The Ho Chi Minh City will host its annual festival to honour áo dài (Vietnamese traditional dress), which is known as the symbol of feminine beauty in Vietnam, during March 3^rd-25^th.

Miss Vietnam 2016 Do My Linh (second from left) will be the ambassador of the 2018 Áo Dài Festival, held from March 3-25 in Ho Chi Minh City. (VNS Photo by Anh Vũ)

The 2018 Áo Dài Festival, themed "I Love Vietnamese Áo Dài", will feature several cultural activities to promote traditional cultural values as well as the beauty and grace of the costume, according to the city’s tourism authority, the event’s organiser.

The organiser will invite Miss Vietnam 2016 Do My Linh to be the festival’s ambassador.

The event will open with a fashion show featuring designs from the latest collections by Vietnamese leading áo dài designers such as Si Hoang, Thuan Viet and Vo Viet Chung.

The show will also include music performances by pop stars and young singers, which will be held at Nguyen Hue Pedestrian Street in District 1 on March 3^rd.

A parade of more than 3,000 people in the traditional dress will take place at the pedestrian street as well.

Several exhibitions will open at the Youth Cultural House, Women’s Cultural House, Museum of Southern Women, and General Science Library during the festival.

They will showcase áo dài designs from the past to the present, as well as photos of the costume

When visiting these exhibitions, people will enjoy áo dài tailoring services offered by skilled designers from more than 20 garment and textile companies and fashion houses as well as learn to make the costume.

The organiser will also set up a stall at Tan Son Nhat International Airport to offer visitors free vouchers for áo dài tailoring and free tickets for the festival’s activities.

Dozens of workshops and talk shows on the dress will be held at the city’s cultural houses and schools during the festival.

Last year, the festival attracted more than 70,000 foreign and local visitors./.

VNF/VNS