A recent report by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) warns that plastic waste pollution poses increasing problems for both the environment and the economy of the tourism industry, especially as the sector continues to grow rapidly.
On February 6, the UNDP, in coordination with the Vietnam National Authority of Tourism, organized a consultative workshop titled “Baseline Assessment of Plastic Waste Pollution in Viet Nam’s Tourism Sector,” and presented key findings from the report, which focused on the two cities of Ninh Bình and Đà Nẵng.
According to the study, tourists are the primary source of plastic waste, producing anywhere between 1.7 and 3 times more plastic waste than local residents. The study also reports that overnight visitors in coastal tourism destinations such as Đà Nẵng generate more than twice the amount of plastic waste as visitors to ecotourism-centric cities such as Ninh Bình. Nonetheless, the report doesn't specify whether the tourists studied are domestic or international.
UNDP further explains that, while nearly all businesses in the tourism industry acknowledge the harms of plastic waste, a majority of them nonetheless provide single-use plastics to guests. Plastic products, such as PET plastic bottles and plastic bags, constitute more than 90% of the total plastic waste at such tourist destinations. About 72% of tourists visiting Ninh Bình use over three plastic bottles every day, while about 95% businesses in Ninh Bình and 81.6% in Đà Nẵng provide visitors with plastic items.
In addition to harmful effects to the environment, plastic waste pollution also poses significant economic challenges. The UNDP report quantifies the “cost of inaction” (COI) of plastic waste pollution. In Đà Nẵng, the total COI is estimated to be VND1,743.7 billion per year, while in Ninh Bình, the total COI is estimated to be VND606.7 billion per year. Notably, factors that contribute to the COI include the costs of waste collection and treatment and infrastructure maintenance, as well as “brand” damage to the destination.
A few key solutions were recommended to tackle the issue across the areas of policy, infrastructure, and business: the integration of plastic waste reduction into the government’s tourism quality assessment criteria and accommodation rating systems; significant improvements to infrastructure, both for the collection and segregation of plastic waste; and strategic incentives to promote a phased transition away from the use of single-use plastics for businesses.
“Based on empirical evidence, the approach must shift from a passive, end-of-pipe response to prevention at source and the active engagement of the private sector through appropriate investment and financing mechanisms to support innovative tourism business models that gradually replace single-use plastic products and move toward sustainable development,” urged Vũ Thái Trường, head of the Climate Change, Energy and Environment Unit at UNDP Vietnam.
Last year, in 2025, Vietnam welcomed a record-high number of more than 21 million tourists to the country, marking a 20.4% increase compared to 2024. In hoping to continue the momentum, Vietnam’s tourism authorities have set an ambitious target of attracting 25 million international visitors for 2026. Tourism remains a key economic sector as Vietnam pursues a new phase of socioeconomic development for the 2026–2030 period.
Photo via Unsplash.
