Although Japan and Vietnam are struggling in the face of the global economic downturn, 400,000 Japanese tourists have visited Vietnam so far this year.

According to Vietnam Airlines’ vice representative to Japan Kieu Anh, the carrier has so far this year earned around USD 200 million from transporting Japanese tourists and goods from Japan to Vietnam.

Japan is currently the biggest market for Vietnam Airlines, which expects to welcome 440,000 Japanese passengers next year and 600,000 in the next three years.

The carrier has focused its efforts on boosting cooperation with Japanese travel agents and relevant agencies to hold cultural and tourism events to attract Japanese tourists to Vietnam.

The carrier now provides six direct flights from Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City to Japan’s four major cities, namely Tokyo, Nagoya, Osaka and Fukuoka.

According to Circular 103 which published the decision, the cap price of VND 1.7 million for economy class will still be applied to some sole routes of Vietnam Airlines, the national airline company.

Vietnam Airlines is the sole airline flying on more than 20 domestic routes, including routes to Dien Bien Phu city, Phu Quoc Island and Con Dao Island. Vietnam Airlines and Jetstar Pacific Airlines are the two primary airlines offering services on other domestic routes. Two new private airlines are expected to enter the market soon –Vietjet Air and Indochina Airlines.

Vietnam Airlines and Jetstar Pacific Airlines supported the cap lift, saying that passengers would gain in that while companies could more easily regulate flight schedules.

Luong Hoai Nam, general director of Jetstar Pacific Airlines, said that these new regulations would prove far more beneficial than the price cap.

Nam said that without the price cap, airlines would be able to diversify fares based on demand and supply of routes according to each month, day and even hour.

For instance, flights at 9 am could be VND 1 million, while more convenient 11 am flights would be the costliest, Nam said.

Vietnam Airlines said that the new regulations would partly ease over-demand on routes from Ho Chi Minh City to Hanoi approaching Tet, and on the route from Hanoi to HCM City after Tet.

The airline did confirm, however, that they would not increase the fare on flights around the 2009 Tet holidays, despite the new regulations.

They continued that to meet demand approaching the nation’s biggest yearly festival, they would increase their flight capacity by 33 percent over last year, between HCM City and Hanoi and between HCM City and Da Nang. Some, however, expressed concern that the new regulation could lead to the two airlines to mutually increase their fares.

The Ministry of Finance addressed this concern, saying that air fares still had to be registered with the ministry. Airlines are required to register with the two ministries 15 days before applying the new prices.

The two ministries would consider expenses, demand and supply and fuel prices when deciding to approve the new fares.

The two-day event, held by the Vietnam Tea Association, displays tea products from across the country.

It also features many special programmes, including street performances, drum playing, concerts, traditional opera, and royal dance.

In the spotlight is a programme introducing different ways of brewing and serving tea, ranging from the simple to the luxurious.

Visitors to the tea festival can taste various kinds of tea, talk with artisans and view an ancient tea tree brought from the northern mountain province of Thai Nguyen.

Vietnam is one of the world’s five largest manufacturers and exporters of tea and its tea is shipped to 70 nations and territories worldwide. Tea has actually helped reduce poverty among local people in many remote and mountainous areas of the country.

The troupe plans to put on shows at the Hanoi Opera House and the Military Theatre, entertaining local audiences with performances of Manipuri classical dance, which can trace its origins to an ethnic minority group in the northeastern region of Bangladesh.

A series of folk and semi-classical dances, including Maya lagaiche, and Tagore songs will be performed during the shows.

In addition, the visiting artists will perform a special dance representing the Vietnam-Bangladesh friendship, accompanied by modern songs composed by musicians from both countries.