A cruise ship called Hanna with a capacity of some 1,500 passengers will arrive in Halong Bay on January 27 on the opening of the route from China's Sanya to Halong and Danang.
Hanna is owned by Hainam Group, a large Chinese group providing cruise, air transport and logistics services, and operated by the cruise line StarCruises. Saigontourist will cater to tourists coming on this cruise ship.
Vu Duy Vu, deputy director of Saigontourist Travel Service Co., said Hanna would make 64 trips to Vietnam between now and this April.
The cruise ship will bring tourists from China and other Asian countries from Sanya to Danang and Halong, with two weekly trips to each destination. A portion the cruise passengers will enter Vietnam by laissez-passers.
"Sixty four trips is an estimated number. We hope to welcome more international tourists via the tourism form Fly-Cruise, because Hainam Group has an aircraft fleet carrying passengers from Europe and the U.S. to China," Vu told the Daily.
Cruise tourism will remain stable this year, he forecast. Cruise lines plan to increase frequency of cruise ships to Vietnam or replace old ships with bigger ones.
Saigontourist has been welcoming cruise ships of StarCruises sailing from Sanya to Halong and Danang every week before getting the contract for catering passengers on board the cruise ship Hanna.