Sea Festival 2011, themed: “Nha Trang - the sea rendezvous” will take place from June 11 to 15 in Central Coastal city of Nha Trang, in KhanhHoaProvince with nearly 50 cultural, art and sporting activities.

Together with the participation of local people and artists, the festival will attract artists from France, the Republic of Korea (RoK), Japan and China. It will feature activities such as a Cau Ngu (fish worshipping) ceremony, a sculpture camp, a children’s festival, a seminar on sea preservation, national beach football championships and a street festival.

This year’s festival will have one day devoted to Truong Sa Island to promote sea and island.

 Source: Thanh Nien News

The international sailing festival wrapped up on Sunday night at the five-star Sea Links Beach Hotel in Phan T hiet City. The festival, organized by the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism and Binh Thuan Province from March 17 to 20, welcomed international teams from Singapore, Malaysia and Pakistan to sail on Mui Ne beach, accompanied with evening concerts featuring international artists.

The sailboats and events were moved from the back beach to the front beach of Mui Ne on Saturday to take advantage of better wind and ocean conditions. “The festival was a chance for locals to admire boats, sailing by international sailors and a big opportunity for Binh Thuan to promote its image to foreign tourists,” Nguyen Van Thu, vice chairman of Binh Thuan People’s Committee, said at the closing ceremony.

Source: : The Saigon Times

This year's HCM City Tourism Day 2011 will highlight special aspects of five popular destinations – HCMCity, Da Lat, Binh Thuan, Phu Quoc and Hai Phong, organisers of the annual event said on March 22.

La Quoc Khanh, deputy director of the city's Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism, said at a press briefing that a photographic exhibition will present markets in HCMCity, flowers in Da Lat, beaches in Mui Ne, Phu Quoc island, and the red flamboyance of poinciana flowers in Hai Phong.
Last year, the central province of Quang Binh had become the first destination to be promoted under the department's plan to highlight a different destination or destinations every year.
"The HCM City Tourism Day is an important festival that can stimulate tourism demand at a difficult time," Khanh said.
"It can be seen as a supermarket where travel companies promote and sell their products, and customers can freely choose what they like."
However, this "supermarket" remains a relatively new concept in Vietnam and both travel companies as well as customers are yet to use such events as a major resource, he said.
Hence, most travel companies who participate in the event focus on promoting their brand name instead of selling their product directly.
However, 92 percent of travel firms that joined the event last year have registered to so again, proving its success, Khanh said.
In the context of inflation and an increase in prices of most goods and services, the festival will enjoin participants to stand by the Government's efforts to keep prices stable as much as possible, Khanh said.
The city Tourism Association has petitioned the Ministry of Finance to cut value-added tax by 50 percent, corporate income tax by 50 percent and allow travel companies to pay taxes two months late, an association representative said at the briefing.
The four-day event is being organised at the city's September 23 Park in downtown HCMCity from April 7.
The event will feature a travel fair, a Southern food festival, Golden Voice of HCM City Tourism contest, “tai tu” traditional music performances as well as the photo exhibition.
Though the organisers expected to attract 80 companies to fill 150 booths, an additional four booths have been booked this year.
"The event aims to help travel companies publicise their brands and promote their services for the coming summer season," Khanh said.
A dominant theme of HCM City Tourism Day 2011 is "Tourism Brand" and those brands that have made a mark in domestic and overseas markets will be honoured at the festival.
It will name the top ten names in many categories including: destinations, inbound travel companies, outbound travel companies, domestic travel companies, tourism websites, luxury hotels, shopping stores, hotels for businesspeople, hotels for MICE (Meeting-Incentive-Conference-Event), tour companies and restaurants.
A grand closing ceremony honoring top Vietnamese tourism brands will be broadcast live on the HTV9 channel./.

Ky Yen Festival at Phu Nhuan communal house, is held from the 16th to the 18th day of the first lunar month, has many special and interesting ceremonies attracting many local residents, tourists in Vietnam as well as foreign ones who travel to Vietnam to come here each year.

Phu Nhuan communal house is located near the railway line at 18 Mai Van Ngoc Street in Phu Nhuan District, Ho Chi Minh city. Throughout its 200 year existence the house has been renovated many times with the latest in 1998. The house, recognized as a national cultural and historical relic in 1997 by the Ministry of Culture, Sports, and Tourism, is not only a familiar place for residents to worships gods but also a place for the younger generation to come and study the nation’s history. It also become one of the famous destinations for tours in Vietnam.

About characteristics of the festival, on the first day, it commences with prayers for peace and performances of traditional dance and martial arts, as well as other rites based on southern tradition.

As July is right around the corner, many Vietnamese families across the country are starting to make preparations for the Vu Lan festival. It is also known as Wandering Soul’s Day, Ghost Holiday, and Mother’s Day.

With foreign travelers who want to understand about Vietnam culture, this will be an excited experience. And among tours in Vietnam this time, in most of places  they travel, they can feel the special air of the Vu Lan festival coming up.

Although the Vu Lan festival is a very important one in a year, not all Vietnamese people know about the meaning of this festival. Around the meaning of this festival, there have a very excited story.

The Vu Lan festival is closely to an old tale which has been passed down from generation to generation. The story revolves around Muc Lien Lien, one of the Buddha’s ten principle disciples. One day while meditating he saw his late mother enduring agonies and tortures as a result of the evil deeds she had committed when she was alive.

She was starving, so Muc Lien Lien summoned al his spiritual powers to make a bowl of rice. Unfortunately, it burnt to ash. Upon his return to the physical world, he askes the Buddha for his help. The Buddha agreed to help him and advised him to round up a group of monks and devotees to pray. Eventually their collective power released Muc Lien Lien’s mother and many other souls as well.

Since then the Vu Lan festival has been held annually on the 15^th day of the seventh lunal month in honor of mothers.

On this day pagodas all over the country are swamped with Buddhists monks, nuns and devotees. They attend ceremonies and offer incense to the Buddha, hoping to wash away their sin, and they pray for their deceased relatives and living descendants.

In addition, families offer votive papers, flowers, fruit, salt, sticky rice cakes, boiled cassava, sweet potatoes and many other things to their ancestors in the belief that their ancestors will hear their prayers and accept their offerings.

 However, the way people celebrate the Vu Lan festival today is slightly different than the way people did many years ago. Low-income households prepare an assortment of food, incense, joss paper, and fake gold and bank notes, while those with more money might spend millions of dong on paper villas, luxury cars, electric fans, and air conditioners, hoping that their deceased relatives will enjoy in the afterlife the same creature comforts that the living do.

Cow racing festival is the traditional festival of Khme people to pay their respect to their ancestors, taken place in late eighth and eary nineth lunar month every year in Nui Bay, An Giang. =>Impressive Cow Racing of the Khmer in An Giang

Cow racing festival is the festival of Khme people in An Giang Province in Vietnam. Cow racing festival is taken place in late eighth and eary nineth lunar month  every year in Nui Bay, An Giang. Cow racing festival is the traditional festival of Khme people to pay their respect to their ancestors.  

Cow racing festival is organized on a flat rice field about 200 meter long and 100 meter wide. The rice filed used for cow racing festival must be muddy. The racing path for cow racing festival is 120 meter long. Before the cow racing festival, famers choose the best pairs of cows for racing. The cowboy hold the stick with sharp point when the race starts, he will hit the cows to make them run as fast as they can. Because famers use a pair of cows for cow racing festival therefore the cowboy must know how to make the two cows run at the same speed.  

On the main day of cow racing, a lot of people living in the area will come to attend the cow racing festival. A lot of people also bring food so they can stay experience from beginning to the end of the cow racing festival.  

These recent years, the numbers of racing cows get to 70 pairs. Some famers from Cambodia also bring their cows to join the cow racing festival in An Giang province in Vietnam and the cow racing festival attract more and more people to visit as well as tourists in Vietnam travel every year.

Being one of four immortal gods in the Vietnamese pantheon, the festival annually takes place from the 10th to the 12th day of the second lunar month at two temples, Da Hoa and Da Trach, in Khoai Chau District, Hung Yen Province.

Travelling from Ha Noi, tourists in Vietnam tourism can travel downstream on the Red River by boat or canoe, or go by motorbike along the dyke of the Red River for 20 km. During the festival, pilgrims in colorful dress converge on the two temples, Da Hoa and Da Trach.

At Da Hoa Temple

In the early morning of the 10th, the inhabitants of nine communes hold a long procession along the dyke of the Red River to Da Hoa Temple. Marching in the van of the procession is Hoang Trach Commune. Followings are Dong Que, Bang Nha, Phu Thi, Phuc Trach, Thiet Tru, Nhan Thap, Da Hoa communes, and finally Me So Commune.

When the procession reaches the temple, palanquins and offerings are placed at a stipulated place. Then, the members of the procession and pilgrims begin the opening ceremony at the courtyard.

As the opening ceremony and incense presenting ceremony end, people participate in traditional games that take place during day and night.

At Da Trach Temple

In the morning of the 10th, residents of Da Trach, Ham Tu, Yen Phu, Dong Tao and Tu Dan communes, Khoai Chau District, Hung Yen Province hold a procession from Da Trach Temple to the Red River to get water.

The water procession is preceded by a 20 meter-long dragon. Thirty strong young men carry the dragon and dance in the rhythm of drumbeats, which makes the procession jubilant. Followings are two rows of women in colorful dresses holding flags, gongs and drums, and parasols. Young women perform a dance with conical hats and castanets with coins stringed. Young men carry palanquins holding a jar, and a profusely decorated stick and conic hat - the two magic articles bestowed on Chu Dong Tu by the Buddha. Then come three palanquins containing the tablets of Chu Dong Tu and his two wives. The end is God of Carp palanquin " Be ngu than quan". Notable men in traditional dresses go after the procession.

When the procession arrives at the riverbank, the boats of Khoai Chau District sail downstream the Red River to meet the procession of Mai Dong Commune (Hung Yen Province), Khai Thai and Tu Nhien Communes (Ha Tay Province). They join a long procession and row to middle of the river to get water. The procession brings water to the temple at 11.30 a.m and the opening ceremony begins.

After the water palanquin is placed in the temple, palanquins of gods are placed in the courtyard, then the dragon dancing group comes to the temple's door worship god; senh tien dance and conical hats dance are performed on Tien Bridge.

When the opening ceremony ends, various games and activities are organized such as wrestling, human chess, and traditional and religious dances.

Hue Festival 2012 will coincide with the National Tourism Year for the north central coastal region, the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism announced at a press briefing in Hanoi on November 23.

The opening ceremony of Hue Festival will be held on April 7, 2012, showcasing distinctive music and dance programs, carnivals, religious rituals, traditional cuisine, and performances by famous artists from many countries around the world.

During the nine-day festival, various activities will take place, including the Imperial Night, Oriental Night, Nam Giao Offering Ritual, Ao dai Fashion Show, installation art displays, a Children's Festival, Hue Poetry Festival, and culinary shows.

The event is considered an ideal opportunity to promote Vietnam tourism sector and introduce traditional Vietnamese culture to international visitors.This information is useful for the Vietnam travel company.

 Every year, thousands of people, visitors and Buddhist monks and nuns attended Quan Yin Cultural Festival in Da Nang city.  Quan The Am (Avalokitesvara/ Quan Yin) Cultural Festival is organized on the 19th day of the second month (lunar calendar) every year with cultural activities which help restore and promote the traditional culture of Viet Nam.

The festival is held on Ngu Hanh mountain, in Danang City, Vietnam.

The Quan The Am Festival consists of two parts: the religious ceremony and the festival itself. The ceremony of beginning sutra chanting (this ceremony is to pray for peaceful country and prosperous people); The ceremony of giving alms to the wandering souls (the monks pray the Buddha for peace and happiness to the living and for freedom from suffering to the souls of the death); ; Avalokitesvara Bodhisattva statue procession.  The Dharma-preaching sessions about Avalakiesvara Buddhisattava are also very interesting.

Several cultural activities bearing the national colors of Vietnam, such as singing folk songs, chess playing, music, painting, carving, lion dancing, classical opera also take place, camping, boat race; art performances,  Light” procession; Night-time Lantern Festival; Several other cultural activities.

 The festival of Thach Khoan communal temple is the festival of Muong People in the mountainous district, Thanh Son, Phu Tho. Compared with communal temples in Thanh Son district, Phu Tho Province, Thach Khoan communal temple is the most beautiful temple, keep relatively intact  ancient architecture. 

It is built on a small hill next to the wide field and towards the front of Tan Ba Vi Mountain. According to the elderly and some materials such as ordination, oration, ancient history, Thach Khoan communal temple was built long ago.

This communal temple worship the god Tan Vien Son under Hung Kinh dynasty, three princesses of Hung Kinh and 4 head of the tribe of Dinh family, Muong people who have the credits to help Le king for fighting against Minh enemy in the 15th century. The temple festival is held on 24 and 25 in January.

Before the festival day, the organization board selects 22 kind-hearted old people, virtuous and gentle people, united family to arrange to the mandarins to sacrifice. The writing of the funeral oration is an important work. The content of the funeral oration requesting for prosperous country and peaceful people, timely rains and favorable weather, abundant crops, happiness for people. After the sacrifice, they burned the funeral oration and the next year, rewrite it. During the festival, many folk games full of national characters are taken place.

In which, the game of throwing a ball through circle attracts most of people to participate in, which is a chance to open the exchanges, making friends and showing love. Becoming a good tradition, many people working far from home annually return to attend the temple festival. People belonging to other ethnic groups in the district, province also visit to exchange the culture, tighten the solidarity among ethnic groups living in Phu Tho Province.