Hoan Kiem Lake hosts Hanoi Creative Design Festival from 13 November
Published on 11/14/2026 at 19:37 | Editorial responsibility: Rafael Müller, Editor-in-Chief AD HOC NEWSFestival programme and lake setting
- The Hanoi Creative Design Festival 2026 opened beside the eastern square on 13 November.
- The water-stage production brought together 110 performers and traditional Vietnamese arts.
- The 2026 programme places exhibitions and creative fairs around Hoan Kiem Lake.
The Hanoi Creative Design Festival 2026 opened at Hoan Kiem Lake (Hoan Kiem) in Hanoi on 13 November, placing the capital's best-known urban lake at the centre of a 16-day cultural programme. The festival continues through 28 November across five cultural, heritage and creative areas in Vietnam.
A 16-day festival opens beside the eastern square
The opening took place at the eastern square beside the water. Hanoi's authorities presented the festival under the theme Creative Economy, with the title Thang Long Ke Nghe and a programme intended to connect traditional craft, contemporary design, art, technology and public space.
The festival includes 150 activities and brings together nearly 1,000 artisans, artists, designers and experts from Vietnam and abroad. The programme is spread across five areas, including the eastern square, the Old Quarter, Dong Xuan Market, Hang Dau Water Tower and Thong Nhat Park. The official festival account also records the launch of HanoiGo, a digital culture and tourism platform, during the opening ceremony.
The eastern square hosts Art Hanoi 2026, an exhibition involving 11 artists, alongside the Crafts & Arts and Makers Market fairs, which bring together more than 200 creative units. Other festival sites include heritage buildings, theatres, historic cinemas, a market and a city park, giving the event a wider setting than the lakeside stage alone.
Water-stage performance connects lake and festival theme
The opening night linked the festival directly to the lake through Thang Long Ke Nghe, an artistic production staged on a contemporary water-based platform beside the eastern square. The performance featured 110 performers and eight works arranged in three acts.
Traditional forms including cheo, tuong, ca tru, xam and quan ho were combined with opera, beatboxing, hip-hop, contemporary dance and electronic music. This connection between the water setting and the programme's craft theme gives visitors a specific way to encounter the festival's stated meeting of inherited culture and contemporary creativity.
The festival's wider programme includes exhibitions, performances, interactive activities, fairs and more than 10 talks and workshops. At Dong Xuan Market, the Touching Dong Xuan exhibition runs from 14 to 28 November, while two creative pavilions at Thong Nhat Park are scheduled to open on 21 November. The festival programme details place these activities within the same 13 to 28 November schedule.
Why Hoan Kiem Lake matters to Hanoi's public spaces
The lake sits in central Hanoi, where the eastern square, pedestrian areas and nearby Old Quarter create a compact setting for cultural activity. Its role in the festival is therefore practical as well as symbolic: the opening performance uses the water itself, while exhibitions and fairs occupy the adjoining public square.
The 2026 programme also shows how the lake is being treated as part of a connected cultural district rather than as an isolated viewpoint. Visitors can move from the eastern square towards the Old Quarter, Dong Xuan Market and other named venues, although the programme remains distributed across the city.
For Western European travellers, the festival offers a current reason to include central Hanoi in a November itinerary. The most direct lake-related programme is at the eastern square, while the festival's other activities require checking the individual venue before setting out.
Visiting Hoan Kiem Lake: what travellers from Western Europe should know
- The Hanoi Creative Design Festival runs from 13 November to 28 November 2026, with its opening venue at the eastern square beside Hoan Kiem Lake.
- The lake-side festival programme is open as a public cultural programme, while exhibitions, performances and workshops take place at separate named venues across Hanoi.
- The venue is in central Hanoi, and the wider programme includes the Old Quarter, Dong Xuan Market, Hang Dau Water Tower and Thong Nhat Park.
- Vietnam's official language is Vietnamese and its national currency is the dong.
- Entry requirements depend on your nationality; UK travellers can check the FCDO travel advice at gov.uk/foreign-travel-advice, Irish travellers the Department of Foreign Affairs at ireland.ie.
Searching for Hoan Kiem Lake on social platforms
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Frequently asked questions about Hoan Kiem Lake
When does the Hanoi Creative Design Festival take place at Hoan Kiem Lake?
The festival runs from 13 November to 28 November 2026, with the opening at the eastern square beside the lake on 13 November.
What is Hoan Kiem Lake?
It is a lake in central Hanoi and a setting for the eastern square, pedestrian areas and cultural activities included in the 2026 festival programme.
Where is Hoan Kiem Lake and how do you get there?
Hoan Kiem Lake is in central Hanoi. The festival's named venues include the eastern square, the Old Quarter, Dong Xuan Market, Hang Dau Water Tower and Thong Nhat Park.
