With its geographical conditions, geological resources, minerals, and medicinal plants, Vietnam has the potential to become one of the emerging leaders in the field of medical tourism. Experts, researchers, and travel companies have highlighted the importance of tapping into these resources.
Nguyen Van Luu, a former senior specialist of the Ministry of Culture, Sports, and Tourism, emphasizes the need to mobilize resources with a long-term utilization strategy. Human resources, financial resources, infrastructure, policies, and others are all important factors for the development of medical tourism. However, these resources are finite and some are already declining and scarce. Without a sustainable utilization strategy, these resources will be exhausted in a short period of time. Therefore, it is crucial to “awaken” forgotten potential and harness the comprehensive power of resources to optimize and effectively utilize the medical tourism industry. Local authorities must also consider the needs and desires of local residents and incorporate them into tourism development activities.
Pham Hong Long, Head of the Faculty of Tourism Studies at the University of Social Sciences and Humanities, Vietnam National University, highlights the importance of developing human resources, infrastructure, and technology. With the global trend of medical tourism rapidly growing, Vietnam needs to learn from the experiences of countries like China, Japan, and South Korea. High-quality tourism human resources are essential to serve the needs of medical tourism. Training programs should be organized to enhance the skills and knowledge of health professionals. Additionally, investment in modern infrastructure and medical tourism centers is necessary. New technologies in healthcare, functional recovery, medicinal plants processing, cuisine, physical exercise, sports training practices, beauty technologies, and skin care should be applied in medical tourism destinations.
Le Thu Huong, Senior Lecturer of Social Management at the National Academy of Public Administration, emphasizes the importance of offering quality sightseeing and health services in health tourism destinations. Tourists should be able to strengthen their immune systems through physical activities that help relieve stress. By utilizing the local environment and resources, health tourism destinations can offer dynamic leisure activities that combine medical and health resources to create high-quality and effective health tourism products. This approach provides tourists with positive experiences and the opportunity to successfully restore their health.
Vu Van Tuyen, Director of Travelogy Vietnam, suggests strengthening promotional activities to attract customers to health care tourism. Domestic and international promotion can be done through media channels, social networks, and travel websites. The adoption of 4.0 technology is crucial in boosting health care tourism, such as developing smart applications for destination promotion and providing travel guides on mobile devices. It is also important to have synchronized promotional tools on official travel websites and social media platforms, highlighting medical tourism products alongside tourist attractions, experiences, and policies to attract investment. Building a branding toolkit for medical tourism, including logo design, product packaging, slogans, and promotional materials, is essential to increase awareness and recognition of this type of tourism among a wide range of consumers.
