ussian tourist arrivals set a new record this month with a tremendous growth of 80.3% year-on-year, whereas tourist arrivals from other markets witness a drop or just a slight increase.Vietnam has welcomed nearly 587,400 international tourist arrivals in March, up 1.6% over the same period last year, with over 30,600 of them from Russia. Therefore, Russia makes it to the top five visitor-generating markets for Vietnam, together with China (130,000 tourist arrivals), South Korea (67,700), Japan (58,000) and the U.S. (37,000).In the year to date, the number of Russian tourists coming to Vietnam has reached nearly 85,000, a rise of 50.8% year-on-year, according to the Vietnam National Administration of Tourism.However, the spectacular growth in Russian tourist arrivals and the modest increase in tourist arrivals from South Korea, China, Indonesia and Thailand do not help brighten the overall picture of the local tourism industry.With a decline in tourist arrivals from other major markets like Japan, Taiwan and the U.S., the total number of foreign tourists visiting Vietnam in the first three months is only over 1.8 million, down 3.9% year-on-year. In the same period last year, the country achieved a year-on-year growth of 24.5% in international tourist arrivals.The inbound tourism segment will enter the low season next month. Many tour and hotel operators have gone to international fairs in Germany, France, the U.S. and Russia to prepare for a new tourism season.After attending an international fair in Berlin, Germany, Bui Viet Thuy Tien, managing director of Asian Trails Co. Ltd., told the Daily: “We find not so many positive things when meeting partners at this fair. The number of booths is smaller than in previous times.”Communications manager of a five-star in HCMC’s District 1 said the sales department of the hotel was working very hard in preparation for the upcoming low season. “This month, our hotel is fully occupied on a couple of days, but the situation seems to be difficult in April,” she said.