Vietnamese ministries said Friday the country is still a safe destination, but local travel agents said they recorded a mild decrease in the number of bookings. 

In a report Friday, the Health Ministry said Vietnam was a safe destination for tourists and international conferences.The agriculture ministry meanwhile said six more provinces had been removed from the list of localities hit by bird flu. A total of 86 bird-flu affected communes in 15 provinces and cities across the country were still under quarantine, the ministry said.

However, large travel agents reported a mild decrease in the number of bookings of tours to Vietnam for the early months of 2006 due to worries over the bird flu epidemic in Vietnam.

The Apex tourist company, which registered the highest number of Japanese tourists this year, said bookings for January 2006 reduced by half year on year, down to 3,000.

Saigon Tourist also reported a slight reduction in the number of North Americans, Britons and Australians booking for January and February 2006 tours in Vietnam.

(Source: Tuoi Tre)