Nghinh Ong Festival in Can Gio returns with bigger scale
Nghinh Ong Festival, an event for fishermen to show their respect for the whale and gratitude for a bumper catch, will return to Can Gio district of Ho Chi Minh City in October with a bigger scale.
Dancers perform at Nghinh Ong Festival in HCM City’s Can Gio district. (Photo: vhttdlkv3.gov.vn)
HCM City (VNA) – Nghinh Ong Festival, anevent for fishermen to show their respect for the whale and gratitude for abumper catch, will return to Can Gio district of Ho Chi Minh City in October witha bigger scale.
The Nghinh Ong Festival in Can Gio will take place in thecoastal town of Can Thanh on October 3-5, which falls on the 14th-16th days of the eighth month of the lunar calendar.
The festival will be held at the municipal level with itslocation to be renovated and expanded.
There will be a series of rituals and festive activitiesduring the event, including a pilgrimage to Rung Sac (Sac Forest) War MartyrsCemetery to remember soldiers who sacrificed their lives to protect thecountry, a rite to pay tribute to founders of the land and a ceremony for localfishermen to celebrate the bumper catch.
The organisers will host exhibitions showcasing photosand objects of the Can Gio Mangrove Biosphere Reserve and fishing activities oflocal fishermen, and arrange a cuisine street to introduce specialties of thecoastal district.
The festival will also feature a procession at sea andfrom the sea to Ong Thuy Tuong Temple (Temple Worshiping the Whale), a releaseof lanterns to the sea, folk games, lion dances and other traditionalperformances.
According to Chairman of the district’s People’sCommittee Le Minh Dung, the festival expects to attract about 100,000 visitorsthis year.
The Nghinh Ong Festival in Can Gio was regconised asNational Intangible Cultural Heritage in 2013 and is the only traditionalfestival of local fishermen.-VNA
Thousands of visitors flocked to the Nghinh Ong or Nghinh Ong Quan Thanh De Quan Festival in Phan Thiet city, the central coastal province of Binh Thuan, on August 26-28.
Ho Chi Minh City’s Can Gio outlying district is preparing for its annual Nghinh Ong Festival, to be held next week to show fishermen’s respect for the whale and gratitude for a bumper catch.
A Nghinh Ong or whale worshipping festival is taking place in Vung Tau city, the southern province of in Ba Ria – Vung Tau, attracting crowds of local people and tourists.
Eight teams will join the tournament, divided into two groups. Group A features Vietnam, the Philippines, Sichuan Club (China), and Australia, while Group B consists of Vietnam U21, Korabelka Club (Russia), Taiwan (China), and U21 Thailand.
Despite strong home support and high expectations, Vietnam were unable to overcome the defending champions, who secured their third consecutive win over Vietnam in a regional final, following previous victories in 2014 and 2023.
The event, part of Vietnam’s cultural diplomacy strategy through 2030, was jointly organised by the Vietnamese Embassy in Venezuela and USM’s Faculty of International Relations. It attracted thousands of students from universities across Venezuela.
For the first time, Vietnamese audiences will have the opportunity to experience the ballet masterpiece "Don Quixote" in its original version by renowned choreographer Marius Petipa.
The contest carried deep meaning as it was the first time the life of Vietnamese women abroad had been highlighted as the central theme, said poet and writer Nguyen Quang Thieu, Chairman of the Vietnam Writers’ Association.
The event formed part of Vietnam’s ongoing campaign to seek UNESCO World Heritage status for the complex at the 47th session of the UNESCO World Heritage Committee, scheduled to take place in Paris in July.
Creative cultural festivals are fast emerging as a new catalyst for tourism development in Vietnam, as localities increasingly invest in these vibrant events on a more systematic and larger scale.
This marks the first time Vietnam has hosted a continental-level Muay event which will feature competitions across 28 weight categories in combat and eight performance categories.
Coming to the Vietnamese booth, visitors had the chance to take part in a bamboo dance, a workshop on painting woven bamboo or rattan, or quizzes about Vietnam.
These are impressive achievements, not only showing the efforts and prowess of Vietnamese paddlers but also serving as proof of the sports sector’s strategic and systematic investment.
The cultural event in Canberra not only fostered cultural exchanges between Vietnam and Australia but also contributed to promoting Vietnam’s image internationally
The U23 competition will run from June 16 to 22, followed by the U17 event from June 23 to 28, while athletes competing in the U23 category will undergo weight and skill checks ahead of the matches starting June 18, while similar checks for U17 athletes will take place before June 23.
Vietnam continues to sit just behind continental powerhouses Japan, the Republic of Korea, Australia, China, and the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK).
The event served as a vibrant display of solidarity, promoting peace, cooperation, and development through cultural dialogue, and reaffirmed HCM City's role as a dynamic hub for cultural diplomacy and international friendship.
The Indian Film Festival not only honours the artistic value of cinema but also contributes to strengthening the friendship and enhancing cultural exchange between the people of Son La in particular and Vietnam in general and India.
An art exchange programme between Vietnam and Cambodia was held on the evening of June 13 in the Mekong Delta province of Vinh Long as part of the 2025 Cambodia Culture Week in Vietnam.
Digitalisation does not mean commercialisation or oversimplification of culture. It is a way of selecting, adapting, and spreading traditional values through a modern language.
Dancers perform at Nghinh Ong Festival in HCM City’s Can Gio district. (Photo: vhttdlkv3.gov.vn) 
