Ho Chi Minh City plans to display low-level fireworks at three locations on the opening night of the second River Festival on the evening of May 31.
“The opening night fireworks display is a new feature of this year’s river festival,” Ms. Nguyen Thi Anh Hoa, Director of Ho Chi Minh City Department of Tourism, said at the April economic and social meeting, on the afternoon of May 3. The second river festival has the theme “Legendary Train” lasting 10 days, from May 31 to June 9, introducing typical tourism products of the city and the Southern region.
According to the proposal of the Ho Chi Minh City Command, three fireworks display points include: Saigon River bank area (Thu Thiem ward, Thu Duc city), this point is fired on a permanently anchored barge; Ba Son wharf area (Ben Nghe ward, district 1) and Landmark 81 riverbank park area (ward 22, Binh Thanh district).
Fireworks on the Saigon River, evening of April 30. Image: Quynh Tran
Shooting time starts from 9:30 p.m. on May 31 – the opening night of the festival, after the end of the entertainment program. Each point fires 90 low-level explosive fireworks combined with pyrotechnics (flares that do not explode).
The fireworks displays will be exploded one after another, one after another. Estimated shooting time at each point is 15 minutes. Funding for implementation comes from socialized sources.
The second river festival’s highlight is the outdoor musical “Legendary Train” with the participation of 1,000 actors. Opening ceremony at 8:00 p.m. on May 31 at Nha Rong port.
During the 10 days, the festival has spaces on wharves and boats such as the “Western floating market” at Nhieu Loc – Thi Nghe canal; Fruit week at Binh Dong wharf (District 8) will be recreated with decorative and design activities associated with the Western region of the river; display fruit stalls of provinces and cities and perform folk arts for visitors…
In addition, the festival also has water sports activities such as the open river swimming championship, stand-up paddleboard championship, sailing shows, jet skis, sailing boats, paragliding…
The second Ho Chi Minh City River Festival is considered a highlight of city tourism this year. The festival was first held in 2023, attracting more than 210,000 domestic and international visitors to the city with more than 120,000 domestic visitors and 91,000 international visitors.