Spring flower market on the 29th day of the Lunar New Year.

On the last day of the Year of the Snake 2025, spring flower markets everywhere became more bustling than ever. People rushed to the market at the last minute to choose ornamental flowers and fruits for Tet (Lunar New Year) celebrations. The lively atmosphere of buying and selling, with many items heavily discounted, attracted many buyers, creating a vibrant spring atmosphere in the year-end market.

On the last day of the Year of the Snake 2025, spring flower markets everywhere became more bustling than ever. People rushed to the market at the last minute to choose ornamental flowers and fruits for Tet (Lunar New Year) celebrations. The lively atmosphere of buying and selling, with many items heavily discounted, attracted many buyers, creating a vibrant spring atmosphere in the year-end market.

The flower section was crowded with buyers.

Crowds of buyers

In Long Chau ward, around noon on the 29th day of the Lunar New Year, the flower stalls along the Tien River embankment were still bustling with people. Many said that due to the busy end-of-year schedule, they went to the market on the last day and still had the opportunity to choose beautiful flower pots at reasonable prices. According to the reporter's observations, the best-selling items were still yellow chrysanthemums, bougainvillea, and kumquat trees… As for crystal chrysanthemums, while they cost from 2-5 million VND per pair at the beginning of the spring flower market, by the last day, many stalls had reduced the price by almost half.

People flocked to the spring flower market, trying to grab last-minute deals on ornamental plants.

Mr. Ly Van Hiep (Thanh Duc ward) said: "Medium-sized crystal chrysanthemums, after the 15th day of the 12th lunar month, sold for about 2-2.2 million VND/pair, but today they are only 1-1.2 million VND/pair, and only a few stalls still have them. Customers came to the market late but bought them quickly because the price was more reasonable."

People are taking advantage of the opportunity to buy fruit for the year-end offering ceremony.

Sitting nearby, Uncle Nam (from Trung Hiep commune) brought about 300 pots of various bougainvillea plants to the market, but by the last day, only a few dozen remained. He happily shared: “This year, the flower market is arranged in a continuous layout, making it convenient for people to come and go, so sales are better than last year. I came to the market on the 19th of the 12th lunar month, and now I only have a few pots left before going home for Tet. Single-color bougainvillea plants are selling best, priced from 300,000-350,000 VND/pot; larger ones cost around 800,000 VND/pot.”

On the 29th day of the Lunar New Year, bougainvillea plants are in high demand, with many places reducing the price to 100,000 VND per plant.

On Ly Tu Trong Street, Mr. Le Ngoc An (from Cho Lach commune) was watering the last of his apricot blossom trees while warmly inviting customers to come and buy them. He said that this year he brought about 40 apricot blossom trees to the market, mostly those priced from 2 million VND/tree and up, and had already sold more than half. “The most popular are the Binh Loi apricot blossom trees, the compact ones, priced from 300,000 VND/tree, easy to care for, and suitable for city houses,” Mr. An said.

Yellow apricot blossoms remain a popular item that attracts many people to choose and buy on the 29th day of the Lunar New Year.

Not only potted flowers, but the fresh flower market is equally vibrant on the last day of the year. Flowers that had seen sharp price increases in the days before, such as lilies and gladioli, have cooled down, making shopping more convenient for buyers. Specifically: chrysanthemums are around 10,000 VND/flower; daisies from 70,000-100,000 VND/bunch; red gladioli around 80,000-90,000 VND/bunch; cut apricot blossoms around 100,000 VND/branch; beautiful carnations around 150,000 VND/bunch; willow branches 150,000 VND/bunch; double lilies ranging from 350,000-400,000 VND/bunch, about 30,000 VND/bunch lower than on the 27th-28th of the 12th lunar month.

Selling quickly so I can go home for Tet (Lunar New Year)

Besides that, a bustling atmosphere of buying and selling was also taking place in the watermelon area. Many stalls began clearing out their stock, selling off their watermelons to make way for their stalls. Nguyen Hoai Nam's watermelon stall (Tan Hanh ward) in the Provincial Inspectorate area was crowded with customers. He said that this year he brought about 10 tons of grafted round watermelons to the market, and almost all of them have been sold. On the last day, he drastically reduced the price, selling them for 100,000 VND for 4 watermelons, equivalent to about 5,000 VND/kg.

"I should have sold them for 8,000-10,000 VND/kg to make a profit, but this year's watermelon harvest was abundant, and there were so many at the market that the price dropped quickly. Now I'm selling them off to get rid of them so I can go home for Tet early. In the end, I'm basically breaking even," Nam shared.

Watermelon prices have dropped sharply, with many stalls selling off their stock.

Nearby, Ms. Nguyet's stall (from An Binh commune) also displayed signs advertising black dragon melons, striped melons, and yellow melons decorated with words like "wealth and prosperity," "peace and health," and "successful journey," all priced at 5,000 VND/kg. "Before, they sold for 15,000-18,000 VND/kg, but today is the last day so I'm drastically reducing the price to sell them quickly. I still have about a hundred kilograms left; if it's too late, I'll sell the whole fruit to get home faster," Ms. Nguyet said.

Not only were the vendors busy, but the buyers were also making the most of every hour. Ms. Nguyen Thi Hong Tham (Long Chau ward), who went to the market with her daughter around noon, said: “I usually go to the market on the last day to buy flowers and fruit because the prices are lower. My house is small, so I only buy a few bunches of fresh flowers and some fruit to put on the altar. Even though I went late, the market atmosphere was very lively.”

At Vinh Long market, the number of shoppers remains high. The roads surrounding the market are crowded with people and vehicles, with some sections experiencing slow traffic. Prices for fruits for Tet (Lunar New Year) remain stable compared to previous days, such as dragon fruit at around 40,000 VND/kg; first-grade green pomelo from 55,000-60,000 VND/kg; tangerines at 60,000 VND/kg; custard apples at around 90,000 VND/kg; various types of apples from 100,000-120,000 VND/kg; and Hoa Loc mangoes at around 120,000 VND/kg…

Many small business owners said that while purchasing power on the 29th day of the Lunar New Year didn't surge as dramatically as the previous peak, the number of customers remained stable, mainly consisting of people buying additional items or taking advantage of discounted prices.

According to the organizers of the spring flower market in Long Chau ward, this is the last market of the year, so vendors are selling and packing up at the same time, preparing to return the stalls. According to regulations, those renting stalls at the 2026 Lunar New Year flower market must clean up their goods, sanitize the selling area, and hand over the premises before 12 PM on the 29th day of the Lunar New Year.

The year-end market concludes with its familiar hustle and bustle, carrying with it the joy of the sellers and the excitement of the buyers who have chosen the flowers and sweet fruits to welcome a new spring.

Text and photos: THAO TIEN

Source: https://baovinhlong.com.vn/kinh-te/thi-truong/202602/cho-hoa-xuan-ngay-29-tet-6151c5e/