restart domestic tourism as soon as possible.

In addition, Myanmar also plans to open its doors to regional tourists in the fourth quarter of this year by creating safe travel corridors with neighboring countries that have good pandemic control situations, such as Cambodia, Laos, Vietnam, and Thailand.

In early 2021, Myanmar hoped to reopen to Asian countries such as China and Japan. The government also expected that by early 2022, the number of international visitors returning to the country could reach 80-90% of pre-pandemic capacity.

"We will resume domestic tours once all hotels and destinations reopen. However, we cannot say exactly when overseas tours can resume," said Nilar Win, CEO of a travel agency.

According to the recently announced Covid-19 tourism relief plan, Myanmar's Ministry of Hotels and Tourism has implemented measures such as: waiving license fees for one year, postponing rent payments for hotels affected by Covid-19 for six months. Simultaneously, they are organizing online training, running digital marketing campaigns, developing brand strategies, and creating e-commerce websites.

My Tong