Hanoi (VNA) – In recent days, people in Hanoi, other major cities, and Catholic parishes nationwide have been joyfully welcoming Christmas 2025.
The festive mood is everywhere as families and businesses shop for decorations, adorn homes and storefronts, and exchange gifts to usher in a merry Christmas season. It is increasingly evident that Christmas is no longer solely a major religious holiday for Catholics, but has grown into a community-wide celebration that enriches Vietnamese people’s spiritual and cultural life.
Since early December, the Christmas spirit has gradually spread through Catholic parishes, where families clean and decorate their homes, set up Nativity scenes and hang stars at their gates in preparation for the holy celebration.
In Hanoi, Christmas imagery is now visible along many streets, with shops adorned with Christmas trees, snow globes, wreaths, and colourful lights. Hang Ma street – long regarded as the capital’s “festival decoration hub” – is once again glowing in vibrant shades of red, green and gold. Neatly arranged stalls display an array of Christmas ornaments, creating a sparkling and cosy atmosphere typical of the season.
Many families, especially young people, make use of weekends to stroll around, take commemorative photos, and select gifts for friends and loved ones.
Beyond Hang Ma, major shopping centres and churches across Hanoi are also lavishly decorated, attracting large numbers of locals and visitors of all ages.
Ngoc Han, from the northern port city of Hai Phong, said she and her friends made a special trip to Hanoi this Christmas to enjoy the festive scenery and planned to visit St. Joseph’s Cathedral in the evening to celebrate alongside Catholic worshippers and soak up the holiday atmosphere in the heart of the capital.
For many families, Christmas has become a cherished annual tradition. Vu Minh Hieu, who lives near Ham Long Church, said that although he is not a Catholic, he often joins friends and family to enjoy Christmas celebrations. Now with children of his own, he buys gifts “from Santa Claus” and takes his children out during the holiday so they can experience the warmth and joy of the occasion.
For children, Christmas is a season of delight and innocent dreams.
“I love Christmas because I get gifts from Santa Claus,” said Pham Bich Ngoc, a young girl from Hanoi’s Long Bien ward.
Cultural beauty of Christmas in Vietnam
Through cultural exchange and integration, Christmas – a festival of Western origin – has moved beyond its initial religious framework to become a familiar social and cultural activity in Vietnamese life.
From large cities to rural areas, from long-established Catholic communities to modern urban neighbourhoods, Christmas returns each year, bringing vibrant colours, cheerful sounds, and a warm sense of humanity, family, and community.
While Christmas in Western countries is closely associated with family reunions, this value resonates even more strongly in Vietnam. Amid the fast pace of modern life, Christmas has become a precious occasion for families to gather, reflect on the past year, and look forward to better things ahead. For Catholic families, the holiday holds deep spiritual significance, marked by mass attendance, Nativity scenes, home decorations, and shared meals.
Nguyen Ngoc Ha, a Catholic resident of Long Bien, said her family begins preparing for Christmas early, decorating their home and buying gifts for all relatives.
“For us, Christmas is not only a religious holiday but also a family reunion when we sit together, share stories from the past year, and wish each other peace and happiness,” she said.
Many non-Catholic families also treat Christmas Eve as an occasion to gather for a meal and exchange small but heartfelt gifts, reinforcing family bonds and traditional values of harmony and togetherness.
Among young people, Christmas is also a celebration of friendship and love. In the cool year-end weather, they gather in the streets, take photos, listen to music, and capture memorable moments before the New Year.
Importantly, Christmas in Vietnam is also marked by compassion and generosity. Many parishes have organised charity activities, visiting the poor, disadvantaged children and the elderly. This spirit of sharing has been embraced and spread naturally within the community.
From an imported Western religious festival, Christmas has become a meaningful community celebration in Vietnam, reflecting core Vietnamese values of compassion, unity and humanity – where people grow closer, families become more connected and communities more united. That is the simple yet profound cultural beauty of Christmas in Vietnam./.
