One factor tourists care about when travel to Vietnam is Vietnam festivals, celebrations and holidays. Vietnamese people celebrate a plenty of cultural events. This articles gives you 20 best Vietnam festivals and holidays. More or less, Vietnam festivals will affect your trip here in some ways. They could be an opportunity to see more, experience more Vietnam’s culture and immerse yourself into the festive atmosphere with the locals. At the same time, they could cause some traffic jams, rising hotel price or overbooking of hotels. So, what is the bottom line? Knowing more about Vietnam festivals will surely enriching your experience in Vietnam and avoiding the negative side that festivals and holidays bring.
Sound good?
Here are 20 biggest Vietnam festivals and holidays.
First thing first, here is our list of 20 Vietnam Festivals and Holidays to make it easier to track the time of these events.
Western New Year’s Eve a public holiday in Vietnam
Usually, in big cities, there will be music shows, countdown festivals and fireworks in this one of Vietnam festivals. Travelers could expect to see more and more local people going out as it getting closer to midnight.
New Year Eve in Hanoi could bring you to a never ending mode. Countdown events will be hosted at Dong Kinh Nghia Thuc Square, in front of Hanoi Opera House, and Thong Nhat Park. One could get some drinks at the Old Quarter before joining the crowd to the countdown parties. If prefer a calmer setting, travelers could enjoy drinks on roof top bars or luxurious New Year dinning and celebration at 5 stars hotels such as Sofitel Legend Metropole, JW Marriot, Pan Pacific, Hilton…
In Ho Chi Minh City, district 1 or the “Backpacker district” filled with lively nightclubs and bars is also a place to be during New Year eve. However, if travelers are interested in a more fancy location, head to the rooftop bars for drinks and a great view of the city welcoming New Year. Additionally, there are many live concerts, games, exhibitions held in parks such as Dam Sen Culture Park, Suoi tien Culture Park, Saigon zoo, etc.
The hotel price will increase on Vietnam New Year Day. Most 4 and 5 stars hotels in Vietnam will be serving New Year gala dinning and it is mandatory to pay even if travelers will eat elsewhere. Do expect traffic jams in major cities before and after midnight fireworks.
Valentine became one of the most popular festivals due to the culture exchange with Western countries and it is embraced by many Vietnamese today. On this day, Vietnamese celebrate it as Westerner lovers do. Flowers, chocolates, teddy bears, colorful balloons… are popular gifts. Many popular destinations to spend time with the other half are picnics or walking at parks, warm setting at cafes/ restaurants, vibrant shopping malls, cinemas, and many other picturesque places…
Valentine is getting more popular in Vietnam nowadays
Travelers will see a lot of valentine products sold on the streets and in stores, areas such as Hoan Kiem Lake, Old Quarter, Nguyen Hue boulevard… or cinemas, restaurants, cafes… will be more crowded with young adults. There might be traffic jams here and there but overall, it will not affect travelers much.
This has another name as Vietnamese New Year. This is the biggest and most important among Vietnam festivals awaited by many Vietnamese for a whole year. Tet is the Vietnam event of gathering and being together with a rich custom. Similar to Western New Year, Lunar New Year is the time when people get work off and spend time together with their families, visit their relatives, plan out and hope for the best of a new year to come.
Tet – the most important festival and holiday in Vietnam
There are many traditional activities taken place during Tet holiday. Many traditional customs are held on these days are: Ong Tao ceremony, decorating peach blossom or apricot blossom, making sticky rice cakes, the five fruits tray, lucky money giving… There is no wild-type party for this kind of festival. Hanoi remains the right location during celebration.
If you plan to travel during Tet Holidays in Vietnam, make sure you plan out ahead in details where you will go and what you will need. During this Vietnam holiday, all administrations, many shops and stores do not open in the first three. So if you need any supplies for your travel in the country, make sure to get it beforehand. After the first three days, markets and supermarkets will open but many restaurants will remain closed until the 10th day. You could have meals at your hotels or homestays. Streets are empty due to people staying in taking their breaks or travelling back to their hometown to see families and acquaintances.
Transportation-wise, it is difficult to book transportation for the month before Tet due to transfer demand skyrockets. At the same time, the price of renting private car with driver will go up as well as hiring local tour guide. It is important that you book transportation or have your local tour operator book it for you in advance. However, international flights will remain stable at all during this time.
Perfume pagoda festival in Vietnam
This is one of Vietnam festivals and tells the story of a journey to the Buddhist land. According to the myth, this pagoda is the place where one of the Buddhas spent time and was enlightened. Huong pagoda is a collections of many pagodas, caves, mountains and woods. Before the day of the festival, all the pagodas here will put up essences creating a smoking view. The Perfume Pagoda festival kicks off on 6th of the first lunar month and lasts for 3 months. Pilgrims from all over the country come to perfume pagoda on this occasion to pray for a prosperous year and pay respect to Buddha. The journey will start by boat along the famous Yen River to the foot of Huong Mountain and continue on foot by climbing hundreds of stone steps towards Huong Tich cave.
The destination of Perfume Pagoda will be very crowded for sure with domestic travelers. It is not recommended for foreign tourists to travel here these days due to the large traffic of people flowing in here. However, if you want to watch people and observe locals with their rituals and religious activities, share with your local tour operator to have transportations and other services booked in advance.
Lim festival in Vietnam
Lim Festival was widely recognized and accepted as a traditional Vietnam festival among Northern Provinces of Vietnam in 18th century. It’s the festival of “Quan Ho” singing, which has become one of UNESCO’s Intangible Cultural Heritage since 2009. During this Vietnam celebration you can enjoy local games like bamboo swings, cockfighting, tug-of-war, wresting, etc. and listen to the highlight of the festival – Quan Ho folk singing performances. Locals will perform in traditional costumes on several stages built within the village. This festival is a great chance for your children to experience Vietnamese traditional children games as well as Vietnamese culture.
This Vietnam festival, even though is well-known across the country, is celebrated in Tien Du, Bac Ninh only. Its size is as big as a block party in Western countries and it will not affect your travel plan.
Tet Nguyen Tieu is the day for prayers
This festival originates from China but over time, it became an important aspect in Vietnamese’s cultural and religious life. The story behind this was that long time ago, a hunter on earth killed a swan from heaven. To revenge that, the Heaven God planned out a rain of fire on the first full moon night to destroy mankind. However, there were some gods not agree with this action and told human to burn big fires, light up lanterns and pray on that day, so that the Heaven God was thought that mankind was burned by the fire rain.
Traditionally on this day, locals go to pagodas to pray for good things for their family members and their beloved.
This Vietnam event will not affect travelers’ tour or activities at all. Travelers can stroll outside or visit temples and pagodas to see more of the local culture.
Phu Giay (or Phu Day) festival in Vietnam
This festival purpose is to honor Mother Saint Lieu Hanh, who is the main deity in the Worship of Mother Goddesses. This deity is worshiped in many locations across the country but Phu Day festical is the biggest and most original. This festival will last six days. During this festival, thousands of people travel here to pray for happiness, health and prosperity. Locals wear traditional costumes and carry decorated bamboo relics during the festival. There will be many traditional rituals, cultural activities and folk games held in this festival. You can join various games in the festival such as lion dancing, wresting, human chess, capture-the-flag etc.
Very similar to Lim festival in the way that despite its popularity across Vietnam, the festival size is on a local level. Hence, it should not affect your travel plan.
Banh troi and Banh chay
This event origins in China to commemorate the character of loyalty . In 7th century B.C, the duke of Qin with his loyal underman Jie Zhitui and army successfully retain the kingdom from invaders. The duke was generous to those who had helped him in adversity but overlooked Jie. Jie then sadly retreat with his mother in to the wood. The duke sent repeated envoys to lure Jie back to court, but Jie felt no ambition for political power. The duke then decided to set the whole wood in fire to smoke Jie and his mother out of hiding, however, they refused to do so and died in the wood instead. Sad of losing a loyal underman and feeling regret, the duke makes that day a yearly event of remembrance, when there is no allowance of fire, even for the preparation of food.
On this day, Banh Troi and Banh Chay (a local cake) are often ate in Vietnam.
Hung King festival-one of the most important Vietnam holidays
Hung King festival is one of the most important holiday of Vietnam. According to Lunar Calendar, it falls on 10th March. This Vietnam event is in commemoration of Vietnam’s first king – Kinh Duong Vuong, around 2879 BC. There are two main parts of the event which are the ceremony and the festival. On the eve of the event, one hundred lanterns are launched into the sky. Travelers can witness many interesting cultural activities during the festival like xoan classical song performances and ca tru classical operas, etc.
Since this is also a holiday, many people have this day off so travelers should have their services booked in advance.
This is one of the largest festival in Vietnam. During this festival, there will be many community-based events organized inside and outside of the city to show the traditional values and beauty of Hue. Visitors can enjoy several games and a variety of art performances over a week like Ao Dai Fashion Shows, Hue Poetry Festivals, Dialogue of Drums and Percussions etc. This traditional Vietnam festival traces its route to Nguyen Dynasty in the country to preserve its traditional customs. Hue city is the only place where you can celebrate the event.
This is the great opportunity to experience and immerse yourself into this cultural festival of Hue, Vietnam. If you plan your Vietnam travel in even year, we recommend you to plan your visit to Festival Hue.
As in any country, Liberation Day is an important historical, political or cultural event and it is the same for Vietnam. This is the Vietnam holiday to celebrate the liberation of Southern Vietnam from American troops as well as when the North and the South of Vietnam reunited under one government.
One this day, Vietnamese locals and families often travel to take advantage of the double-day off with Labor Day. Different each year, the major cities of Vietnam will have special events to celebrate this day and service the community (Danang’s display of fireworks of international teams, Sapa’s Ethnic group performance and exhibition, Hue City’s film screening and hot air balloon, Hanoi’s parade and street decoration…).
Many travel destinations and sightseeing will be crowded with domestic tourists. Hotels and restaurants are often out of slots on this day. It is not suitable for foreign tourists to travel in Vietnam during these day. However, if you do want to rejoice with the local as well as people watching, make sure you talk to your local tour operator to make bookings ahead of time.
May Day or Labor Day is a known as a celebration day or day of rest for workers. This Vietnam holiday is often joined with the Reunification Fay on 30th of April resulting in a double-day off. Administrations are closed on these day.
This day is not suitable for foreign tourist to visit or travel long distance in Vietnam since the number of domestic travel will skyrocket. It is hard to get a decent hotel room during this time if you don’t book overhead.
Vietnam is a country with 12% of the population are Buddhist. Many other people, despite that they do not officially call themselves Buddhist but do practice a lot of Buddhist teachings and philosophy in life as well as do go to temples and pagodas to pray.
On this day, in major cities such as Ho Chi Minh City, Hue, Hoi An… there are many parades held by monks to give out gifts to the poor, the homeless and the ones in need. Many other rituals are performed in pagodas and temples on these days are dropping flower pots to the river, washing Buddha’s pictures and statues, organizing Buddhism teaching sessions and praying for peace. In the evening, candles are lit on floating lotus flower and sent out into rivers around Vietnam by the Buddhist with prayers.
This day will not affect traveler’s activities at all. Thus, it is a great opportunity for travelers experience an important South-east Asia religious festival in Vietnam.
According to local myth, on this day, the gate of hell will be opened so that souls will be free to wander on the land. On the evening of this day, each household prepares a big feast including flowers, sticky rice cakes, fruits, fake money and paper clothes to offer to the spirits. The locals avoid many activities on this day or month such as wedding, begin of construction, shopping, traveling…
This festival has no negative effect on travelers. You can enjoy this occasion at most in Hue city where locals and monks perform ceremonies and prayers at numerous Buddhist shrines and pagodas.
In history, this is the day that president Ho Chi Minh read the Declaration of Independence of Vietnam. Nowadays, this is not only the day to remember the proud moment of the nation, it is also a Vietnam national holiday where workers get a day break from work to rest and spend time with their families.
This Vietnam holiday is not the suitable time for foreign travelers to travel to or travel around in Vietnam unless you already have reservations and bookings. The locals take this day to travel resulting to crowded travel destinations and overbooked hotels and restaurants.
Mid-Autumn in Vietnam – vibrant and colorful
Vietnam festivals mean a lot to the people of the country. The Vietnam Mid-Autumn festival is not an exception to this rich tradition. It is also the harvest festival. There are many activities on mid-Autumn festival like children carrying paper lanterns, watching lion dances… On this day, there are many special food such as moon cakes (flavored meat, egg, dried fruit, pumpkin’s seed, peanut with a sweet and salty tasting), jellies, biscuits, and much fruits (bananas, apples, grapefruit, mango…).
This festival does not affect travelers plan or tours. On the other hand, it add more color to traveler’s experience of beautiful Vietnam, especially in Hoi An. Hoi An is the best place to mark the Mid-Autumn festival, where tourists can see colorful paper lanterns lining Thu Bon Riverside. A lot of street performances, lantern processions and art exhibitions will take place during Mid-Autumn festival in Hoi An.
Gladly that this is a monthly event in Hoi An, Vietnam
Hoi An lantern festival is the signature of Hoi An town as well as the night Hoi An at her best. There is total display of paper lanterns in this event. During this festival in Hoi An, businesses, bars and restaurants will turn off their electricity and depend on lanterns and candles. Lantern will appear into river as an offering to the God of the land and worship Vietnamese ancestors.
Despite being one of Vietnam festivals that are too good to pass, it will not affect transport or hotel in Hoian. It is really a night to enjoy the charming old town and a piece of Vietnamese culture. If you want to worship in any temple on this day, there will be no charge for entrance fees. The best place to attend the festival is within Ancient Town area where tourists can enjoy traditional music, play Chinese chess, read poetry or learn how to make lanterns.
Hallowween is becoming more popular in Vietnam
When mentioning Halloween, you might immediately think this is a typical Western event. However, in the past decade, Halloween has been introduced to Vietnam by tourists and locals that have travelled to western countries. Halloween slowly becomes one of Vietnam festivals celebrated by the Vietnamese. Wherever you are in Vietnam, you could join in the Halloween atmosphere as well.
This day has no negative effect to travelers plan and tour. Travelers had better stroll around town to see the best of this Western’s festival in Vietnam.
Hang Ma Street. Located in the Old Quarters, this street is the most popular location to celebrate Halloween by both the locals and tourists. Days before Halloween, you will be overwhelmed with the amount of Halloween party items in the shops along the street. The items are various from decorations, masks, Witch hat and wardrobe, Pumpkin lantern, and so on. Visiting this area, you will not only immerse yourself into the Halloween atmosphere but also are provided with many shopping options.
Hoan Kiem Lake and Old Quarters area. The broad walking location and cool atmosphere, along with many social activities, attract many Vietnamese and foreign backpackers coming here. If you want to immerse into the local activities and watching Halloween costumes, these are the places to be.
West Lake Water Park. From 28 October to 31 October 2017, West Lake Water Park holds Halloween party with the theme of “Dating Zombie.” The party will not only include costumes and DJs but also many other Halloween activities.
Contrast to the daily solemn and antique look, on 31 October, Hoi An has its unique modern color of Halloween. On this day, not only local young adults but also travelers from many countries celebrate Halloween as well.
Bui Vien Street and Nguyen Hue Street. Most people come to these streets because of the broad walking area, people watching, and drinking along with many activities. These streets are originally full of bars, clubs, and restaurants for foreigners.
Not only in major tourist destinations, but Halloween takes place in many other places in Vietnam such as Nha Trang, Phy Yen, Quo Nhon, ect.
In the past, Christmas was not very popular among Vietnam festivals except for a minority population of Catholic people. Until today, Christmas is not a public holiday but more and more Vietnamese people are excited, prepare for, and rejoice this day of the year. Coming to Vietnam in December or winter, travelers will have the opportunity to immerse themselves into the Christmas atmosphere celebrated by the local people. On this day, Vietnamese doesn’t put a Christmas tree in each house but there are Christmas trees in stores and hotels. The neon lights on the streets are fantastic and many hotels or shopping centers put on sparkling Christmas decorations such as Christmas trees, snowflake decorations, colorful ribbons and decorative balls.
During Christmas in Vietnam, many hotels will host gala dinner and it is mandatory for customers to pay for the service. The room price increases during this time. But besides those, here are tips for travelers to have a Merry Xmas in Vietnam.
Food: This is one of Vietnam festivals and on this day, Vietnamese don’t have traditional dish like the western such as turkey or ham. However, on Christmas Eve, people like eating or drinking out as well. Travelers could take this chance to fully immerse into the festival atmosphere and explore more about the local cuisine. Another option would be to feast up at your hotels gala dinner buffet.
Destinations: Coming to Vietnam during this time, travelers could enjoy Christmas at main cities of Vietnam (Hanoi, Hue, Da Nang, Saigon), or spend time with their families and friends at a sunny-still tropical beach or take on adventures by sampan in the Mekong Delta area during its floating water season offering only during this time of the year.
Apart from 20 biggest yearly festivals above, Vietnam still has many festive events held in small cities and provinces across the country but these 20 festivals could be enough to make you overwhelmed with the fact that Vietnam is rich in culture and customs and having a glimpse of such Vietnam traditional events will prompt an urge to visit this amazing country.
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This post was last modified on November 21, 2021 9:14 am
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I reckon that you want to say "immerse yourself" instead of "emerge". Anw, thanks a lot for your informative article ^^