The fest, running until December 31, is drawing the participation of over 500 local shopping malls, hotels, and restaurants with more than 1,000 stalls offering culinary and entertainment delights.

Shoppers are able to snag value coupons and deals off 10-50 percent and gifts as well as try their luck on lucky draws.

Speaking at the opening ceremony, Director of the municipal Department of Tourism Van Thi Bach Tuyet noted with satisfaction the city’s stable tourism growth, adding that the southern metropolis expects to earn 89 trillion VND (4.2 billion USD) from tourism activity this year, a rise of 7 percent from 2013.

She also promised a series of cruise and land tour packages and cultural-tourism events to attract more visitors to the city, with promotional offers made available.