Excited to spend your vacation in Vietnam on Independence Day? Red flags hung on balconies of houses and vehicles going streets after streets, lines after lines of people at Ba Dinh Square and Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum Complex, smiling Vietnamese and so on. The fun does not stop there! Fireworks shows will also be held for entertainment, celebrating the day Ho Chi Minh declared the independence of the country, proclaiming the Democratic Republic of Vietnam.
Check out the official locations where you can watch the fireworks on Monday, September 2, 2019 from 21:00 – 21:15:
- Hoan Kiem Lake: Hang Trong str., Hoan Kiem dist.
- My Dinh National Stadium: Le Duc Tho rd., Nam Tu Liem dist.
- Thong Nhat Park: 354A Le Duan rd., Dong Da dist.
- Van Quan Lake: Van Quan urban area, Van Quan, Ha Dong dist.
- Ly Tu Trong Park: 2 Thuy Khue rd., Ba Dinh dist.
- The grandstand: Eastside of Han River Bridge
- Han River Bridge: An Hai, Son Tra
- Cruise on the river:
- Dragon Bridge: Nguyen Van Linh str., Hai Chau dist.
- Thu Thiem Bridge: Over Saigon River, linking 2 dist. and Binh Thanh dist.
- Nguyen Hue Walking Street: 22 Nguyen Hue, 1 dist.
- Bach Dang Wharf: 5A-10, Ton Duc Thang rd., 1 dist.
Reminder: Keep in mind that since this is a national holiday, the streets will be packed with people. Therefore, take note of the following:
- Go to the spot you want early to keep the spot. Usually, people start coming from 6:00 – 7:00 pm to ensure they get a good one.
- Leave your riches at home if you intend to join the crowd. Pickpockets will not only pry at your belongings, but dangerous incidents may ensue as well, which none of us would want, right?
- Scammers are to be expected as well. If you listen to ABBA, listen to these AABB and ABBB too: Always Ask Before Buying and Always Bargain Before Buying.
This is especially the case at parking lots near the fireworks show locations, Hoan Kiem Lake for example. Ask them the price before parking your motorcycle. If it is too pricey, try to bargain; or else, go to somewhere else farther from the location, then walk back later. For reference, it should cost 15,000 VND – 20,000 VND top ($0.65 – $0.86). Check out our guide to dealing with scams in Vietnam for more details. - If you do not use a personal vehicle to travel to the scene, the bad news is that you can hardly catch a taxi after the fireworks show. Why so? Because everyone wants one!
Hence, you can either choose to party through the night and not have to worry about going home or call your Grab ride/taxi/horseman beforehand to make sure you will have a ride home. Another option is to take the bus. If you are in Hanoi, usually the last bus is at 10:30. However, on holidays like this, more buses will be running around town taking you home. Download the application “timbus” to know when the next bus comes!
In short, stay safe and enjoy this Independence Day in Vietnam! The atmosphere here is like no other you have felt before.
