On the evening of April 25, the art program “Enchanting Imperial Palace” will officially open at Hue Imperial Citadel. Combining royal court art with modern technology, the program promises to offer visitors a fresh and immersive experience. At the same time, it serves as an important pilot step in developing a night-time economy linked to heritage.

On the afternoon of April 24, at the Nguyen Dynasty’s Privy Council (Co Mat Vien - Tam Toa), Hue Monuments Conservation Center held an online signing ceremony for a scientific and cultural cooperation agreement with the Quai Branly - Jacques Chirac Museum (France), opening an additional channel to access international archival resources for heritage conservation.

On the morning of April 24, at the Royal Treasury Palace area - Hue Imperial Citadel, the “Exhibition and display of orchids, bonsai, and ornamental stones of the three regions 2026” officially opened as part of Hue Festival 2026, attracting a large number of locals and visitors.

In March, as late spring draws to a close and gives way to the first heat of early summer, the parasol trees in the Imperial Palace burst into bloom. Their canopies of soft pink-purple flowers, scattered across an ancient expanse of deep green, create a poetic and dreamlike landscape that captivates all who visit.

On the evening of April 25, the “Mystical Imperial Palace” art program will officially launch at Hue Imperial Citadel, kicking off a series of engaging activities within the framework of Hue Festival 2026. The program will run from April 25 to 28, starting at 8:00 p.m. every night, and it will be free of charge for both residents and visitors.

Within the cultural complex of Hue, if the system of palaces and royal tombs defines the face of an Imperial capital, the villages along the lagoon and coastline preserve the depth of community life. There, heritage does not lie dormant in the past but lives on in every festival season, every daily custom, and every belief tied to the natural environment. The Cau Ngu Festival of Thai Duong village, held once every three years in January at the Thuan An seaport, is precisely such a heritage - a vibrant cultural practice where community memory, maritime knowledge, and the will to survive have woven together into an enduring whole across hundreds of years.

After nearly 80 years during which only its foundational vestiges survived, Dien Can Chanh (Palace of Diligent Governance) - the central venue for major political activities of the Nguyen Dynasty - is being prepared for restoration on a rigorous scientific basis.

I visited An Dinh Palace on a warm, sunny early spring day. Not counting the respectful foreign visitors pausing before each artifact, I figured that among the more than 20 young people bustling about in ao-dai, with flowers, striking various poses for photos, few knew that they were standing very close to the remnants of a famous theater from the end of the Nguyen Dynasty that has now completely disappeared: Cuu Tu Dai.

On the morning of February 11 (December 24th in the Year of the Snake), at the courtyard of the Thai Hoa Palace (Hue Imperial Citadel), the Hue Monuments Conservation Centre organized a reenactment of the Nguyen Dynasty’s Imperial New Year court ceremony. The event attracted large numbers of local residents and visitors, helping to recreate the traditional Lunar New Year atmosphere within the historic royal court setting.

On the evening of February 11 (the 24th day of the 12th lunar month of the Year of the Snake), in the shimmering garden setting of the Royal Treasury Palace, Hue Imperial Citadel, Hue Monuments Conservation Center organized the “Royal Tet” program, opening a spring celebration space rich in ancient royal tradition. Being held over two nights, February 11 and 12, the program attracted a large number of locals and visitors.