GSO official Pham Tien Nam said the country attracted 416,200 foreign travellers in January, up 11 percent from December and 20 percent year-on-year.

The recovery was led by visitors from neighbouring China, whose numbers grew 94 percent year-on-year to 54,000. Arrivals from Australia, Canada, South Korea and the US also rose significantly.

The state-run Vietnam News reported Friday that the rise in Chinese arrivals was due to more aggressive marketing in China by Vietnamese tourism companies. China's strong economy, which grew over 8 percent last year, also played a role.

Vietnam, once one of the fastest-growing tourist magnets in the region, saw a sharp fall last year for the first time in many years. It attracted only 3.8 million foreign visitors, down 11 percent from 2008.

The 11-per-cent drop was much higher than average drop of 5 percent in the Asia-Pacific region.

Some critics blamed the global financial crisis, but others blamed poor coordination between Vietnam's hotel, airline, and packaged tour industries.

Deutsche Presse Agentur - February 1st, 2010