Quan ho festival offers diverse activities

Various activities kicked off in the northern province of Bac Ninh on February 14 as part of an ongoing festival marking a decade since the Quan ho Bac Ninh folk songs were recognised by UNESCO as part of the intangible cultural heritage of humanity.

quan ho festival offers diverse activities hinh 0

The “Returning to the land of Quan ho 2019” festival included a Quan ho singing contest, which drew the participation of 350 artisans and instrumentalists across the locality. The annual contest has become a traditional cultural activity of local Quan ho artisans, greatly contributing to the conservation and development of the intangible heritage.

A spring press festival also opened the same day, introducing more than 100 newspapers and magazines from press agencies across the country. The festival is designed to honour reading culture and improve the quality of people’s lives.

In addition, there was an exhibition featuring nearly 4,000 ornamental trees from hundreds of artists and associations in Bac Ninh and other localities, including some trees over a century old. The event runs through until February 26.

Meanwhile, the Bac Ninh Culture and Tourism Week, which aims to popularise the province’s image to visitors from across Vietnam and other countries, will be underway until May 12.

Quan ho Bac Ninh folk songs were inscribed on the Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity on September 30, 2009. Since then, Bac Ninh has made considerable efforts to realise its commitments to UNESCO to conserve and uphold the value of this art form, thus obtaining comprehensive results.

The songs are alternating response verses between male and female singers. Quan ho singing is common at rituals, festivals, competitions, and informal gatherings, where guests will perform a variety of verses for their hosts before singing farewell.

VNA

Other News

Ta Xua named Asia's leading emerging tourism destination 2026

Ta Xua named Asia's leading emerging tourism destination 2026

In recent years, Ta Xua, dubbed "the paradise of clouds", has emerged as one of the mountainous destinations attracting strong interest from young travellers, particularly for its spectacular sea of clouds stretching across the mountains in the northwestern region.

Digital transformation key to preserving, promoting ethnic cultural values

Digital transformation key to preserving, promoting ethnic cultural values

Training local young people in filming, audio recording, digital storytelling, data preservation and responsible use of AI can help build a new generation of cultural custodians. This, in turn, can help transform cultural heritage into a resource for economic development while contributing to the country’s broader development.

Indigenous culture becomes tourism asset in northern highlands

Indigenous culture becomes tourism asset in northern highlands

With growing recognition of indigenous knowledge, customs and cultural values as unique assets, ethnic communities in the northern mountainous region are shifting from simply providing tourism services to becoming creators and owners of tourism products, confidently telling their own cultural stories

UNESCO ready to work with Vietnam to implement International Decade of Culture for Sustainable Development initiative: Representative

UNESCO ready to work with Vietnam to implement International Decade of Culture for Sustainable Development initiative: Representative

Jonathan Wallace Baker, UNESCO Representative to Vietnam, noted that the official proclamation of the 2027–2036 period as the "International Decade of Culture for Sustainable Development" comes at a particularly important moment. As the international community works to accelerate progress towards the 2030 Agenda while beginning to consider what comes after 2030, the Decade provides a ten-year framework to strengthen the place of culture in development.

Traditional culture finds new life in contemporary Vietnam

Traditional culture finds new life in contemporary Vietnam

Under Resolution 80-NQ/TW, dated January 7, 2026, November 24 was designated Vietnam Culture Day, to be observed annually. The occasion aims to give the public opportunities to participate in, create and enjoy cultural activities, helping spread positive values and foster pride in Vietnamese culture.

Vietnam prioritises MICE tourism as strategic product

Vietnam prioritises MICE tourism as strategic product

For the MICE tourism sector in both Ho Chi Minh City and Vietnam, growth can no longer be driven merely by increasing the number of events; instead, the focus must shift to enhancing the value of each event and the competitiveness of each destination.

Potential of ethnic minority women's football

Potential of ethnic minority women's football

Women’s football movements in local communities have been quietly growing, but they’ve now built up enough momentum to inspire organisers to launch the first Vietnam Ethnic Minority Women’s Football – VTV Cup in 2026.

Phong Nha - Ke Bang named among Vietnam's 11 most beautiful destinations

Phong Nha - Ke Bang named among Vietnam's 11 most beautiful destinations

According to the magazine, boat trips into Phong Nha Cave and strolls through Paradise Cave (both family-friendly) offer a tantalising glimpse of their astonishing scale, but the real adventure lies deeper within the park, where cavers wade through underground rivers and weave among stalagmites.

Tourism seeks new growth momentum under Resolution 26

Tourism seeks new growth momentum under Resolution 26

Tourism effectiveness should be measured not only by visitor numbers and revenue, but also by spending, length of stay, repeat visits, job quality, visitor satisfaction and environmental carrying capacity, said experts.

Vietnam welcomes nearly 2 million international visitors in August, up 19.7% from July and 18.4% year-on-year. (Illustrative photo: VNA)

Vietnam tourism maintains strong growth, expands international markets

The National Statistics Office under the Ministry of Finance reported that Vietnam welcomed nearly 2 million international visitors in August, up 19.7% from July and 18.4% year-on-year. The figure represented 63.6% of the tourism sector’s full-year target of 25 million arrivals.

First ladies of Vietnam, Myanmar visit Van Phuc silk village

First ladies of Vietnam, Myanmar visit Van Phuc silk village

Ngo Phuong Ly, the spouse of General Secretary of the Communist Party of Vietnam Central Committee and President To Lam, said the two countries share similarities in silk weaving and can enrich their cultural heritage through exchanges and experience sharing.