When does Tet 2023 (Lunar New Year) take place?
Tet, or Luna New Year is the most festive time of the year. However, there will not be a lot of things to do for travelers at that time, as most of the places are closed for the holiday. If you have already booked your trip to Vietnam, and had plan to be in Ho Chi Minh City in this Lunar New Year, you will need this guide for things to do in Tet 2023.
For 2024, check these things to do in Ho Chi Minh City for Tet 2024
First, let’s have a look at the Tet 2023 calendar to know which days it takes place:
According to Vietnam official holiday calendar, people will have days off from 20/11/2023 to 26/01/2023. Especially, a lot of people will not work from 22/01/2023 to 24/01/2023, as it is the main time of Tet festival. Therefore, there will be fewer things to do and everything will cost you a little more of the “festival fee” at these time.
Here we will recommend you some popular things to do in Tet 2023 in Ho Chi Minh City:
1. Flower streets/ Flower festivals
One of the most must-do things to do in Tet 2023 in Ho Chi Minh City is joining a flower street/ flower festival. There will not only be one, but many across the city. Each of them will have their own festive beauty. If you have enough time, you should go and explore each one, which is best to gather some photos of your trip in Ho Chi Minh City in this best time of the year.
We will recommend you the most popular flower streets/ flower festivals below:
a) Nguyen Hue Walking Street Flower Festival
Nguyen Hue Walking Street is always the center of every festivals in Ho Chi Minh City. In Tet 2023 it will become even more stunning. This year the walking street will be decorated with thousands of flowers, especially with a 40 meters glass walking bridge so that people can watch flowers from above.
Beside the bridge, there will be a lot of decorations with different concepts, making Nguyen Hue Walking Street one of the best things to do in Tet 2023 in Ho Chi Minh City.
Location on map: Nguyen Hue Walking Street
b) Tao Dan Park Flower Festival
Tao Dan Park is one of the place that hosts the largest flower festival in Ho Chi Minh City. Located in the center of district 1, Tao Dan Park Flower Festival is the most convenient choice if you are looking for things to do in Tet 2023 in Ho Chi Minh City.
As the largest park in Saigon – 10 ha square, Tao Dan Park will take you a few hours to explore all the corners of flower decorations. To get there, you can take a walk from your place to the park, or simply rent a taxi – just notice the price in the festive time!
Address: Truong Dinh Street, Ben Thanh Ward, District 1, HCMC
Location on map: Tao Dan Park
c) Phu My Hung Flower Festival
Phu My Hung is one of the most luxury town in Ho Chi Minh City. In every Lunar New Year, the town always decorates its most iconic place – Crescent Lake and Starlight Bridge with thousands of flowers in the most creative ways possible. That’s why if you are looking for things to do in Tet 2023 in Ho Chi Minh City, Phu My Hung Flower Festival is a must to visit.
The place is quite far from city center, so if you want to visit, taking a taxi will be a good choice.
Address: Ton Dat Tien Street, Tan Phu Ward, District 7, HCMC
Location on map: Phu My Hung Flower Festival (Tet only)
2. Calligraphy Master Street
Calligraphy has been one of the traditions of Vietnamese for a few thousand years. The art of calligraphy requires a lot of knowledge and practice. In Vietnam, it is used as a gift of wishing each other luck, happiness, success,…
To keep on the tradition, there is a Calligraphy Master Street hosted in every Lunar New Year. You can visit there for unique photos, as it only takes place once a year, or you can even buy some calligraphy arts to bring home as souvenirs.
Remember the Street only appears around Tet time, don’t miss it! It is hosted inside/ around Ho Chi Minh City Cultural House For The Youth.
Address: 4 Pham Ngoc Thach, Ben Nghe Ward, District 1, HCMC
Location on map: Calligraphy Master Street
3. Pagoda & Temple
More than 80% Vietnamese are religious. In top festivals like Tet, pagoda and temples are the most popular places to visit in the whole country, as people are wishing for their new year. If you are looking for things to do in Tet 2023 in Ho Chi Minh City, those are must-go. Here are some recommendations:
a) Jade Emperor Pagoda
The Jade Emperor Pagoda also known as the Chua Ngoc Hoang is a Taoist pagoda founded by Lưu Minh or Lưu Đạo Nguyên, a Cantonese, China. It is also known from 1984 by the new name Phuoc Hai Tu, or Chua Ngoc Hoang.
This is one of the most popular pagoda to visit in district 1. However, as it is very crowded, you should watch around for your belongings.
Address: 73 Mai Thi Luu, Da Kao Ward, District 1, HCMC
Location on map: Jade Emperor Pagoda
b) Thien Hau Temple
As one of the oldest temples in Ho Chi Minh City, Thien Hau Temple was built by a group of immigrants from Guangzhou to Saigon, to worship Chinese Goddess of Sea. In every Lunar New Year, there will be a lot of special celebrations here, making it one of the top things to do in Tet 2023 in Ho Chi Minh City, if you would like to visit something cultural and religious.
Address: 710 Nguyen Trai, Ward 11, District 5, HCMC
Location on map: Thien Hau Temple
4. Tet Decoration Shopping Street
If you are traveling in Tet 2023 and looking for something to buy that has a really “Tet 2023” vibe, then you should consider this area as your to-go places. Located in the China Town, district 5, Tet Decoration Shopping Street is where locals always go for before and during Lunar New year holidays.
Advantage of this place? Things are very cheap. Disadvantage? If you can’t speak Vietnamese it will take you a little bit of time for commucation with shops here.
Address: Hai Thuong Lan Ong Street, Ward 13, District 5, HCM
Location on map: Tet Decoration Shopping Street
5. Take a tour with AN Tours Vietnam
After all of the recommendations above, if you are still looking for things to do in Tet 2023, our tours are definitely something great to consider. All of our tours are well chosen, operated by the best. However, please notice that we only open availability for a few tours, with a little extra “Tet festival fee“. So if you are looking for tours in Tet 2023, you really need to book with us as soon as possible.
Here are some choices we offer (price in pages may be normal day price, please contact for Tet 2023 price):
a) Private Vung Tau 2D1N Camping Tour by Mobihome
Vung Tau is the most popular places to go outside of Ho Chi Minh City, even for locals. However, Vung Tau is always crowded that everyone is complaining about that. Therefore, going to Vung Tau on your own may ruin your experience if you don’t really know what to do.
That’s why we offer this tour, which you can really enjoy the clean sea of Vung Tau without the crowd, everything is included in the cost of 40 USD/ person/ day, or 990,000 VND/ person/ day. Special thing? You will travel in a Mobihome, which will make your experience so unique!
b) Cu Chi Tunnel Tours
If you love history and want a day trip out of Ho Chi Minh City, our Cu Chi Tunnel tours are something you should consider. We do offer 2 different types: Private Tour – which focus more on experience, and Group Tour – focusing more on better price.
c) Other tours after main dates of Tet 2023
To maintain the best quality, we have temporarily closed a few tours from 20/01/2023 to 24/01/2023. These tours will be reopened after the period. If you love something to do right after Tet 2023, you can consider booking a tour with us.
