The travel company Vitours will welcome 32 Australian visitors on a two-week trans-Vietnam tour and the Vietravel company will welcome nearly 50 Chinese and Japanese tourists during the first days of Lunar New Year. Tran Van Long, Director of Vitours said the company leaders will welcome the visitors at the airport and present them with lucky money. They will be introduced to Vietnamese Tet customs and enjoy the traditional dishes served during the holidays. On the first day of New Year, Saigontourist will receive more than 50 foreign visitors from France and Belgium who will tour Chau Doc, Sadec, Vinh Long, My Tho, Ho Chi Minh City and Cu Chi. The SuperStar Aquarius, with more than 2,000 passengers and crew on board ,will also dock at Da Nang port on the same day. VOV … [Read more...] about First foreign visitors in the lunar New Year
Lunar new year
Where to celebrate Lunar New Year parties in Saigon
*Caravelle Hotel The Caravelle Hotel is putting on a mouthwatering Lunar New Year Buffet Dinner of Asian, Western and traditional Tet delicacies at the Nineteen Restaurant on Jan. 22 and 23 with banh chung and banh tet, fish and seafood, grilled and BBQ, and many others. Chefs at the hotel prepare French pastries with classic cream fillings and decadent toppings to delight guests in the Lobby Lounge from Jan. 14-21, featuring seven varieties of choux and eclairs including chocolate cream with poached pear slices and icing sugar, and toffee cream with sliced fresh bananas and broken walnuts. For further information, call 08 3823 4999. *Duxton Hotel From January 20-29, capture the mood of Tet at The Grill with traditional dishes of Tet dinner buffet including braised shark fin chicken soup, Shabu Shabu or Sukiyaki hot pot, baked item with sturgeon spice olive oil, hot dish with Chinese glutinous rice cake, Lap Mei Fanh, braised pork knuckle in dark sauce, traditional Tet sweets and … [Read more...] about Where to celebrate Lunar New Year parties in Saigon
Taiwan promotes firecracker CD for Lunar New Year
Lunar New Year revellers in Taiwan's capital Taipei are to be given free CDs featuring the sound of exploding firecrackers, in the hope of reducing the deafening noise and mess created by the real thing. "Lighting firecrackers will not only cause noise and air pollution but used firecrackers will make the environment dirty. We urge people to refrain from doing it," said the Taipei city government, which is behind the proposal. Setting off firecrackers is an age-old Chinese custom based on the ancient belief that the sound scares off evil spirits to ensure a safe new year. The practice is illegal in Hong Kong, Malaysia and Singapore, where only government-organised firework displays are permitted, but the rules -- mostly imposed for reasons of public safety -- are not always observed. Lunar New Year starts January 22 this year, ushering in the Year of the Dragon. … [Read more...] about Taiwan promotes firecracker CD for Lunar New Year
Small banknotes scarce ahead of Lunar New Year
There will be a short supply of new dong banknotes, especially those with low face values, against rising demand for them for the coming Lunar New Year, local banks have said. As a Vietnamese tradition, adults will grant “li xi,” or lucky money, which is new Vietnamese small bills, to children on the first day of the Lunar New Year (which falls on January 23) as a wish of luck. Some also use the small change to donate to pagodas after worshipping. Hence, demand for exchanging the old bills for new banknotes with face values of VND200, VND500, and up to VND20,000 always soars in the few weeks ahead of Tet. However, many banks said that, since they do not have a large supply of such banknotes this year, they cannot meet all of the demands of customers wishing to exchange the money. An executive of Vietnam International Bank’s branch in Ho Chi Minh City’s District 1 told the Saigon Times Online that her bank will prioritize the exchange of small bills to … [Read more...] about Small banknotes scarce ahead of Lunar New Year
Hue heritage sites open for free on Lunar New Year
The complex of Hue monuments will be open for free during the first three days of the Lunar New Year, on January 23-25, said Phan Thanh Hai, deputy director of the Hue Heritage Preservation Center, on Tuesday. Tourists and locals will have the chance to visit popular attractions like the ancient inner city, An Dinh palace, and the Khai Dinh and Tu Duc tombs free of charge. “This is an annual activity of the center, as a part of the celebration of Lunar New Year,” said Hai. Usually, it costs VND30,000 (US$1.5) for locals and VND55,000 ($3) for foreigners to visit the inner city, and VND10,000 (US 50 cents) extra for admission to An Dinh palace. Established as the capital of Vietnam in 1802, Hue was not only the political but also the cultural and religious center of the country under the Nguyen dynasty until 1945. The complex of Hue monuments features hundreds of monuments and ruins, such as the Forbidden Purple City, the Imperial City, royal tombs, a flag tower, … [Read more...] about Hue heritage sites open for free on Lunar New Year