Tết Nguyên Tiêu in Hội An: the first full moon festival and national heritage

What Nguyên Tiêu is

Tết Nguyên Tiêu, also called Tết Thượng Nguyên, is the festival of the first full moon of the lunar year, and Hội An's heritage centre says local people have long treated it as "cái Tết sau Tết", the Tết after Tết, the moment that opens a smooth and peaceful year.[1] The museum system's article on the festival explains the name: "nguyên" is first and "tiêu" is night, so Nguyên Tiêu is the first full-moon night of the year. In popular belief it is the day the heavenly officials hand out blessings, which is why it combines rites asking for good fortune with festivities before the working year begins.[4]

The same article describes it as the creative inheritance of many generations of Hội An people and, in particular, a blending of Vietnamese and Chinese culture.[4] The centre's 2026 notice says the Hội An festival grew from local Vietnamese tradition through exchange with China and Japan, which gives it features unlike the festival elsewhere in Vietnam and Asia.[2]

Where the rites happen

The heart of the festival is a set of temples, halls and communal houses in and around the old town. The centre's 2026 notice names Chùa Ông, Chùa Bà, the Chinese assembly halls, the đình (communal houses), clan houses and other relics.[1] Its programme for 2026 gave specific places for specific rites:

• Chùa Ông and Chùa Bà, at 24 Trần Phú, for incense and prayers for good fortune over the 15th and 16th of the month.[2]
• The Quảng Triệu, Triều Châu and Phúc Kiến assembly halls, đình Sơn Phong, Tụy Tiên đường Minh Hương, đình Hội An and Chùa Cầu, for the Nguyên Tiêu offerings and the rite for the founders (Tiền hiền) on the 16th.[2]

The museum system's article adds that for the Quảng Triệu and Triều Châu communities the day is also their founders' rite and annual gathering of descendants. After the rites come lion dances, singing and a lottery. Buddhist pagodas hold their own ceremonies, and village shrines make offerings for the year's harvest.[4]

The centre's festival notices give the same address, 24 Trần Phú, for "Chùa Ông" and for "Quan Công miếu".[2][1] XTOUR's reading is that Chùa Ông is the Quan Công Temple. The Vietnamese heritage words article explains the words chùa, đình and miếu.

What else happens during the festival

Around the rites, the centre programmes performances. In 2026 its notice listed Tuồng (classical theatre) at đình Hội An on the evenings of the 14th and 15th. It listed Bài chòi games at the Nguyễn Thái Học and Bạch Đằng roundabout on the evenings of the 14th to 16th, a photo exhibition about the festival on Nguyễn Huệ beside Chùa Ông, and a parade on the morning of the 16th.[2] The Bài chòi article explains the game.

The festival also changes how the old town works. The 2026 notice said no sightseeing tickets would be sold at Chùa Ông, Chùa Bà, the Quảng Triệu and Triều Châu halls, Tụy Tiên đường Minh Hương and đình Hội An during the festival. It also said the pedestrian zone would be extended to more streets on the morning of the 16th.[2] These were 2026 rules; the old-town ticket guide covers the ticket in normal times.

National heritage since 2023

The Hội An museum system says that on 2 February 2023 the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism issued Decision 147/QĐ-BVHTTDL. The decision added "Tết Nguyên tiêu ở Hội An" to the national list of intangible cultural heritage, under the type traditional festivals, social practices and beliefs. The same article calls it the fifth national intangible heritage listing for Hội An.[4]

Báo Văn Hóa, the culture newspaper, reported the ceremony at which the city received the certificate, held at đình Hội An on 5 February 2023. It gave the element's full name as "Lễ hội truyền thống, tập quán xã hội và tín ngưỡng Tết Nguyên Tiêu ở Hội An".[5] Its account of that year's parade gives a sense of the festival's geography. The route started at đình Sơn Phong, passed the Triều Châu and Hải Nam halls, Tụy Tiên đường Minh Hương, Chùa Ông, the Phước Kiến, Ngũ Bang and Quảng Triệu halls, Chùa Cầu and đình Cẩm Phô, and ended at đình Hội An.[5] This is a national listing, not a UNESCO one; the intangible heritage article covers what UNESCO lists for Vietnam.

The 2026 notices disagree on the dates

Three of the centre's notices give dates for the 2026 festival, and they do not give the same span. Its Lunar New Year notice of 28 January 2026 said the Nguyên Tiêu festival would run from 2 to 4 March 2026, the 14th to 16th of the first lunar month.[3] Its notice of 26 February 2026, which cites the centre's own plan for the festival, gave 26 February to 4 March, the 10th to 16th of the month.[2] Its notice of 3 March 2026 went back to 2 to 4 March.[1] XTOUR's reading is that the main days are the 14th to 16th, with some activities starting earlier, but the notices do not say so in those words.

They also disagree on the morning of the 16th. The 3 March notice put the incense offering and parade at 08:30 at đình Hội An and Quan Công miếu.[1] The 26 February notice gave a parade from 09:00 to 10:00, from đình Hội An through the old town to Chùa Ông and on to 08 Hoàng Diệu.[2] All of these dates are now history.

Not the monthly lantern night

Hội An has a separate monthly event that is easy to confuse with Nguyên Tiêu. The centre says its "Đêm phố cổ", a recreation of the early 20th-century old town lit by candles and lanterns, is held on the night of the 14th of every lunar month.[6] In 2026 that night fell inside the festival: the centre's programme placed "Đêm phố cổ" on the 14th of the first month, 2 March.[2] The rest of the year it is a monthly event of its own, not a festival.

What XTOUR does not know

As of 11 October 2026 the heritage centre's homepage still listed the 2026 notices and no notice for 2027.[7] XTOUR does not know the 2027 dates or programme, crowd levels, or whether the 2026 ticket and street arrangements will be repeated. For the town, see the Hội An destination page; for the wider New Year, the Tết Nguyên Đán article.