Dak Lak, a land that has established its brand through not a few distinctive Central Highlands festivals such as the Coffee Festival, Durian Festival and Elephant racing, is now entering a broader cultural space with both sea and forest. Within this context, the Tuna Festival is expected to become a new catalyst, opening an additional pathway for Dak Lak’s tourism to make a breakthrough.

According to the Dak Lak Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism, from late April to early May, coinciding with the April 30 and May 1 public holidays, a unique festival will be held in the eastern part of the province, the Tuna Festival themed “The essence of golden longline - Aspiration to reach the open sea”.

Professional chefs performing oceanic tuna filleting techniques.

The event is being prepared on an accelerated schedule, with the aim not only of honouring the oceanic tuna fishing profession but also of promoting the potentials of the marine economy linked to local specialities, marking a new stage of development for the province’s tourism sector.

A highlight of the festival will be a special artistic programme entitled “The essence of golden longline - Aspiration to reach the open sea”. The festival space will also host trade promotion activities and investment connectivity. This will be an opportunity for enterprises to introduce products, processing, preservation and export technologies for tuna, while also serving as a venue for signing cooperation agreements, expanding markets, building value chains towards national branding, and working towards the registration of geographical indication for “Dak Lak tuna” in the future.

The Tuna Festival is expected to create an inspiring, creative check-in space that attracts large numbers of visitors to Dak Lak.

Oceanic tuna arriving at Dong Tac port, Phu Yen ward.

Visitors will be able to admire artistic works telling stories of the tuna fishing profession through light and imagery. Within the festival framework, there will be a focal culinary space displaying, introducing and serving a wide range of distinctive dishes made from oceanic tuna. Professional chefs will perform live tuna filleting, allowing visitors to directly experience the flavours of the sea.

Ngo Van Dinh, Vice Chairman of the Phu Yen Tourism Association, expressed his pleasure at the Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism organising the Tuna Festival with the aim of developing the economy and tourism, while preserving and promoting the cultural values associated with the traditional oceanic tuna longline fishing profession.

The Tuna Festival not only welcomes visitors to enjoy an event but also encourages them to stay longer to explore local culture. For this reason, the event is regarded as a strategic spearhead in the development of Dak Lak’s tourism, a tourism product rich in emotional value and profound experiential depth.

Translated by KHUONG THAO