Marine sports open up vast potential for Vietnam's tourism
Marine sports are showing strong potential to become a new driver for local tourism and economic development. However, Vietnam has not fully exploited its available advantages.
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Major advantages yet to be turned into a real market
The 6th Asian Beach Games in China, drew attention not only for the competitions but also for the clear message from the host country and the Olympic Council of Asia: marine sports must be linked to tourism, consumption, and local economies, rather than just short-term events.
After a 10-year hiatus since the edition in Da Nang in 2016, the return of this event highlights a new approach, viewing sea sports as part of a broader sea-linked economic ecosystem.
Data shows that Vietnam has a vast potential for marine sports. In 2024, Vietnam welcomed over 17.5 million international visitors and served around 110 million domestic tourists, generating total tourism revenue of about 840 trillion VND. However, most activities still revolve around familiar models like relaxation, beach bathing, and sightseeing, rather than shifting to sports-experience tourism.
In reality, marine sports in Vietnam has not yet become a vibrant part of tourism life and created widespread value chains.
Challenges of developing economy from marine sports
For a long time, marine economic development has focused on resorts, real estate, and festivals, while marine sports have not been positioned as an independent product pillar in planning.
According to international organizations, sports tourism is one of the fastest-growing segments, generating multiple value layers from accommodations and transportation to experiential services, training, and media. Sports-linked tourists typically stay longer and spend more than average visitors.
Marine sports also help extend destination usage beyond peak seasons. Activities like running on the beach, swimming, beach volleyball, or paddle boarding can occur year-round, creating continuous vibrancy for coastal cities and reducing reliance on peak tourism periods.
With catural advantages and the orientation for marine island tourism development in 2021-2030, Vietnam has a great opportunity to turn marine sports into a new service economy sector. The remaining issue is the ability to convert natural advantages into market strengths and a sustainable ecosystem.
Hai Phong News