Green Tourism Market in Hanoi City: Opportunities and Challenges

Abstract

In the context of global and Vietnamese tourism shifting strongly toward sustainable development models after the Covid-19 pandemic, green tourism has emerged as an inevitable trend, reflecting changes in tourists’ needs and destination selection behavior. As the political, economic, and cultural center of Vietnam, Hanoi possesses significant resources for developing green tourism thanks to its rich heritage system, suburban ecological spaces, traditional craft villages, and the diversity of community-based tourism, cultural tourism, and experiential tourism activities. In addition, the increasing awareness of environmental protection, green lifestyles, and responsible consumption, particularly among Generation Z travelers, has created new momentum for the expansion of this market. However, besides these opportunities, green tourism in Hanoi still faces numerous challenges, including limitations in infrastructure, relatively high investment and travel experience costs, uneven product quality, and the lack of synchronization among destination planning, management, and communication compared with its actual potential. Based on both secondary and primary data, the research team conducted an overview analysis of the green tourism market in Vietnam, particularly in Hanoi, identifying opportunities and challenges for individuals, organizations, and businesses developing green tourism products in the city. The research results indicate that there are four major opportunity factors supporting the development of green tourism in Hanoi, along with four key challenges faced by individuals, organizations, and enterprises operating green tourism products. On that basis, the study proposes several solutions to promote the development of the green tourism market in Hanoi.