HANOI – Artificial intelligence (AI), chatbots, and virtual assistants flood into the tourism industry, offering business owners unprecedented opportunities to personalise guest experiences while reducing operational costs.

However, this digital transformation presents both opportunities for the sector and travellers, as well as significant challenges for the industry’s workforce.

Cutting operating costs, increasing revenue

Deputy General Director of Vietravel Huỳnh Phan Phương Hoàng revealed that the company has deployed AI across the three core areas of advertising, customer data analysis, and tour booking consultation.

Chatbot and virtual assistants support itinerary consultation and tour bookings, and provide around-the-clock response across multiple platforms while AI advertising applications have been used to optimise budgets and target the right customers. AI has been also employed to analyse customer data, enabling the delivery of personalised tour recommendations.

Hoàng stressed that the advanced technologies have shown efficiency, with lower operating costs and better customer experience.

According to Marketing Director at Vias Hotel Vũng Tàu Nguyễn Thị Thanh Hà, as the accommodation facilities’ ability to attract and retain guests hinges on the first impression, Vias has digitalised its presentation using 360-degree imagery, helping customers have a better insight into its services and rooms.

AI tools have not only eased the burden on the hotel’s staff but have also helped boost direct bookings by 10 per cent, she said, adding, virtual assistants could communicate in multiple languages, a big challenge for human staff when handling international guests.

N.T.Mai, a hotel and restaurant owner in Đà Nẵng City, said that she used to spend some VNĐ30-40 million (US$1,145-1,527) per marketing campaign on video production to promote her business during peak tourist seasons. However, with AI, high-quality and catchy videos and images are generated within a minute at the cost of just VNĐ300,000 – 500,000 from tech-savvy staff.

With AI helping streamline operations, from real-time pricing adjustments to booking forecasts, Mai said her hotel has reduced its workforce by 30 per cent since late 2024.

Various agencies and businesses in HCM City, Quảng Ninh, Huế, and Đà Nẵng, have adopted smart tourism systems with integrated AI that can suggest itineraries, hotels, and restaurants based on a traveller’s browsing behaviour.

Increasing presence on digital platforms required

The Vietnam Tourism Association said that the defining trend of the sector this year is the rise of hybrid accommodation models that combine new service standard and advanced technologies. Therefore, travel firms must pen measures for digital transformation to thrive.

Hoàng suggested firms focus on three pillars of comprehensive digital transformation, personalisation of experience, and technological integration.

Rather than selling popular products, businesses should use AI and data tools to design packages for different customer segments, while partnering with digital platforms, tourism startups as well as applying AR/VR, digital map, and virtual guides to create distinct experiences.

Echoing this, Hà urged businesses to enhance their digital presence and multichannel engagement and collaborate with reputable brands to protect consumers from increasing online scams.

In the meantime, Nguyễn Thùy Dương, an advisory board member in at the British University Việt Nam’s School of Hospitality and Tourism, laid stress on the need to employ AI to study guests’ behaviours, thus designing market-ready products.

While the marketing team needed 10 persons for visuals and copy in the previous days, today a single well-trained individual with AI tools can do even better, Dương said, highlighting that each enterprise must find its own creative approach.

A study by McKinsey showed generative AI will unlock annual value ranging from $2-4 trillion across various industries. In tourism alone, the global AI market could soar from $92.46 billion in 2023 to more than $379 billion by 2028, with an annual growth rate of 33.9 per cent.

According to a recent Booking.com survey, 50 per cent of Vietnamese travellers said they trust AI for destination recommendations, and 67 per cent will use AI for itinerary planning.