LÀO CAI — The 2026 Suối Giàng Shan Tuyết Tea Festival will take place from October 16 to 18 in Văn Chấn Commune, Lào Cai Province, with multiple cultural and tourism activities to promote the area's ancient tea trees, local tea products and ethnic cultural traditions.

During the three-day festival, visitors can explore a highland specialties fair and Shan Tuyết tea displays, sample local dishes at a highland food market, and enjoy traditional cultural performances and folk games.

A ceremony honouring the ancestral tea tree will be held on the morning of October 17 in Pang Cáng Village. The festival's opening ceremony is scheduled for 8am, on the same day, in Suối Giàng Village.

The programme will also include a livestream of traditional tea roasting to promote and sell Shan Tuyết tea products, followed by a Shan Tuyết tea banquet and a show featuring traditional ethnic costumes in the evening.

On October 18, visitors can take part in tea-picking contests in Suối Giàng, Pang Cáng and Văn Chấn villages.

The festival aims to honour traditional tea cultivation and processing, promote the Suối Giàng Shan Tuyết tea brand, connect producers with markets, attract visitors and develop tourism while preserving local culture.

Located 1,300-1,400m above sea level, Suối Giàng has a mild climate and favourable natural conditions. The area is inhabited mainly by the Mông people, whose distinctive cultural traditions have been preserved through generations.

Thousands of ancient Shan Tuyết tea trees, some hundreds of years old, continue to thrive and are a source of pride for local residents. Tea is closely linked to the Mông people's livelihoods and cultural and spiritual life, as well as their cuisine. Dishes made with Shan Tuyết tea leaves are among the local specialties that visitors can enjoy in Suối Giàng. — VNS