The potential of festival tourism in the Mekong Delta

The Mekong Delta currently hosts over 1,230 festivals, with traditional and folk festivals accounting for nearly 70%. As home to various ethnic groups, including the Kinh, Hoa, Cham, and Khmer, the region boasts a diverse cultural landscape rooted in its riverine environment. Festivals in the Mekong Delta serve as platforms for showcasing the region’s unique cultural values through traditional customs, entertainment, folk cuisine, and rituals tied to the historical formation of the land and adaptation to contemporary life.

Beyond honoring ancestors who pioneered the land, festivals also reinforce communal values, emphasizing familial bonds, neighborhood ties, and social unity. These cultural traditions have shaped the characteristic personality and behavioral traits of Mekong Delta residents—generous, sincere, kind-hearted, hospitable, resilient in adversity, and harmoniously connected with nature.

Several traditional festivals in the Mekong Delta have been recognized as national intangible cultural heritage, including the Bà Chúa Xứ Temple Festival (An Giang), the Nguyễn Trung Trực Temple Festival (Kiên Giang), the Nghinh Ông Festival (Cà Mau), and the Kỳ Yên Festival at Bình Thủy Communal House (Cần Thơ). Notably, the Bà Chúa Xứ Temple Festival has been recognized by UNESCO as a Representative Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity. These festivals, rich in local cultural identity, attract large numbers of visitors annually.

Additionally, the Mekong Delta is home to festivals deeply rooted in the cultural traditions of its ethnic communities, such as the Ok-Om-Bok Festival and the Bảy Núi Ox Racing Festival of the Khmer people, the Ramadan and Roya Haji Festivals of the Cham community, and the Thiên Hậu Temple Festival of the Chinese community. These events each offer their own unique appeal to tourists from near and far.

Enhancing the value and innovation of festivals for tourism development

Alongside preserving traditional festivals, Mekong Delta provinces and cities have also introduced new festivals and events inspired by local cultural and economic strengths, helping drive tourism growth. These include the Southern Folk Cake Festival (Cần Thơ), the Bến Tre Coconut Festival (Bến Tre), the Vietnam International Rice Festival (Hậu Giang), the Red Ceramic and Green Economy Festival (Vĩnh Long), the Sa Đéc Flower Festival (Đồng Tháp), and the Vietnam Salt Craft Festival (Bạc Liêu).

Many festivals have gradually become signature annual events, drawing increasing tourist interest. For example, the Southern Folk Cake Festival has been held 11 times and is set for its 12th edition from April 4 to April 8, 2025. This festival not only helps preserve and promote traditional Southern Vietnamese cakes but also serves as a major tourist attraction.

Following the success of the first Sa Đéc Flower Festival, Đồng Tháp is preparing for its second edition, scheduled from December 27, 2025, to January 4, 2026. Meanwhile, the Vietnam Salt Craft Festival in Bạc Liêu has made a strong impression by highlighting the region’s salt-making tradition and its tourism potential.

Festivals provide a foundation for developing unique tourism products, particularly in specialized tourism categories such as cultural heritage exploration, historical tourism, agricultural tourism, traditional craft tourism, and culinary tourism. It is essential to invest not only in the scale but also in the quality of festivals. Well-organized festival-based tourism products not only contribute to preserving and promoting national cultural identity but also enhance the appeal of localities as tourist destinations.

The Ministry of Culture, Sports, and Tourism has introduced a plan titled “Preserving Traditional Festivals in Localities and Developing Products for Tourism Promotion”, aimed at enhancing cultural life within communities while fostering national pride and awareness of cultural heritage preservation through traditional festivals. This initiative is expected to attract investment from both the state and private sectors, laying the groundwork for sustainable tourism development.

On this basis, Mekong Delta localities will conduct further research and systematically plan their festivals to develop sustainable tourism strategies that effectively harness the value of festivals while ensuring long-term cultural and economic benefits.