The 2026 Gong Festival and Wild Sunflower Week at Chu Dang Ya volcano opened on the morning of October 30 at the communal house in Ia Gri Village, Bien Ho Commune, Gia Lai Province. The hills were covered with yellow wild sunflowers, attracting visitors from the province and other areas.
Visitors can see the flowers and experience Central Highlands culture through gong performances, xoang dancing and the traditional textiles of the Jrai people.
The original communal house in Ia Gri Village was also completed for the occasion. The Jrai community held a formal ceremony to bless the new building, reflecting the cultural and spiritual life of local residents.
Another event in the program is the Gia Lai City Trail, titled The Dream of the Great Highlands, which is expected to attract about 3,500 athletes from Vietnam and other countries.
Organizers ask visitors not to pick the flowers
To preserve the landscape during the festival, organizers asked residents and visitors not to pick or break wild sunflowers along roads and in sightseeing areas.
Ia Gri Village head Anh Pyui said local officials had visited homes to ask residents not to pick flowers along the main roads and the route to Chu Dang Ya volcano to make bouquets for visitors or use them in photographs.
According to Anh Pyui, residents may pick flowers in their fields as long as this does not affect the overall landscape around Chu Dang Ya volcano and nearby areas.
Nguyen Hoang Oanh, a visitor from Ho Chi Minh City, said this was her first visit to Gia Lai during the wild sunflower season, although she had visited the province several times. “It is really beautiful! The weather is wonderful too. Coming to Gia Lai and the highlands at this time of year is truly enjoyable,” she said.
Trinh Van Sang, chairman of the Bien Ho Commune People's Committee, said the area has natural attractions including Bien Ho Lake, Chu Dang Ya volcano, green tea hills, century-old pine trees and traditional villages with distinctive cultural identities. It also preserves many cultural values of the Jrai people.
Sang said the program helps promote the area's natural scenery, traditional culture and local products, while creating opportunities for artisans, residents, businesses and visitors to meet and connect.
The 2026 Gong Festival and Wild Sunflower Week at Chu Dang Ya volcano runs from October 30 to November 8 in Pleiku Ward and Bien Ho Commune, Gia Lai Province. The program combines Central Highlands gong culture with ecotourism activities, OCOP product displays, a coffee culture space, sports and folk games.
Sources: Thanh Niên
