Vice Chairman of the provincial People’s Committee and head of the festival’s organising board Nguyen Dung said the Hue Festival aims to promote art exchanges among cultures and introducing unique values of the culture of Vietnam and Hue, thus boosting service-tourism growth and strengthening socio-economic development of Thua Thien-Hue.

So far art troupes from 21 countries have registered to perform at the week-long event alongside domestic artistic delegations. 

The festival this year will direct the spotlight on the city’s five world heritages which are the Hue Complex of Monuments, Hue Royal Court Music, Woodblocks of Nguyen Dynasty (1802-1945), Nguyen Dynasty's royal documents and the royal literature on Hue royal architecture.

As Hue served as the imperial city under the Nguyen Dynasty (1802-1945), the festival will reenact royal celebrations and events such as Royal Night, Orient Legends and the Nam Giao ritual.

Many side events will also be held, such as the International Gastronomy Fair, a beer carnival, an international trade fair, a traditional boat race on Huong (Perfume) River, a kite festival, and the Hue Poetry Festival.

Several exhibitions will introduce to visitors the poetry on Hue royal architectural works inscribed on truc chi (bamboo pulp) paper, the beauty of orchids and bonsai, and cultural heritage with integration and development.

Hue Festival has taken place every two years starting from 2000, bringing together excellent arts companies with unique performances from across the world.

This year, the province hopes to welcome about 4.2 million visitors, up 10 percent year on year, and earn tourism revenue of 4.2 billion VND, a rise of 15 percent.