South Korea saw a sharp increase in the number of travelers to and from Vietnam this year.

According to Vietnam News and other local media on Sunday, three-point-16 million South Koreans visited Vietnam from January to November this year, up 46-point-five percent from a year earlier.

The Vietnam National Administration of Tourism expected that the number for the entire year will exceed three-point-three million visitors.

During the eleven-month period, 427-thousand Vietnamese visited South Korea, up 42 percent year-on-year. The figure is expected to top 450-thousand this year.

The rises are attributed to closer bilateral ties thanks to the popularity of Park Hang-seo, Korean head coach of Vietnam's national football team and South Korea's New Southern Policy valuing relations with Vietnam.