Da Nang's Marble Mountains host the Vu Lan festival — three days of ancestor remembrance overlapping with Japan's Obon

At the Marble Mountains (Ngu Hanh Son), a UNESCO-listed site in central Da Nang, the Vu Lan festival (Le hoi Vu Lan bao hieu) will be held from August 20 to 22. It's a Buddhist observance honoring deceased parents and ancestors, rooted in the same Ullambana tradition as Japan's Obon. For anyone traveling through central Vietnam over the National Day holiday, or Japanese residents living in Da Nang, it's a chance to witness three days of seasonal prayer.

This article, for travelers and residents planning to be in Da Nang in late August, covers what the festival involves and how to get to the Marble Mountains.

Opens 7:30am on August 21, sending off ancestors in front of a cave shaped like the underworld

This year's Vu Lan festival, hosted by the city of Da Nang, takes place in front of and inside Am Phu Cave (Dong Am Phu) on Thuy Son, the main peak of the Marble Mountains. Am Phu is a stalactite cave shaped like the underworld, its stone carvings depicting scenes of hell and paradise. As a stage for honoring ancestors, the setting itself carries real weight.

The festival runs three days, corresponding to the 9th and 10th of the seventh lunar month. The opening ceremony is set for 7:30am on August 21. The program includes Hung tac, a rite that opens the service, ceremonies chanting sutras before the Buddha, recitation of the Ksitigarbha Sutra, and, on the morning of the 22nd, an alms-round by monks in ancient dress along with an offering ceremony for monks. The venue also features a cultural space called "Memories of the Seventh Month" (Ky uc thang Bay), talks on Buddhist teachings, and a ceremony where a rose is pinned to the chest in honor of one's parents. It combines Buddhist ritual with a cultural-exchange camp, designed for people to spend time there, not just pay a quick visit.

From Obon to the story of Muc Kien Lien saving his mother — Vu Lan and Obon trace back to the same sutra

Vu Lan is a shortened form of Vu lan bon (Ullambana), sharing its roots with the Japanese word "Obon." Both trace back to the Sanskrit Ullambana and the story of the Buddha's disciple Mokuren (Muc Kien Lien in Vietnamese), who saves his mother from the realm of hungry ghosts through an act of merit. Different countries, but the same underlying framework: welcoming and honoring ancestors in the seventh month. Japan's Obon falls in mid-August by the solar calendar, while Vietnam sets its date by the lunar calendar, so the timing shifts from year to year.

One striking custom at the Da Nang festival is pinning a fresh rose to the chest. A red rose is worn if one's mother is still living, a white rose if she has passed away. It's a quiet ritual that lets a single flower show which is true for you, and a glance at attendees' chests reveals something of each person's life. Vietnam's main Vu Lan observance falls on the 15th day of the seventh lunar month, which is August 27 this year. The Marble Mountains event serves as a lead-in to that main occasion.

Around the same time each summer, Da Nang has also helda Vietnam–Japan cultural festival featuring Bon Odori dancing— an event where Japanese culture crosses over. It's possible to watch, in the same city, events honoring ancestors rise up side by side in both countries.

The Marble Mountains: 8km from the city, a limestone range climbable for a 40,000-dong entry fee

The Marble Mountains are a group of five limestone peaks standing about 8km southeast of central Da Nang, along the coast. They take their name from the five elements — metal, wood, water, fire, and earth — and Thuy Son (the "water" mountain), the stage for the Vu Lan festival, is dotted with temples and caves.

There are two ways up: climbing the stone steps from the base, or taking a paid elevator partway up. Entry is 40,000 dong (about 230 yen), and the elevator is 15,000 dong (about 86 yen) one way. Gates are open from 7am to 5:30pm. Am Phu Cave lies down a stairway in the dark, with wet, slippery footing, so wear shoes you can walk in comfortably.

Dong-to-yen figures are estimated at roughly 175 dong per yen.

If fitting this in before the holiday, an early-morning visit is easiest to manage

• Dates: August 20–22 (opening ceremony 7:30am on the 21st, alms-round on the morning of the 22nd)
• Location: In front of and inside Am Phu Cave, Thuy Son, Marble Mountains (about 8km from central Da Nang)
• Cost: 40,000 dong entry, 15,000 dong one-way for the elevator
• Hours: 7:00am–5:30pm. Daytime sun is strong, so a morning visit is cooler and easier
• Dress: As this is a temple, wear clothing that covers shoulders and knees, and shoes with good grip for the stone steps and cave
• Timing: Just before the holiday leading up to National Day on September 2. Fits into the same central-Vietnam itinerary as Hoi An or My Son

Some visitors hesitate to join an ancestor-remembrance event as a foreigner, but the Marble Mountains are a place where worship and sightseeing mix as a matter of course, and quietly putting your hands together isn't out of place.A meal shared around the round tray, mamas that article touched on, Vietnamese ancestor worship is closely tied to family meals. Encountering the scent of incense along the way makes that connection feel real.

Climb up in time for the morning opening on August 21, and light incense at Am Phu Cave while it's still cool

The Marble Mountains' Vu Lan festival closes with the alms-round on the morning of August 22. If you're in Da Nang from the 20th to the 22nd, the easiest plan is to climb Thuy Son first thing to match the opening on the morning of the 21st, light a stick of incense at Am Phu Cave, and head back down while it's still cool. For a central-Vietnam trip over the holiday,mooncakes that appear on shelves earlymake a good choice as an offering for ancestors or a souvenir, letting the seventh month's season of prayer stay with the trip.

Sources

• Da Nang City Portal — Marble Mountains Vu Lan Festival 2026 to be held August 20–22
• Vietnam Tourism — Vu Lan Festival