Running from November 1 to 16 at the Van Mieu-Quoc Tu Giam national special relic site, this year’s festival brings together a range of activities that connect tradition and modernity, heritage and creativity, and position Van Mieu as a meeting place for culture, the arts and scholarship.

Within the site’s venerable and sacred setting, the public can take part in a variety of experiences, including displays and demonstrations of traditional craft villages from Hanoi, Hue, Ninh Binh and the Central Highlands; and the performing programme “On the heritage road,” which will feature three special nights at Ho Van (an historic pond within the Temple of Literature complex in Hanoi) to honour the Ao dai ( traditional long dress), pay tribute to the thousand-year capital and blend regional musical colours.

The heritage experience space at Ho Van is a highlight popular with young people, where visitors can join craft and creative workshops and sample “Flavours of Hanoi,” a culinary offering that blends tradition and modernity.

The festival also includes academic activities and international exchanges, such as the forum “Educational and cultural heritage East-West” in cooperation with Columbia University (United States) and the seminar “Applying heritage in creativity,” aimed at finding new ways to bring heritage values into contemporary life.

Speaking at the opening, Le Thi Anh Mai, Deputy Director of the Hanoi Department of Culture and Sports said, “The city plans to hold the Festival Thang Long-Hanoi regularly, not only to position the capital’s distinctive cultural and tourism brand, but also to assert Hanoi’s connecting role as a UNESCO Creative City. The festival will be an open space where heritage inspires and nurtures a spirit of creativity in the community.”

Under the spirit “converging heritage, spreading creativity,” Festival Thang Long-Hanoi 2025 promises a unique cultural and artistic journey in which tradition is renewed with the breath of the times, and Van Mieu- Quoc Tu Giam continues to shine as Vietnam’s centre of intellectual heritage in the heart of the thousand-year capital.

UNESCO acknowledges Vietnam’s progress in conserving Thang Long Imperial Citadel

VOV.VN - As part of the 47th session of the World Heritage Committee under the UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), held in France, the Committee on July 10 adopted a decision on the conservation and promotion of the heritage value of the Thang Long Imperial Citadel, a UNESCO World Heritage site.