Da Nang to host Quan The Am Festival 2026 with first-ever vegetarian culinary contest

The annual festival’s organizing board announced its program on Saturday, highlighting an expanded lineup of cultural, culinary, and international exchange activities to be held at Quan The Am Pagoda in Ngu Hanh Son Ward.

Recognized as one of Vietnam’s 15 major festivals by the Vietnam National Authority of Tourism, the event is also designated as a national intangible cultural heritage.

Ta Tu Binh, deputy chairman of the Ngu Hanh Son Ward People’s Committee and deputy head of the organizing board, said this year’s festival will be expanded in both scale and content.

Alongside traditional rituals, including a ceremony honoring Quan The Am Bo Tat (Avalokitesvara Bodhisattva), an incense offering commemorating Vietnamese Princess Huyen Tran, daughter of King Tran Nhan Tong of the Tran Dynasty, and a spring prayer for peace and prosperity, the event will feature more than 40 cultural activities.

A key highlight is the debut of the ‘Golden Lotus – Da Nang Vegetarian Culinary Excellence’ contest, introduced for the first time at this year’s festival as a professional platform for vegetarian culinary arts.

Co-organized by the Da Nang Culinary Culture Association and Quan The Am Pagoda, the competition is expected to celebrate Buddhist cuisine while introducing visitors to creative vegetarian dishes made from local ingredients, Binh said.

Another highlight is a peace walk expected to attract more than 600 international participants, including representatives of diplomatic missions, businesses, and international students, along with a flower float parade through major streets in Da Nang.

The festival will also feature a range of distinctive cultural and artistic events, including a display of 50 artistic kites by performers from Ho Chi Minh City, a boat race reenacting the ceremonial procession of Princess Huyen Tran on the Co Co River, central Vietnam folk music performances, and bamboo dancing.

Exhibitions of photography, fine arts, sketching, and calligraphy, as well as folk games such as human chess and stilt walking, will also be part of the event.

The organizing committee will continue to promote the festival’s ‘five no’s’ principle, which means no theft, no disguised begging, no littering or food safety violations, no price gouging, and no superstitious practices.

A ‘green festival’ model will also be enforced to encourage environmental protection at the heritage site.