A delegation of Vietnamese officials and 20 tour operators is driving through Laos and Thailand to promote cross-border tours, Vietnam News Agency reported.

The one-week road trip, starting from April 17, was organized by the Vietnam National Administration of Tourism.

It is one of five key promotions to lure international visitors to Vietnam by land, in an effort to boost trade between Laos, Thailand and Vietnam’s central provinces.

The group, and their counterparts in the two countries, will discuss promotions and measures to develop the potential of trans-national ‘caravan’ tours.

A Vietnamese delegation of 54, in 11 cars, previously traveled to Thailand last month, as part of the ASEAN Family Rally 2009.

They were helping to promote tourism routes linking the countries in the region, with delegations from Vietnam, Laos, Cambodia, Thailand and Myanmar visiting ten provinces and cities in northeastern Thailand.

During the past two years, Vietnam has become a popular destination for visitors from northeastern Thailand, who travel to the country via the East-West Economic Corridor.

It has welcomed over 2,000 such tours in the past four years, and is helping to diversify the sector and increase regional tourist numbers.

In related news, a caravan of 10 vehicles from Thailand, the first of the caravan season, completed their five-day tour of central Vietnam on April 15.

Caravan tours are motorcades of vehicles, with guests staying at accommodation along the way.