Da Nang will host the first International Balloon Festival as a tourism attraction at the city’s Hi-tech Park and Hoa Trung Lake in Hoa Vang District later this year.

A balloon in Da Nang during the Asian Beach Games. The city plans to host the first International Balloon Festival in December of 2018.

The city’s Foreign Affairs department said the city and event partners from Korea have been preparing the location and space for hosting the festival in the west of the city.

It said the two sites – the Da Nang Hi-tech Park and Hoa Trung Lake – have been popular locations for hosting paragliding races in recent years.

Balloon flights were introduced during the Asian Beach Games in 2016 as a recreational event My Khe beach.

The city hopes that the balloon festival, in combination with a series of international events including the fireworks festival, marathon and Ironman, will help promote the tourism brand of Da Nang.

In 2012, the city also hosted the first the International Paramotor Race, which drew thousands of spectators.

The city also hosts an annual paragliding event on the beaches of Da Nang to attract tourists during the summer holidays.

Last year, the city hosted 6.7 million tourists, of which 2.3 million were foreigners. The city plans to host 2.7 million foreign tourists in the city in 2018. — VNS