Cambodia Rises to Third Place in Vietnam’s Tourist Arrivals
Cambodia Rises to Third Place in Vietnam’s Tourist Arrivals
HANOI, Feb 9, 2026 — Cambodia has overtaken Taiwan to become Vietnam’s third-largest source of foreign tourists, after arrivals from Cambodia surged sharply in January, according to VN Express.
Vietnam welcomed about 223,000 Cambodian visitors in January, nearly three times the number recorded the previous month, according to figures from Vietnam’s General Statistics Office. Taiwan recorded about 101,000 arrivals, slipping from third to sixth place.
Tourism officials and industry executives attributed the rise in Cambodian travel to Vietnam to geographic proximity, lower travel costs and improved transport links, including expanded air services.
National carrier Air Cambodia now operates around 10 daily flights to Vietnam and has broadened its network to include routes from Phnom Penh to Cam Ranh, Da Nang and Phu Quoc, the airline said. A Siem Reap–Cam Ranh route is expected to launch in mid-2026.
As fellow members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), Cambodia and Vietnam offer mutual visa-free travel, further supporting cross-border tourism.
Vietnam received 2.5 million foreign visitors in January, its highest monthly total on record, driven by relaxed visa rules and aggressive tourism promotion campaigns.
South Korea ranked as Vietnam’s largest source market with nearly 490,000 visitors, overtaking mainland China, which recorded about 460,000 arrivals. Russia ranked fourth, followed by the United States, the data showed.
