The light show, which will begin at 8pm on April 30, will take place on the Sai Gon River in district 2, including fireworks.

Bui Ta Hoang Vu, director of the city’s Department of Tourism, said costs for the show would be funded by local organisations.

Cultural activities will open on April 29 and take place every night until May 1.  A series of tourist and cooking festivals will be organised by the department and organisations from April throughout the year. A two-day Street Music Festival will open in early May. Dozens of young and veteran artists in music, theatre, puppetry and the circus will join the event.

The annual Southern Cuisine Festival 2017, to be held from May 25 to 28, will feature demonstrations on how to make traditional Vietnamese dishes by artisans and chefs from hotels and restaurants. The organiser, the HCM City Department of Tourism, in co-operation with its partners from southern provinces, hopes the event will attract hundreds of thousands of Vietnamese and foreign visitors.

A special art festival, Fashion and Technology 2017, will feature Vietnamese garment and textile companies and fashion houses in mid-September. 

The six-day event will include dozens of fashion shows, music and song programmes, and exhibitions, seminars and forums on high-tech products and services. Tourist agencies plan to offer new tours to famous destinations in the provinces of Lao Cai, Ha Giang, Ninh Binh and the Central Highlands.

VNA