The Ninh Thuận Grape and Wine Festival 2019 opened on April 27 in Ninh Thuận Province’s Phan Rang-Tháp Chàm City. VNA Photo Văn Châu

HCM CITY – The Ninh Thuận Grape and Wine Festival 2019 opened on April 27 in Ninh Thuận Province’s Phan Rang-Tháp Chàm City.

The week-long event, which will end on May 2, will introduce the local specialty, grapes, and promote local tourism. It aims to honor grape growers who have contributed substantially to building the Ninh Thuận grape brand while giving them the opportunity to meet and exchange experiences with scientists, experts, and businesses in the field.

About 300 stalls are open at the festival, offering grapes, wine, and other products produced from grapes in the local area and other specialties of the province.

Visitors can learn about grape cultivation and grape wine production on trips to Thái An, Phước Thuận, and Xuân Hải vineyards and Mỹ Sơn and Ladora wine producing farms, and also visit other popular local destinations such as Mỹ Nghiệp weaving village, Bàu Trúc pottery village, and Phước Bình National Park.

The official also added that many other activities will be held during the festival, including field trips to grape farms, an industry-trade fair, performances of ethnic minority groups in the area, a street carnival and beach sport events.

Grapes have been a specialty and industrial crop of Ninh Thuận since 1980, contributing about 14 per cent of GDP from the province’s agriculture sector. It has nearly 1,300ha being grown, 80 per cent of which are red cardinal grapes and the remainder other varieties, with an annual output of 30,000 tonnes. – VNS