Hanoi is set to establish a Southeast Asian record with a music and light performance using 2,024 drones to welcome the Lunar New Year on the night of Feb. 9.
“This will mark the largest drone event in Southeast Asia,” said Truong Viet Dung, office chief and spokesperson for the Hanoi People’s Committee.
The show will take place from 11:00 p.m. to 11:30 p.m. on the final day of the lunar calendar.
The city has chosen an area by the West Lake in Tay Ho District as the venue for the event, while My Dinh Stadium is being considered for a backup plan, Dung told a city meeting on Friday.
This is the first time the city will be using drones for a Lunar New Year’s celebration. The event will also be broadcast live on television.
However, Dung did not disclose the cost or source of funding, so it remains unknown if the money is coming from the city budget or private funds.
To ring in the Lunar New Year, from midnight to 12:15 a.m. on Feb. 10, all 30 districts in Hanoi will also feature firework displays at a total of 32 locations.
The estimated budget for the entirety of all the fireworks displays put together is VND30 billion (VND1.2 million), sourced from private investors.
This is the second consecutive year Hanoi has organized Lunar New Year’s Eve fireworks in all 30 districts. In 2021, the capital city did not set off fireworks in the wake of Covid-19. In 2020, fireworks were only launched at one location in Thong Nhat Park, and also broadcast on television.
