Ho Chi Minh City’s first river festival will take place between August 4 and 6 to popularize the images of the city and people, cultural features, food, and tourism among local and international travelers.

The municipal Department of Tourism and the Department of Culture and Sports will organize the fest at the Saigon Cruise Port, the Bach Dang Wharf Park, and the Binh Dong Wharf, along the banks of Nhieu Loc – Thi Nghe Canal, and in various tourist sites citywide.

Nguyen Thi Anh Hoa, director of the tourism department, told Tuoi Tre (Youth) newspaper on Wednesday that the festival demonstrates her agency’s efforts in building and expanding tourism activities to lure visitors and introduce the city’s historical and cultural beauty.

The fest will spread a message of preserving cultural values and honoring the importance of rivers and canals.

The event is aimed at calling on residents to protect the environment and follow a responsible lifestyle.

“The festival is also meant to develop Ho Chi Minh City into a modern riverside city that can tap the resources of rivers and the sea to contribute to positioning its brand as a cultural identity-rich river city,” Hoa underscored.

The highlight of the river festival will be an outdoor art show titled ‘Saigon – River Tells Stories’ at 8:00 pm on August 6 at the Saigon Cruise Port.

The show will depict the city’s establishment and prosperity with river accompaniment.

Some 700 artists, directors, experts, consultants, and staff workers will join the art program.

Before and during the fest, a slew of promotional and discount programs will be launched to prompt residents to experience tourism services and products, as well as entice travelers to the city.

The opening ceremony of the festival will take place at the Thu Ngu flagpole heritage site in downtown Ho Chi Minh City.

The fest will feature ‘Tren Ben Duoi Thuyen’ (At the Wharf, on the Boat) spaces in the Nhieu Loc – Thi Nghe Canal area in District 1 and the Binh Dong Wharf in District 8.

The event will also delight visitors with an exhibition of farm produce and local specialties, and water-based sports activities such as a boat race, flyboarding, and a parasailing show, together with SUP (stand up paddleboard) tours.

Visitors will be satisfied with the nighttime river parades of some 40 boats and cruisers that will run on the Saigon River from the Saigon Port to the 81-story Landmark 81 in Binh Thanh District to introduce the festival and tourism activities.

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