This is one of the signature events in the “Five-season Festival” series of the Sa Pa National Tourist Area.
This year’s event coincides with Lao Cai Province hosting the 12th Economic Corridor Cooperation Conference of five provinces and cities, including Lao Cai, Ha Noi, Hai Phong, and Quang Ninh in Viet Nam, and Yunnan Province in China. This convergence fosters greater opportunities for cultural and tourism exchanges, alongside stronger regional connectivity.
Highlights of this year’s festivities include the first Northwest Brocade Carnival, the Ban May Golden Season Festival, the “Golden Colours on the Clouds” programme, and the recreation of a highland market and Sa Pa love market.
Speaking at the opening ceremony, Dang Viet Dung, Standing Vice Chairman of the Sa Pa Ward People’s Committee, emphasised that the Autumn Festival 2026 serves as a vital platform to showcase the landscape, cultural, and human values of Sa Pa, while contributing to diversifying tourism products and developing the destination in a modern direction while strictly preserving its core identity.
Sa Pa is prioritising infrastructure development, service quality enhancement, cultural preservation, and environmental protection, all aimed at transforming the town into an international-level resort tourism hub, striving to welcome more than 12 million visitors by 2030.
Right after the opening ceremony, thousands of residents and tourists enjoyed a spectacular art programme themed “Sa Pa — Autumn returns to the heritage land”, performed in three chapters: Chapter 1, “Sa Pa welcomes autumn”; Chapter 2, “Sa Pa — the land of love”; and Chapter 3, “Sa Pa — autumn colours of integration”.
Through the festival, Sa Pa Ward hopes to bring residents and visitors fresh and captivating experiences during the ripening rice season, while showcasing the distinctive cultural heritage of ethnic communities.
It also aims to further enrich both its specialised autumn tourism offerings and its broader tourism sector, linking tourism development with cultural preservation and environmental protection, and gradually affirming its position as a leading destination in Viet Nam and the region.
