Ho Chi Minh City will host its annual festival to honour ao dai (Vietnamese traditional dress), which is known as the symbol of feminine beauty in Vietnam, during March 3-25.

The 2018 Ao Dai Festival, themed "I Love Vietnamese Ao Dai", will feature several cultural activities to promote traditional cultural values as well as the beauty and grace of the costume, according to the city’s tourism authority, the event’s organiser.

The organiser will invite Miss Vietnam 2016 Do My Linh to be the festival’s ambassador.

The event will open with a fashion show featuring designs from the latest collections by Vietnamese leading ao dai designers such as Si Hoang, Thuan Viet and Vo Viet Chung.

The show will also include music performances by pop stars and young singers, which will be held at Nguyen Hue Pedestrian Street in District 1 on March 3.

A parade of more than 3,000 people in the traditional dress will take place at the pedestrian street as well.

Several exhibitions will open at the Youth Cultural House, Women’s Cultural House, Museum of Southern Women, and General Science Library during the festival.

They will showcase ao dai designs from the past to the present, as well as photos of the costume.

When visiting these exhibitions, people will enjoy ao dai tailoring services offered by skilled designers from more than 20 garment and textile companies and fashion houses as well as learn to make the costume.

The organiser will also set up a stall at Tan Son Nhat International Airport to offer visitors free vouchers for ao dai tailoring and free tickets for the festival’s activities.

Dozens of workshops and talk shows on the dress will be held at the city’s cultural houses and schools during the event.

Last year, the festival attracted more than 70,000 foreign and local visitors.