Vietnam Mid-Autumn Festival – Full moon holiday

Vietnam Mid-Autumn Festival, also known as Tet Trung Thu, is one of the most beloved cultural celebrations in Vietnam. More than just a children’s festival, it is a full moon holiday deeply rooted in family reunion, ancient folktales, and shared memories.

For travelers seeking an authentic cultural experience, understanding why in Vietnam, Mid-Autumn Festival is a great celebration offers a unique insight into Vietnamese values, traditions, and lifestyle. Let’s find out more!

Mid-Autumn Festival Briefing: Folktales From Vietnam

Like the Lunar New Year, the Vietnam Mid-Autumn Festival is deeply rooted in folklore and mythology, with stories passed down through generations and gently retold to children on nights when the moon shines brightest.

The Legend of Cuoi and the Banyan Tree

One of the most beloved legends is the story of Cuoi, a kind-hearted man whose life changed when he discovered a magical banyan tree with healing powers. According to the tale, as the tree was about to leave the earth, Cuoi desperately held onto its roots, only to be carried up into the sky and forever stranded on the moon.

Vietnamese children are told that if they look closely at the full moon during Mid-Autumn Festival, they can still see Cuoi sitting silently beneath the banyan tree, watching over the earth with both longing and love. His story reflects themes of loyalty, unintended sacrifice, and the bittersweet distance between family members, emotions that resonate deeply during a festival dedicated to reunion.

The Moon Goddess (Hang Nga)

Equally enchanting is the legend of Hang Nga, the Moon Goddess, whose story symbolizes beauty, gentleness, and eternal affection. In Vietnamese storytelling, Hang Nga lives on the moon as a graceful and solitary figure, often associated with purity and quiet longing.

Her presence adds a romantic and poetic layer to the festival, as families gather to admire the moon, share mooncakes, and speak softly of love, harmony, and togetherness. For children, Hang Nga represents a fairytale-like figure; for adults, she embodies nostalgia and the fleeting nature of happiness.

Together, these folktales give the Mid-Autumn Festival its magical atmosphere, turning the full moon night into a time of imagination, emotional connection, and family warmth.

Mid-Autumn – full moon Festival costumes and game tools for people of all ages, especially for children

Things to Do in Vietnam full moon

Joining competition of feast and lantern

Mid-Autumn lanterns

One of the most enjoyable experiences during the Vietnam Mid-Autumn Festival is joining feast and lantern celebrations, which are especially meaningful for families and children. In Hanoi, this festive spirit is most vividly felt on Hang Ma Street, where weeks before the full moon the entire street transforms into a colorful world of lanterns, paper toys, masks, and traditional decorations. During this time, Hang Ma becomes a next must-visit destination, attracting travelers to choose lanterns, take photos, and immerse themselves in the joyful atmosphere of the season.

Hang Ma Street Decoration

On the full moon night, households prepare beautifully arranged trays filled with mooncakes, fruits, flowers, and colorful lanterns, often placed outdoors or near windows so children can admire the moon while celebrating. With the central Vietnam with World Heritage tour, especially visiting Hoi An tourists can enjoy all these interesting activities.

Admiring folk songs singing contest

Children singing folk songs in the festival

There is a custom of singing contest in the North of Vietnam. Two groups of women and men sing and compete with each other. They also play an instrument made from a drum and a string above the surface of the drum to create the rhythm of the song. The songs may be already written or created promptly by the competitors. The competition would be happy most of the time, but it also could aggressive when there is a hard riddle.

Watching traditional lion dance

Vietnamese traditional lion dances

In the occasion of Mid-autumn, there is a custom of Lion dance. People often practice the lion dance in the 14th and 15th of the eighth lunar month. There is often a person holding the lion head and a person holding the flag to dance along with the rhythm of the dance. The head of the lion has a long tail made from red cloth. There are also cymbals, five color flag, and a person holding a stick to support the lion head. The group of lion dance is ahead, and the adults and children are behind. In these days, there are often some money awards for children in the family hanging on the height for the lion to catch.

Children often go to the lion dance early, since 7th and 8th of eight lunar month, they just come to have fun but not want to catch the awards. However, the people love them, and they still give them money.

Foods for full moon holiday in Vietnam

Mooncakes

Mooncake, a traditional and cultural food in every mid-autumn festival of Vietnam

This is the traditional and must-eat food in Vietnam Mid-Autumn Festival. This occasion is not only for lunar appreciation but also for moon admiring, when moon shines perfectly round and bright. Therefore, trying mooncake is a classic activity that wishes to bring lucks to people.

Mooncake has a lot of tasty flavor with different colorful fillings such as: traditional red bean, lotus seed paste, mixed ingredients, matcha, chocolate, lava, salt egg yolk,… You will also get surprised by flawlessly baked crust of this special dessert, covered by lard or vegetable oil.

Pickled Hong fruit (Hong ngam)

Pickled Hong fruit

It can be said that pickled Hong is one of the most expected and looked forward to enjoying by Vietnamese every autumn, particularly in Vietnam Mid-Autumn Festival. This fruit has its hard knob and the flesh is orange-yellow, with unforgettable soft and sweet taste.

You can find this nutritious and rich of vitamin A dish sold on every street in Hanoi.

Sticky rice with nuggets (Xoi com)

Sticky rice with nuggets

This food results from the ingenious combination of 3 main ingredients: green beans, grated coconut and fresh nuggets. The key element, however, is fresh young green rice (com), harvested at the very beginning of autumn and carefully pounded to preserve its soft texture and gentle aroma. Xoi com is one of the most popular dishes in Vietnam and you can have it best in autumn.

Your Mid-Autumn Festival in Vietnam will be incomplete without Xoi com.

Grapefruit salad

Grapefruit salad

This salad is getting familiar in meals every mid-autumn festival. It includes boiled shrimp and pork immersed into a tasty sauce with fish sauce, honey, chili and lemon. Last but not least is grapefruit for sour and fresh flavor. You can add some grilled laksa leaves for the best taste.

Conclusion

Today, the Mid-Autumn Moon Festival, together with lantern affection for children promotes education, poetry, dance, arts and crafts. Most overseas Vietnamese family would like to bring their kids back to Vietnam right in Full moon festival time to visit their grandparents, one amongst the most important ones in Vietnam.

Not only locals, but also foreign tourists are warmly welcomed to join in this special festival. Surely, tourists will have much fun when taking part in the parade, watching children carrying the lanterns, eating moon cakes and receiving gifts during the Mid Autumn Festival in your Vietnam tours especially when visiting Hanoi old quarter, Hoi An, and Hue.

Experience Vietnam’s Mid-Autumn Festival your way, perfectly timed with the full moon date.

Read more:

• Autumn in Vietnam
• A lot of activities towards mid-Autumn Festival celebrations
• Mid-Autumn Festival in Hoi An