Vietnam fastest-growing travel destination for Britons

Vietnam is the fastest-growing travel destination for Britons, according to a new travel index by the United Kingdom’s Post Office released last week. According to the Post Office Travel Money’s "Fastest Growing Currencies Summer 2012" report, the Vietnamese dong is the fastest-growing foreign currency in the UK, with summer sales soaring by 68 percent compared with last year, suggesting a boom in Vietnam holidays. The ‘Fastest Growing Currencies’ review by the Post Office, a retail postal service company that provides postal and banking services in the UK, measures demand for travel to global destinations by British holiday makers based on currency sales. “The boom in demand suggests that holidaymakers are becoming increasingly canny and watching exchange rates as well as seeking out keenly-priced packages before deciding on their destination,” Andrew Brown, Post Office Head of Travel Money said in the review. The review attributed the increase to the introduction of direct flights from Vietnam to the UK. Vietnam Airlines began a service between Gatwick and Hanoi in December 2011, the first direct flights to the country from Britain, reducing the journey by several hours Another reason for the sharp increase in Britons taking holidays in Vietnam is the recent opening of new holiday resorts in the Southeast Asian nation. Anantara Mui Ne officially opened its doors in April this year while InterContinental Danang Sun Peninsula Resort made its grand opening in June 2012. More international chain hotels are expected to open in Vietnam in the near future, including the Hilton Da Nang which should welcome its first guests in 2013 and Movenpick Hotels & Resorts’ Quy Nhon due for 2015. The review also revealed that the other top two growth destinations for British vacationers are Brazil and Hungary, with currency sales for the Brazilian real up 66 percent year on year, and the Hungarian forint up 59 percent year on year.