BBC has almost completed a 30-second commercial featuring the country’s famous attractions, said Nguyen Van Tinh, Director of the International Cooperation Department under the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism.

Tinh said that the three-month campaign could start in the next one month and that the commercial would be aired three times a day. The country’s beautiful beaches and sea tourism services are given a strong focus in this commercial, he said.

“It will be broadcast on BBC in Asia Pacific and Australia, which are among the key markets of the country’s tourism industry,” he said.

The campaign costs around VND3 billion, he said, adding the tourism sector this year would spend less on commercials on international TV channels because its entire marketing and advertising budget for all of this year is a mere VND35 billion, down by VND5 billion compared to last year.

In addition to international media as a tourism marketing channel, the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism is preparing to join the Fair Tour 2011 from May 6 to 15 and the Vietnam month next month, with both events to take place in France. The Vietnam National Administration of Tourism (VNAT) has planned to organize more trips for media and travel agencies from France, Thailand, China, South Korea, the U.S., Western Europe, and Japan to explore places of interest and tourism services in the country.

VNAT reported the country received more than 1.51 million foreign visitors in the first quarter, up 11.9% year-on-year, and the total number of local tourists reached 11 million. The nation’s total tourism revenue was VND55.2 trillion in the period.

The agency expects 5.3-5.5 million foreign visitors will visit the country this year, compared to 5.05 million last year.