Vietnamese Festivals Calendar
A year-round hub of Vietnam's major festivals — when they fall, what they involve, which are worth planning a trip around, and which to avoid travel during.
Vietnamese festivals follow the lunar calendar for the cultural and religious ones, the solar calendar for state holidays, and they shift across the year. Some are nationwide (Tết); others are regional (Khmer festivals in the south); a few are sect-specific (Cao Đài, Hòa Hảo).
This page is the hub — individual festivals have their own deeper pages where linked.
Dates given here are for 2026 and approximate 2027 equivalents. Always check the lunar conversion for travel-planning years further out.
The big nationwide festivals
Tết Nguyên Đán (Lunar New Year) — late January / mid-February
The biggest single holiday of the year. Country closes for ~10 days; trains and flights book months ahead. Atmospheric in the lead-up, eerily quiet during; logistically difficult for tourists. See Tết.
2026: 17 February. 2027: 6 February.
Hùng Kings' Festival (10th day, 3rd lunar month)
National holiday honouring the legendary founder kings. Centre is Phú Thọ province north of Hanoi. Pilgrimage atmosphere; traffic on highways.
2026: 27 April. 2027: 16 April.
Reunification Day & Labour Day (30 April + 1 May)
National holidays celebrating the 1975 fall of Saigon and international workers' day. Long weekend nationwide; domestic travel peaks. Hotels expensive.
Buddha's Birthday / Vesak (15th day, 4th lunar month)
Mostly observed at pagodas; offerings, vegetarian meals. Quiet outside religious circles.
2026: 30 May. 2027: 19 May.
Đoan Ngọ (5th day, 5th lunar month)
"Killing the inner pests" festival — eat specific fruits (rượu nếp fermented sticky rice, plum, peach) at dawn. Family observance; not a major tourist event.
2026: 19 June. 2027: 8 June.
Vu Lan (Hungry Ghost Festival) (15th day, 7th lunar month)
The Buddhist remembrance of mothers and the dead. Pagodas crowded; vegetarian meals widely available; respectful atmosphere. Beautiful if you happen to be there.
2026: 27 August. 2027: 16 August.
Tết Trung Thu (Mid-Autumn / Children's Festival) (15th day, 8th lunar month)
Children's festival. Lanterns, mooncakes, dragon dances, family gatherings. One of the most visually appealing festivals for tourists. See Mid-Autumn Festival.
2026: 25 September. 2027: 14 September.
National Day (2 September)
Independence Day — Hồ Chí Minh's 1945 declaration. National holiday; parades in Hanoi and HCMC.
Regional and minority festivals
Lim Festival (Bắc Ninh, 13th day, 1st lunar month)
Quan họ folk-singing festival of the Bắc Ninh region. UNESCO intangible heritage. Atmospheric, day-trip from Hanoi.
2026: 1 March.
Phủ Giầy Festival (Nam Định, 3rd–8th days of 3rd lunar month)
Worship of Princess Liễu Hạnh, Mother Goddess. Vietnamese religious-folk tradition.
Huế Festival (biennial, even years, April or June)
The biggest performing-arts festival in Vietnam, hosted in Huế at the Imperial Citadel. Music, dance, royal court re-enactment. International artists. See Hue Festival.
2026: TBA (next biennial cycle).
Hội An Lantern Festival (every full moon of every lunar month)
Old Town pedestrianised, lit by silk lanterns, paper lanterns floated on the river. The most photogenic monthly event in Vietnam. See Hội An Lantern Festival.
Every month: 14th day of lunar month.
Bà Chúa Xứ Pilgrimage (An Giang, 22nd–27th days of 4th lunar month)
~2 million pilgrims to Châu Đốc to honour the Lady of the Country. The biggest religious pilgrimage in southern Vietnam. See Bà Chúa Xứ pilgrimage.
2026: ~7–12 June.
Cao Đài High Mass (Tây Ninh, 4 times a year)
Major Cao Đài religious ceremonies at the Holy See in Tây Ninh. Open to respectful observers.
Ok Om Bok (Trà Vinh, Sóc Trăng, full moon of 10th lunar month)
Khmer Moon Worshipping festival — boat racing, lantern release, sticky-rice-cake offerings. One of the most distinctive festivals in the deep south. See Ok Om Bok.
2026: ~24 November. 2027: ~14 November.
Cham Kate Festival (Ninh Thuận, October)
The Cham minority's major religious festival — temples (Po Klong Garai) come alive. Music, dance, traditional dress.
Reed Pipe Festival (Hmong communities, December)
Hmong New Year celebrations in northern mountain provinces — colourful traditional dress, courtship rituals, music. See Sapa and Hà Giang.
What to plan around
| If you're a visitor: | Recommendation |
|---|---|
| Avoid Tết travel unless you specifically want the Tết experience | Most things close; transport packed and expensive |
| Plan around Mid-Autumn if you want a photogenic, calm cultural moment | Mid-September; especially Hoi An, Hanoi Old Quarter |
| Hoi An Lantern Festival monthly — easy to time | 14th of any lunar month |
| Reunification + Labour Day long weekend | Domestic travel peaks; avoid if possible |
| Huế Festival (every even year) | Plan months ahead — once-in-two-years experience |
Christmas, Easter, New Year (Gregorian)
- Christmas (25 December): Catholic communities celebrate; HCMC and Hanoi have decorations in central districts. Not a public holiday but increasingly visible.
- Easter: marked only by Catholic communities (about 7% of the population).
- Gregorian New Year (1 January): public holiday; celebrated more in HCMC than Hanoi. Modest compared to Tết.
Honest take
Vietnam's festival calendar is rich but invisible to most short-trip foreign visitors — most of the festivals are family/religious affairs that don't market themselves outwardly. Visiting during Mid-Autumn or a Hoi An full moon adds visible magic to a trip; visiting during Tết adds significant logistical pain.
For the genuinely festival-curious, time a trip around either Mid-Autumn (mid-September, photogenic, country still open), Bà Chúa Xứ (early June, anthropologically significant), or a Hoi An Lantern Festival (any month, easy to time).
Comments
No comments yet.