If you’re visiting Vietnam in the fall, don’t miss Tết Trung Thu, also known as the Mid Autumn Festival or the “Children’s Festival”. It’s a beloved celebration filled with colorful lanterns, traditional mooncakes, and lively street performances.
It takes place on October 6, 2025, during the eighth lunar month, but the festive spirit starts weeks before. Here’s what you need to know to experience this magical holiday truly.
Overview of Mid Autumn Festival
Although the Mid-autumn Festival comes from China and is held in many Asian nations, Vietnamese version includes unique customs and stories that you can explore. Our most well-known story centers on Cuội, a guy who grabbed onto a mystical banyan tree as it floated up to the moon.
Family eating moon cake
When you see an inspection of the full moon, you may discern the silhouette of a man seated beneath a tree. So children walk lanterns in the streets the night of the Mid Autumn Festival to guide Cuội from the moon towards the earth.
Because many Vietnamese people live in rural areas and work as farmers, Mid Autumn celebration celebrates the harvest with great significance. When the task is done and one has time to visit with loved ones, Tet Trung Thu celebrates a happy event.
Read more: Top 10 Traditional Festivals In Vietnam That You Must Experience 2025
Top things to do in Mid Autumn Festival
Get ready for the Mid Autumn celebration
Toys abound in Vietnam's cities the weeks before Mid-autumn, they are a major celebration for children.
You will see and hear groups of lion dancers rehearsing on the streets in the weeks before Mid Autumn. Every place has mooncake booths, pop-ups with lavishly adorned boxes loaded with a range of moon cakes.
City districts sell toys, lanterns, and vibrant masks in advance. In the days preceding the celebration, you will find these lanterns with red cellophane for sale on streets all around Vietnam.
Young woman takes a photo at Mid Autumn Festival in Vietnam
Moonlit festivities
Children with brilliantly colored lanterns parade their neighborhoods singing songs on the night of the full moon. One guy dancer you will notice sporting a spherical happy-faced mask representing the moon.
With his humorous motions, he cheers the audience and exhorters the lion dancers. Representing the completeness of the planet, this is the planet God, Ông Địa, reminding observers to thank you for all. Ông Địa makes every Vietnamese child smile and be happy.
Mooncakes all across Vietnam
Families welcome Tet Trung Thu throughout Vietnam by arranging cakes and a five-fruit tray on our ancestral altar. Before dining on mooncakes, usually outside under the moon, they present the food to our ancestors and pray.
Round or square, these cakes are sculpted with intricate floral, geometric, carp and geometric patterns.
Moon cakes
The two most often occurring varieties are bánh nướng, baked cakes with a thick wheat crust, and bánh dẻo, soft, sticky cakes with a mochi texture. Vietnamese mooncakes range in taste from apparently endless sweet and savory combinations. You should buy a box of mooncakes to indulge yourself or to present to your Vietnamese hosts and friends.
Lion dancing
An integral part of the Mid Autumn celebrations is lion dancing or múa lân. Children get gathered in groups carrying red lanterns. Everyone joins into the happy Mid Autumn Festival tunes they had learned since their early years.
When a legendary lion breaks into their courtyard, its massive head and sinuous body borne by a troupe of acrobatic dancers, the children shrink back as the larger ones run forward.
Lion dance at Mid Autumn Festival in Vietnam
The lion is both funny and powerful with its gaping mouth and projecting eyes. While the children chuckle at the dancers' antics as they surge nearer the audience. The lion's crimson sequined body sparkles as it moves under the full moon. Not much else compares to this amazing show on Trung Thu for Vietnamese children.
Where is Mid Autumn Festival celebrated in Vietnam?
The Mid-Autumn Festival, or Tết Trung Thu, is celebrated all over Vietnam, but some places stand out:
Hanoi (Old Quarter and Hoan Kiem Lake)
The streets here are filled with colorful lanterns, lively lion dances, and shops selling mooncakes and toys like Hang Ma Street, Phung Hung Street, Dong Xuan Market,.... It’s a must-see if you want to experience the festive vibe in the capital.
Read more: Perfume Pagoda Festival
Hoian (Ancient Town)
Hoian is famous for its lanterns, and during this festival, it gets even more magical. You’ll see lantern parades, folk games, and cultural performances, making it a top choice for both locals and tourists.
Ho Chi Minh City (Chinatown in District 5)
This is one of the busiest places for the festival in the south. There are lion dances, traditional music, and lots of street food stalls selling mooncakes.
Lanterns street
Tuyen Quang
This northern city hosts a huge lantern parade, one of the biggest in Vietnam, attracting many visitors each year.
Hue
In this city, you can see lanterns floating on the Perfume River, traditional dance shows, and a quiet but beautiful celebration.
The Mid Autumn Festival in Vietnam is a celebration full of joy, tradition, and warmth. Wherever you find yourself, don’t miss the chance to join in the festivities, taste local mooncakes, and experience the true spirit of Tet Trung Thu!
If you’re planning to join the festivities and need to rent a car in Vietnam, let contact Vietnam Budget Car Rental. We offer a range of vehicles to make your journey comfortable and convenient by renting a car with driver and self drive services.
Read more: Travel To Vietnam During Tet Holiday
