About 8 kilometers southeast of central Hue, a small covered bridge over the Nhu Y River (Nhui River) regains the bustle of a market of old only between June 27 and 30. At the foot of the Thanh Toan tile-roofed bridge, nearly 250 years old since its construction, an old-fashioned \"country market\" is held. It's one of the events of Hue Festival 2026: thatched-roof stalls line up around the bridge, local dishes steam by the riverside, and the singing of the traditional game bai choi echoes. If you're planning to visit Hue, these four days are worth going out of your way for. That's because it's one of the few chances to touch a rural Hue, entirely different from the crowded royal palace and temples.<\/p>\n
This country market is organized as part of the Hue Festival 2026 program that continues from April to June. The venue is the community tourism area of the Thanh Toan tile-roofed bridge. The usually quiet rural bridge transforms into an old-fashioned \"country market\" for just four days. What's sold is all plain fare \u2014 glutinous rice from Thuy Phu, local sweets, and things served at the riverside stalls like banh canh (thick rice-flour noodles) and sweet corn desserts \u2014 not tourist-priced souvenirs. Mats are laid out on the bridge and along the riverbank, and locals and travelers shop and dine side by side. It has the feel of the village's very way of life being opened up just a little to view, rather than a show built up for tourists.<\/p>\n
The bridge itself tells the background of this market. The Thanh Toan bridge was built in 1776. For the sake of farmers who struggled with a waterway that split the village in two, Tran Thi Dao, a woman of the local prominent Tran family, built it with her private funds. She was the wife of a high official of the Le dynasty and had no children, and it's said she poured what would have gone to them into contributing to her home region. The bridge, about 17 meters long and 4 meters wide, made of wood, brick, and tile, has a distinctive construction of \"a bridge under a house\" with seven sections under the roof, and an altar is set up inside. In 1990 it was designated a national cultural heritage site. Next to the bridge is a small museum gathering farm tools, where you can see demonstrations of rice pounding and old farm work. The market's liveliness is an extension of this bridge remaining the center of village life for 250 years.<\/p>\n
Here we organize the figures worth noting for planning your itinerary. All have been confirmed to match across multiple Hue tourism sources.<\/p>\n