Tourism "healing" on Ba Den Mountain: morning cloud hunting, afternoon lantern offering, night water music show

Morning "flying saucer" cloud hunting

Cloud hunting is a must-try experience when visiting Ba Den Mountain, as it is known as one of the rare mountains in Vietnam and the world where rare cloud phenomena frequently appear, especially lenticular clouds, also known as cloud caps or "flying saucer" clouds. According to the experience of cloud hunting enthusiasts, June - July is the time when lenticular clouds appear most frequently here. Many tourists, especially young people, often choose to travel to Tay Ninh from dawn to hunt for this phenomenon.

Clouds cover the summit of Ba Den Mountain. Photo: Nguyen Minh Tu

During this season, the cloud cap usually lasts from early morning until 8-9 AM. Many young people choose to test their luck at the foot of the mountain to hunt for the cloud cap, then take the cable car to the summit to fully admire both the cloud cap and the sea of clouds in a single day. 

Beautiful sunshine, cool air on the mountain summit with temperatures 8-10 degrees Celsius lower than in the city, and many vibrant flower carpets blooming beautifully like a fairyland are the advantages that make more and more tourists choose to visit Ba Den Mountain, especially on weekends. 

Dâng Đăng Ceremony on the Mountain Summit

Dâng Đăng is a characteristic spiritual cultural ritual at the summit of Ba Den Mountain. Held every Saturday evening, the Dâng Đăng ceremony is a sacred ritual held in the shimmering space at the foot of the Tây Bổ Đà Sơn Buddha statue, which is the reason thousands of tourists visit Ba Den Mountain every weekend. 

Visitors write their wishes on the lanterns. Photo: Sun World Ba Den Mountain

From around 4 PM, thousands of visitors gathered at the large square at the foot of the Tay Bo Da Son Lady Buddha statue, receiving completely free lanterns from the staff of Sun World Ba Den tourist area. Pens and writing desks were prepared for visitors to assemble the lanterns themselves and write their wishes on the lanterns to offer to the Buddha. The lanterns here are also specially crafted by the tourist area staff with wooden bases and square shapes, distinct from lotus lanterns found anywhere else. 

The lantern offering ceremony takes place every Saturday evening. Photo: Sun World Ba Den Mountain

The meditation and lantern releasing ritual will take place as dusk falls, with clouds descending from the statue of the Bodhisattva Avalokitesvara of Tay Thien. Thousands of people will line up respectfully in the square, their minds calm before the shimmering light of the lanterns, praying for peace and luck, then gradually releasing lanterns onto the water around the Prajnaparamita sutra pillar, creating an incredibly mystical space on the sacred peak.

Evening to watch the modern water music show

After the lantern offering ceremony, visitors cannot miss the water music show combining modern technology and Buddhist culture at the area of the statue of Bodhisattva Maitreya. This water music show, newly launched since early 2024, is considered a very worthwhile experience for visitors to stay on top of Ba Den Mountain in the evening. The show presents unique scenes centered around the world's largest sandstone statue of Bodhisattva Maitreya, from which a halo emanates along with images deeply imbued with Buddhist colors such as the sky of Tay Thien, multi-colored clouds, lotus flowers, lucky coins,...

Tourists excitedly watch the water music show next to the Maitreya Bodhisattva statue. Photo: Sun World Ba Den Mountain

To achieve this spectacular water music performance, many leading high-tech equipment in Vietnam have been used, such as Laser drawing machines, 3D projectors, spatial Laser modeling machines, moving head lights capable of creating impressive pattern effects… In addition, the system of 1,450 specialized lighting lamps also contributes to highlighting the performance.

All day immersed in the festive atmosphere

Almost every month, Ba Den Mountain hosts spiritual cultural festivals on a large scale according to the Buddhist calendar and local traditional festivals. Typical festivals include the Ba Mountain Spring Festival (in the first half of the first lunar month), the Linh Son Thanh Mau Goddess Worship Festival (4th, 5th, 6th day of the 5th lunar month), the Vu Lan Festival (Full moon of the 7th lunar month)… Therefore, tourists should choose the right festival time to fully experience the unique spiritual cultural space here.

Sacred Buddha's Birthday season on Ba Den Mountain. Photo: Sun World Ba Den Mountain