Thu Huong, who lives in Hanoi, had an urgent business trip to HCM City scheduled for the morning of October 27. Assuming travel demand would be low, she had not booked her ticket in advance. When she searched through travel agents and booking apps, she found that many Hanoi-HCM City flights were already sold out.
“I was lucky to secure a late-night flight so I could get to HCM City for work the next morning, but the ticket still cost VND 5.8 million (about USD 223). Normally, this route costs around VND 2.5-3 million (about USD 96-115),” Huong said.
Meanwhile, Phuong Anh, who lives in Saigon Ward, said she had booked a return ticket two weeks earlier so she could attend the concert and visit Hanoi. The round-trip fare was about VND 4 million (about USD 154), higher than she usually paid for the route.
A Dantri reporter’s checks on October 26 found limited availability on flights between Hanoi and HCM City and between Hanoi and Danang across several booking apps. The fares included taxes and fees.
On the Hanoi-Danang route, direct flights for October 26 were sold out. On some airline and travel booking platforms, passengers wanting to travel that day had to choose connecting flights via HCM City. On the HCM City-Danang route, some remaining options cost around VND 5 million (about USD 192) for business class with Sun PhuQuoc Airways and VND 7 million (about USD 269) for premium economy with Vietnam Airlines.
Fares on the HCM City-Danang route fell considerably on October 27. Some direct flights operated by Vietjet and Sun PhuQuoc Airways cost around VND 1.1 million (about USD 42) one way, while morning and afternoon flights were priced at around VND 1.6 million (about USD 62).
A similar situation affected the Hanoi-HCM City route. Vietjet had no tickets available for October 26, while fares for a flight departing at midnight in the early hours of October 27 were around VND 3 million (about USD 115) one way. Some flights operated by Sun PhuQuoc Airways and Vietnam Airlines departing at 10pm cost VND 4.2-5.8 million (about USD 162-223) per ticket. Earlier flights departing before 9pm, operated by Pacific Airlines, were offered at around VND 8.4 million (about USD 323), with limited options available.
By October 27, fares from Hanoi to HCM City had eased. Some overnight Vietjet flights cost around VND 2.2 million (about USD 85) one way, while morning departures were priced at around VND 2.6-2.7 million (about USD 100-104). In the opposite direction, tickets from HCM City or Danang to Hanoi generally cost around VND 1.5 million (about USD 58) one way.
BIGBANG’s concerts at My Dinh Stadium on October 24 and 25 attracted more than 90,000 attendees. According to Trip.com data, flight bookings to Hanoi between October 23 and 26 rose 74 per cent, while passenger numbers increased 76 per cent compared with the same period in 2025.
The platform also recorded a sharp rise in demand for accommodation around My Dinh Stadium. Since late July, many hotels within a three-kilometre radius of the venue had been fully booked. Room bookings for October 23-24 were about 15 times the average for days in October.
