Tet (Vietnamese Lunar New Year): What Travelers Need to Know
Tet, or Vietnamese Lunar New Year, is the country’s biggest holiday of the year, a multi-day national celebration when much of Vietnam shuts down so people can travel home and celebrate with family. In 2027, the first day of Tet falls on February 6. Some family-run restaurants, small shops, and local services close for several days around it, while major hotels, airports, and larger attractions generally stay open. Here’s what to actually expect if your trip overlaps with it.
When Is Tet in 2027?
The first day of Tet in 2027 falls on February 6, marking the start of the Year of the Goat. Because Tet follows the lunar calendar, the date shifts every year rather than falling on a fixed day, and it typically lands somewhere between late January and mid-February. The government sets the official multi-day public holiday schedule a few months in advance, so if your trip lands close to this window, it’s worth confirming the exact closure dates again as your travel date gets nearer, since businesses sometimes extend their own closures a day or two beyond the official schedule.
What Actually Closes During Tet?
Family-run restaurants and street-food stalls are the most likely to close, often for the better part of a week, since these are frequently run by the same family that’s traveling to celebrate. Local markets, small shops, banks, and government offices also close for the official holiday period. This is the single biggest impact on travelers who are used to relying on street food and small local businesses for meals.
What Stays Open During Tet?
Major hotels keep running, including their restaurants, and airports and most flights continue to operate, though both flights and hotels tend to be busier and more expensive around the holiday. Larger supermarkets and convenience store chains usually stay open, sometimes with reduced hours on the peak days. Bigger tourist attractions and international restaurant chains also tend to stay open, generally with reduced staff.
| Period | What to Expect |
|---|---|
| Before Tet (days prior) | Streets decorated, flower markets in full swing, festive but still normal business |
| During Tet (peak days) | Quietest days in cities, most closures, locals traveling home, higher flight and hotel demand |
| After Tet (following days) | Businesses reopen gradually over about a week, festive atmosphere continues, lucky-money customs visible |
TTC Verdict: Visiting Vietnam during Tet is a real trade-off. You’ll see decorations, flower markets, and a festive atmosphere you can’t get at any other time of year, but expect higher flight and hotel prices, far fewer street-food options, and quieter big cities as locals travel home. If you want maximum food and street-life energy, avoid the exact peak days; if you want the cultural spectacle, lean into it.
Wrapping banh chung for Tet: This is Thảo / CC BY-SA 4.0
Should You Avoid Visiting Vietnam During Tet?
Not necessarily, it depends on your travel style. If you’d rather see a country at its liveliest and don’t mind planning around some closures, Tet can be a genuinely memorable time to visit. If your priority is street food, small local eateries, and predictable transportation, it’s harder going, and flights and hotels both book up and cost more around the holiday than at other times of year.
What Is Banh Chung, and Why Does It Show Up Everywhere During Tet?
Banh chung is a square sticky rice cake wrapped in banana leaves, filled with mung bean paste and fatty pork, then boiled for many hours. It’s traditionally made in the days leading up to Tet, often by families wrapping and cooking a batch together, and it shows up on altars, at family meals, and as gifts throughout the holiday period. Seeing a household in the middle of wrapping banh chung in late January or early February is one of the clearest signs Tet is close.
Banh chung: Syced / CC0
The first day of Tet in 2027 falls on February 6, the start of the Year of the Goat.
They follow the same lunar calendar system and usually fall on the same date or very close to it, but Tet is Vietnam’s own distinct holiday with its own customs, foods, and traditions.
It depends on your travel style. Tet offers a festive, decorated atmosphere you won’t see at other times of year, but expect higher flight and hotel prices and far fewer small restaurants and shops open.
Family-run restaurants, street-food stalls, local markets, small shops, banks, and government offices are the most likely to close, typically for several days around the holiday.
Yes. Both tend to be busier and more expensive around Tet than at other times of year, so booking earlier than usual is worth it if your trip overlaps with the holiday.
