Hue Festival Introduction
If you are a Hue lover or just a normal tourist who has fallen in love with Hue’s ancient city, you may know or even have heard about the Hue Festival in Vietnam once in your life. Every two years, Hue City celebrates Festival Hue once to preserve traditional and cultural values in the Hue citadel.
As a way to promote the priceless traditions and cultures of Hue and Vietnam, the Hue Festival attracts visitors who love to get a deep insight into this ancient citadel of the Nguyen Dynasty. Indeed, when you join this outstanding event, you will have a chance to enjoy a ton of art activities, street performances, and many more vivid festivities.
Today’s article would like to show you the latest information about the Hue Festival 2026. Let’s take a look!
If you want to discover Hue City during the festival, nothing is better than the guidance of a local. Thus, we believe you may be interested in the following Hue tours with excellent local tour guides:
- Hue Imperial City Walking Tour – 20 USD/pax
- Hue DMZ Tour – 40 USD/pax
- Sunset Cruise On Perfume River – 45 USD/pax
- Hue Cycling Tour – 31 USD/pax
- Hue Buddhist Tour – 47 USD/pax
The History Of Hue Festival
Originating from the Hue-France Festival between Hue and Viet-France Codev, the special holiday was celebrated for the first time in 1992. Until 2000, the government allowed celebrating it with another name, Festival Huế.
Since that day, the federal government has decided to celebrate the Hue Festival Vietnam on a larger scale and with a higher quality with the theme “Cultural Heritage: Integration and Development.”
This is the first festival in Vietnam following the standard international event compared to other big cities in the world. Until today, more than 10 festivals, such as Hue Festival 2022, Hue Festival 2020, etc., have been held. In 2026, it will still maintain its location on an international scale, inside and outside the country.
Hue Festival Program 2026
The holiday schedule is divided into 4 main periods, including the Spring Festival, Summer Festival, Autumn Festival, and Winter Festival. Among them, the Summer Festival boasts the most festivities, which turns out to be the main attraction for tourists. However, each festival has a distinct theme for all visitors to Hue at any time to enjoy.
Spring Festival: Ancient Capital Spring
The Spring Festival will be celebrated with the title “Xuan Co Do,” which means “Spring in the ancient capital.” It happens from January to March, with various spring and Tet activities. If you would like to join, let’s book a Hue City Tour between January and March.
January 2026
The very first activity is the “Hue Festival 2026 opening ceremony” on January 1, 2026. In addition, the recreation of the “Calendar Distribution Ceremony,” a traditional event during the Nguyen Dynasty, takes place on the first day of 2026.
February 2026
Furthermore, you will have the chance to take part in Royal and Folk Tet Activities. The Tet holiday 2026 takes place on February 17, 2026, so various accompanying events occur around this time. Therefore, there are exciting entertainment activities in the spring for visitors to enjoy:
- Pole-erecting ceremony: February 10, 2026, at Hue Citadel
- Imperial Tet holiday: February 11, 2026
- Lunar New Year countdown program: February 16, 2026, at Noon Gate Square, Hue Citadel
- Thu Le wrestling festival: February 22, 2026, in Quang Dien district
- Huyen Tran Shrine Festival: February 24 to 25, 2026, in Huyen Tran Culture Center, An Tay ward, Hue City
- Sinh wrestling festival: February 26, 2026, in Lai An village, Phu Hau commune, Hue City, Thua Thien Hue province
- Hue Poetry Day: March 3, 2026
You can see that the holiday includes so many interesting events for tourists to admire the whole culture and beauty of the royal land. In January, visitors will have the opportunity to admire the beauty of the yellow apricot flower through “The First Yellow Apricot Flower 2026” from February 4 to 14, 2026.
Besides, tourists can get to know more about the culture and religion in the city with the wrestling festival in Thu Le Village on February 22, 2026. The wrestling festival in Sinh Village is on February 26, 2026. Plus, the Huyen Tran Temple festival is on February 24 to 25, 2026.
Additionally, the Hue Poetry Festival 2026 is celebrated on March 3, 2026. Plus, don’t miss the Lunar New Year countdown program on February 16 at Noon Gate Square, Hue Citadel.
March 2026
After the Tet season, the Festival Hue has prepared events for the upcoming summer, such as “Chao he Hue 2026” (Hello Hue’s Summer 2026). Moreover, in March, an important historical event happened in Hue in 1975. It’s Thua Thien Hue Liberation Day on March 26. On this day, travelers can visit heritage sites without entrance fees and relish the national flags everywhere.
Summer Festival: Shining Citadel
The Summer Festival’s theme is “Kinh Thanh Toa Sang,” which means shining citadel. As mentioned, summer is the core part of Hue Festival, so it’s time to show the event’s highlights.
It includes different programs to celebrate the 32nd anniversary of the Complex of Hue Monuments as well as Hue Royal Court Music. We ensure this is the best time to discover the Hue Royal Tombs tour and understand more about Nguyen Dynasty in Hue Imperial City.
The Summer Festival will last from April to June 2026. It features a wide range of interesting activities for visitors coming to Hue during the summer. To enjoy the complete festival vibe, we highly recommend this summer holiday.
April 2026
The Hue Festival in April 2026 witnessed several activities warming up for the forthcoming summer. They are:
- VNExpress Marathon Hue: April, 2026, in Hue city
- International dance festival
- Hue Nam Shrine Festival: from April 18 to 19, 2026, at Hon Chen Shrine and Hai Cat village, Huong Tra town, Thua Thien Hue province
- The 15th National Architecture Student festival: April 14th–April 18th, 2026, in Hue city
- “Thuan An bien goi” (Call of the Sea) program 2026: April 28th–30th, 2026, in Thuan An ward, Hue City
- Tree and Antique exhibition
May 2026
Festival Hue during May is not as thrilling as during June, as it’s the preparation time for the core part in June. Yet, tourists can enjoy several activities, such as:
- International sculpture camp: Early May 2026
- The 2570th Buddha birthday celebration ceremony: May 24 to May 31, 2026 (from the 8th day to the 15th day of the fourth lunar month)
- “Lang Co, the World’s Beautiful Bay” program: in Lang Co townlet, Phu Loc district, Hue city
- Culture, sport and tourism
Among these, the Buddha birthday celebration is the most important for Hue, the largest Buddhist land in Vietnam. You will see flags, lanterns, huge lotus floating amidst the Perfume River, marches, etc. during this celebration.
June 2026
There are 3 programs during Festival Hue in June 2026, with dozens of events and ceremonies. Firstly, we have the “Song nuoc Tam Giang” festival in June, 2026, in Quang Dien district.
The second part is a 6-day program, from June 13 to June 18, 2026, called “Hue Festival 2026 Week” under the theme “cultural heritages with integration and development.”
It’s the most large-scale program of the whole festival. More interestingly, Festival Hue 2026 will be held at the newest feature of Hue Imperial City, Kien Trung Palace. Particularly, it includes:
- Hue Festival 2026 Opening Ceremony: June 13, 2026
- Art programs performed by domestic and foreign art troupes at big stages and community stages: From June 13 to June 16, 2026
- “Hanh trinh Bun Viet” (Vietnamese rice noodle journey): September, 2026
- Trinh Cong Son music program: November, 2026
- “Sac Mau Van Hoa” street festival (Cultural Colors): 14 June and 16 June, 2026
- Beer festival: 17 June, 2026
- Art program to wrap up Hue Festival 2026 week: June 18, 2026
- “Cho Que Ngay Hoi” (Rural Market During Festival) program: From June 27 to June 30, 2026, in Huong Thuy town
Last but not least, the iconic event and the soul of the Hue Festival: the Hue Aodai program 2026. It takes place in June, 2026. Specifically, it consists of the following activities:
- Aodai art program
- A ceremony to pay tribute to Nguyen Phuc Khoat
- Hue community Aodai week 2026
- Hanh trinh gom Viet (the journey of Vietnamese ceramics)
Autumn Festival: Hue In Autumn
From July to September, this is the time for the Autumn Festival. Its theme is “Hue vao thu,” which means Hue in Autumn. As the most beautiful time of the year in the ancient city, this is when most leaves turn yellow and you can enjoy the sunset on the Perfume River with Truong Tien Bridge.
July 2026
Tourists will enjoy the heat of summer and the first cool breezes of autumn when coming to Festival Hue during July. Several festivities will be ready for visitors to enjoy, such as:
- Hue International Kite Flying 2026: Not officially announced (expected June to July)
- Sports festival for public health 2026
- A program introducing street art and hip-hop culture in Hue city
- “Huong Xua Lang Co” Festival (Old Fragrance of Ancient Villages): Late July 2026, in Phuoc Tich village, Phong Hoa commune, Phong Dien district
- Quan The Am (Bodhisattva) Festival
August 2026
- Hue Nam Shrine Festival: in Hon Chen shrine and Hai Cat village, Huong Tra town, Thua Thien Hue province
- Imperial Light Festive Night: It features a dazzling night in Hue Imperial Citadel with lots of lanterns lit up. Its aim is to recreate the royal feasts by night during the Nguyen Dynasty.
September 2026
Most importantly, the most expected event in autumn is the Mid-Autumn Festival. When combined with this traditional holiday, Festival Hue will become more vivid. Some of the September Festival’s activities are:
- Traditional boat race on the Huong River: September 2, 2026
- “Tuong Hue, Ngan Xua Am Vong” Festival (Hue Classical Theater, the Thousand Year of Echo): September 22, 2026
- Hue Lantern Festival 2026: Not officially announced
- Lion dance parade: From September, 2026
- Hue traditional Mid-autumn festival: September 25, 2026
Culture Pham Travel believes that tourists will be very happy and interested in the Lion Dance Festival. Also, you will have a chance to see the beauty of the Hue Festival lights during the Lantern Festival.
Read more:
Winter Festival: Winter Of Hue
The last part of the Hue Festival is the Winter Festival, with the theme “Mua Dong Xu Hue,” which means “the Winter of Hue.” It will last from October to December. There will be 2 main topics, including the International Musical Festival and the New Year Countdown 2026 Program.
The visitors can watch a lot of incredible musical performances from other countries as well as traditional music. This is the most suitable time to gain more knowledge about the culture, tradition, and art of global countries around the world. In particular, there will be these programs:
- October 2026: Asian Royal Art Festival and Hue Women and Culinary Art
- November 2026: Wellness Festival
- December: Hue Music Week 2026 and Countdown program (December 31, 2026)
Hue Hot Balloon Festival
In April 2023, a boat trip to experience the Hue Hot Balloon Festival was set up. The event occurred from April 10 to April 20, 2023. There are many colorful hot balloons in the blue sky of Hue City from different countries around the world.
However, there hasn’t been an official announcement about the Hue Hot Balloon Festival in 2026. Before we bring the latest updates to you, please check out the information below about last year’s event to get a picture of this special festival.
Firstly, you have to pay a fee to get on the balloon and admire the whole panoramic beauty of the Imperial City. The organization will sell two types of tickets for the festival:
Point-To-Point Flight
You need to pay 4,000,000 VND per person per turn to float in the air for about 45 to 60 minutes. The travel route is between 7 and 10 kilometers at 300–500 meters in height compared to the ground. There are only 1-2 passengers per balloon. The departure time will be between 6:00 and 17:00 every weekday (April 10 to April 20)
The Flight On The Spot
A ticket for each person costs 200,000 VND/turn. It takes about 5–10 minutes to fly at 30–50 meters in height from the ground. 2–3 passengers are the limited number for each balloon. The departure time for flying on the sport is nearly 5.30 pm frequently.
Conclusion
Culture Pham Travel has just shared the updated details about Hue Festival 2026 with you. We cannot deny that this holiday has had a significant influence on tourism development.
Moreover, it also inspires the cultural and traditional aspects of international friends. We also hope the article can give you the best information for your trip. Thanks for reading.