More than just the air gateway to the Northeast region, Van Don International Airport is steadily establishing itself as a driving force behind the growth of tourism and services in Quang Ninh. Expanding air services not only meets residents’ travel needs but also creates new "flows" of visitors, investment, and trade, helping enhance Quang Ninh’s competitiveness as a destination on the regional and international tourism map.
After launching the direct Ho Chi Minh City–Van Don route in June 2026, Sun PhuQuoc Airways increased its service frequency to one flight a day to meet visitor demand. This is not only a positive sign for air transport but also opens up significant opportunities for Quang Ninh to reach the southern market more effectively—one of the country’s largest tourism source markets, with high visitor spending.
From Van Don International Airport, visitors can quickly reach a host of well-known destinations, including Ha Long Bay, Bai Tu Long Bay, Yen Tu, Co To, and Quan Lan, as well as a growing network of resorts, entertainment venues, and nightlife offerings. The air routes do more than shorten geographical distances; they also bring Quang Ninh’s diverse tourism ecosystem closer to visitors from across the country.
According to Nguyen Van Tuan, Director of Van Don International Airport, the airport will continue working with airlines to expand its route network. New routes are expected to connect Van Don with Cam Ranh (Khanh Hoa) and Phu Quoc (An Giang), while charter flights to China, South Korea, and Russia are also planned. These are all key source markets for Quang Ninh tourism under its development strategy for the new phase.
Expanding international routes is expected to provide fresh impetus for the recovery and development of the overseas visitor market after a period of disruption. In particular, during a recent meeting between the Quang Ninh Department of Industry and Trade and the Fujian Provincial Department of Commerce in China, the two sides agreed to continue studying the reopening of a direct route between Van Don and Fujian, while also promoting charter flights, sea routes, and linked tourism products. If realized, this would become an important channel for increasing international arrivals to Quang Ninh and boosting economic and trade exchanges between the two localities.
However, for the airport to become a true engine of development, what matters is not simply the number of routes but also the ability to build an integrated aviation ecosystem. To this end, Van Don International Airport is attracting a number of large-scale investment projects in the aviation industry. A major project is an aircraft maintenance, repair, and overhaul (MRO) complex worth approximately USD 360 million, jointly invested in by Sun Group, HAECO, Japan Airlines, and Toyota Tsusho. Planned across an area of more than 20ha, the complex will be able to accommodate multiple wide-body and narrow-body aircraft simultaneously in accordance with international standards and is expected to begin operations in 2028. In addition to creating nearly 1,000 high-quality jobs, the complex will gradually integrate Van Don more deeply into the regional aviation industry value chain.
This development strategy is fully aligned with the new master plan for Van Don International Airport. Under the revised plan approved by the Ministry of Construction, by 2050 the airport is expected to handle approximately 20 million passengers and 200,000 tons of cargo annually, four times the capacity set out in the previous plan. More importantly, the airport is no longer positioned solely as a gateway serving tourism; instead, it is being developed as a multifunctional aviation hub integrating passenger and cargo transport, logistics, and the aviation industry.
The expanded master plan provides a foundation for building a second runway, passenger and cargo terminals, a modern logistics system, and aviation technical services... This is an important prerequisite for increasing operational capacity, attracting more airlines to launch new routes, and creating long-term development potential for Van Don Special Zone.
Originally built to open up the skies over the Northeast region, Van Don International Airport is steadily becoming a hub for flows of tourism, investment, and trade. Each new route brings more than just flights; it also carries development opportunities for the local tourism, services, and economy. With its modern infrastructure, long-term master plan, and well-structured strategy for expanding its route network, Van Don International Airport is establishing itself as a key air gateway to Quang Ninh, helping make the province one of the region’s most attractive destinations and gradually expand its reach into international markets.
