The time the boat starts operating to serve tourists is 4:30 a.m. According to Lao Dong, the weather is cold and drizzly, so the number of visitors to Huong Son Relic and Scenic Area (My Duc District, Hanoi) is still quite sparse.
At around 6am, the number of tourists started to increase. People wore warm clothes and raincoats, eagerly bought tickets, and took boats to the festival.
This year, the People's Committee of My Duc district has launched the issuance of electronic tickets for sightseeing combined with the use of boat transportation services to reduce inconvenience for tourists. Therefore, the process of buying tickets, checking in, and boarding the boat is quite quick.
To attend the opening ceremony, many visitors from far away had to travel from 2 to 3 am. Ms. Thu Hai (63 years old, Thai Nguyen) shared: "My family took a bus from 2 am from Thai Nguyen to the Huong Pagoda Festival. The weather was cold but the service was very quick, there was no jostling, pushing or soliciting of customers. By 7 am, my family was at Trinh Temple to offer offerings, preparing to go to Thien Tru Pagoda to attend the opening ceremony."
Mr. Nguyen Minh Duc - Deputy Director of Huong Pagoda Tourism Service Cooperative - said that this year, because the festival took place at the beginning of the week, the number of visitors here was less than in previous years. As of 6:00 a.m. on February 3, the number of visitors passing through Thien Tru ticket control station was about 3,000.
Mr. Duc added: "Previously, on January 5 (February 2), many visitors arrived from 4:00 a.m. As of 7:00 a.m., more than 18,000 visitors had passed through the ticket checkpoint out of a total of more than 36,500 visitors that day."
Mr. Duc predicted that on February 3, the number of visitors to the Huong Pagoda festival will be about 16,000.
To prepare for the reception, nearly 4,000 boats of Huong Son Tourism Service Cooperative have been repaired, painted blue, fully equipped with life jackets, trash baskets, sun and rain umbrellas, seats, free drinking water...
The ticket price including entrance fee and boat transportation service on Huong Tich route for adults is 230,000 VND, children is 65,000 VND. Long Van - Tuyet Son route is 85,000 VND for adults and 50,000 VND for children.
For cable car transportation service from Thien Tru Pagoda to Huong Tich Cave, round-trip ticket is 260,000 VND for adults, 180,000 VND for children and priority people.
The one-way fare is 180,000 VND for adults, 120,000 VND for children and priority passengers. The fare for transportation by electric car from the parking lot to the ferry terminal is 20,000 VND/person/trip.
Regarding the parking fee, My Duc district is proposing that Hanoi city allow the collection of fees for passenger cars with less than 9 seats at 30,000 VND/trip, over 10 seats at 50,000 VND/trip, if parked overnight, an additional 20,000 VND/car will be collected.
Huong Pagoda Festival Spring At Ty 2025 officially opens at 8:30 am.
