Tet travel crunch: Vietnam rushes to add flights as key routes hit 90-100% bookings

Tet travel crunch: Vietnam rushes to add flights as key routes hit 90-100% bookings Tezzbuzz | 2026-02-06T07:24:37+08:00

The Civil Aviation Authority of Vietnam has increased takeoff and landing slots at Tan Son Nhat Airport in Ho Chi Minh City and Hanoi’s Noi Bai Airport from 42 to 46-48 flights per hour during peak periods, allowing airlines to add more services, operate night flights and release additional tickets to meet surging travel demand.

Several provincial airports with heavy Tet traffic, including Tho Xuan, Dong Hoi, Chu Lai, Phu Cat, Pleiku and Tuy Hoa, have also been instructed to increase flight frequencies and operate 24 hours a day.

Domestic airlines have been permitted to add more aircraft during the peak season. So far, carriers have added 19 planes, four more than at the same time last year, bringing the total fleet expected to operate during Tet to about 216-218 aircraft.

Despite the capacity boost, booking data shows a familiar pattern of uneven demand. In the days before Tetflights from Ho Chi Minh City to central and Central Highlands destinations such as Hue, Thanh Hoa, Vinh, Pleiku, Tuy Hoa, Quy Nhon, Chu Lai and Dong Hoi are already more than 90% booked, with some dates completely sold out.

In contrast, return flights to Ho Chi Minh City during the same period remain lightly booked, with many flights below 35% occupancy.

From Hanoi, pre-Tet booking rates to central and southern provinces range from 30% to 60%. Demand is significantly higher on the Hanoi-Dong Hoi and Hanoi-Dien Bien routes, where bookings reach 88-100% on peak days from Feb. 12 to Feb. 15. The Lunar New Year begins on Feb. 17 and the 9-day holiday break starts on Feb. 14.

After Tetthe pattern reverses. Flights from provincial airports back to Ho Chi Minh City see booking rates jump to 80-100%, with routes from Pleiku, Tuy Hoa, Quy Nhon, Chu Lai, Vinh, Thanh Hoa, Hue and Hai Phong nearly full.

On the busy Ho Chi Minh City-Hanoi corridor, bookings spike on select days around the holiday. From Feb. 11 to Feb. 14, flights from Ho Chi Minh City to Hanoi are about 83-90% booked. After Tetfrom Feb. 21 to 23, occupancy in the Hanoi-Ho Chi Minh City flights rise to 80-94%.

Between Feb. 12 and 21, covering the main Tet travel peak, total passenger traffic across Vietnam’s aviation market is forecast to reach 2.85 million, up 11% year on year. International passengers are expected to account for about 1.6 million, a 14% increase, while domestic travelers are projected at 1.25 million, up 10.7%.

Passenger throughput at Tan Son Nhat Airport is estimated at around 1.48 million during the holiday period, up 7.3% from Tet 2025, while Noi Bai Airport is expected to handle nearly 1.08 million passengers, a sharp 21% increase.