Laos considers eVisa service – boosting the tourism industry in Laos

Laos flag| Img by: DavidRockDesign via Pixabay

In the previous 2 years according to statistics put forward by the Tourist Development Department, Ministry of Information, Culture, and Tourism, there has been a significant decline in the number of tourist arrivals in the country. Between the years 2000-2015 the country experienced a boom of 10.7% in tourism. However, in 2016, tourism fell by 10% and in 2017 decreased again by 8.7%.
This year, however, the tourism industry has begun to recover from the past 2 years of disappointing figures. For this, the Tourism Department has come up with various plans to bring back ‘boom’ in the industry. Thus, in 2018 figures are beginning to increase. Several Luang Prabang hotels, for instance, the well-known AVANI+ Luang Prabang and other accommodation providers have gained slow growth in income as well. A tourist official stated that they plan on making the idea of eVisa work by the end of 2018 or early 2019 just like the neighbouring countries have.