Bustling centuries-old craft villages
In the early 20th century, the people of Quang Phu Cau mainly earned their living by weaving baskets, fans, and mats. One day, Mr. Le Xuan Vinh from Phu Luong Thuong village went to buy bamboo to split into strips and met a trader who was buying incense sticks. Mr. Le Xuan Vinh proposed splitting the bamboo to sell to the trader. Small-scale incense stick splitting operations from Phu Luong Thuong village spread to Phu Luong Ha village (Mr. Le Xuan Vinh's wife's hometown), and gradually developed strongly, expanding to all six villages in the commune with the participation of thousands of laborers from within and outside the locality. The incense stick making craft has been passed down from father to son, maintained and developed to this day, becoming the main source of income for the people and providing employment for workers in neighboring communes.
Thanks to a fortunate encounter by Mr. Le Xuan Vinh, and through the ups and downs of history, the incense and incense stick production craft of Quang Phu Cau has increasingly developed into a distinctive feature of Hanoi's traditional craft villages. Quang Phu Cau incense and incense sticks are available throughout the provinces and cities of Vietnam and are exported to countries such as China, India, and Malaysia.
In the final days of the year, incense stick makers utilize every available space to dry incense sticks: from small alleys and courtyards to village squares… Bundles of colorful incense sticks (red, green, yellow), with red being the most prevalent, create a truly impressive scene in the countryside. Everywhere incense sticks are dried, vibrant colors abound. In every house, people are engrossed and busy with their work. Some split bamboo, others dye incense sticks, and still others sort and package the products…
According to artisan Nguyen Thu Phuong from the traditional craft village: "Incense is not only an item used in ancestral worship, but also a symbol of the connection between people and their ancestors, between the sacred and everyday life. Therefore, incense must have a gentle fragrance, burn evenly, not irritate the eyes, and especially bring solemnity during holidays and festivals."
To make a complete incense stick, the craftsman must go through many stages, from selecting raw materials, making the base of the incense stick, dyeing the base, to grinding the herbs into powder and then transferring it to the powdering area to create the final product. All steps must be meticulous, requiring skill and perseverance from the craftsman. The raw materials used for incense powder are a mixture of cinnamon powder, rice husk, and sawdust; nowadays, additional ingredients such as frankincense, agarwood buds, and soapberry are used to bring new and unique fragrances to the product. The base of Quang Phu Cau incense sticks is mostly sourced from bamboo from Thanh Hoa, Nghe An, and Ha Tinh provinces. In the incense-making process, the incense must be sun-dried to preserve its natural fragrance; it is not oven-dried to avoid losing its characteristic aroma.
In Quang Phu Cau, incense producers aim for clean, safe products that meet export standards and the needs of local people. Therefore, many households have switched to using natural food coloring and herbal incense powder, minimizing the use of industrial chemicals, thus making their products more environmentally friendly.
Thanks to the creativity of young people, many new products have emerged: mini incense sticks, decorative incense for Tet (Lunar New Year), coffee-scented incense, lemongrass incense, gentle country-style incense, herbal incense… suitable for modern tastes while still retaining traditional formulas.
In the corner of each family's yard, bundles of bright red incense sticks stand out, symbolizing the traditional Tet (Lunar New Year) rituals of the Vietnamese people. For the people here, making incense during Tet is not just a job, but also a way to preserve the spiritual and cultural values passed down from their ancestors. Currently, the Quang Phu Cau Incense Cooperative has more than 3,000 households participating in production, with many OCOP products achieving 3 stars: compressed incense, incense cones, incense coils, and 4 stars: cinnamon incense cones, frankincense incense cones, agarwood incense cones, and incense coils. It is estimated that in the 2026 Tet season, the total production of Quang Phu Cau incense could reach 160-180 million incense sticks, an increase of about 20% compared to the previous year.
Experience "a day as an incense maker"
In recent years, the image of bundles of bright red incense sticks drying in the sun at Quang Phu Cau has become a unique tourism symbol, appearing in many international photo collections. In 2019, photos taken at the incense village were among the top Best Travel Photos in many foreign photography magazines.
Thanks to this, the craft village has suddenly become an attractive destination. Every year, Quang Phu Cau welcomes about 50,000 - 70,000 tourists, of which more than 35% are international visitors, mainly from South Korea, France, the UK, the US, and Japan. During the end of the year and leading up to Tet (Lunar New Year), the number of visitors almost doubles.
To meet the demand for tourism, many households have set up spaces for practicing their craft, opening experiential areas such as: hand-rolling incense sticks, dyeing incense sticks, taking photos with artistically arranged bundles of incense, and learning about the history and beliefs of Vietnamese people using incense. When drying incense sticks, the villagers arrange them into giant pictures with clear, vibrant lines and colors, such as flowers, the Vietnamese flag, and the S-shaped map of the country, creating perfect backdrops for beautiful photos. This has added great appeal to tourists and photography enthusiasts of the craft village, and has also breathed new life into the craft village.
Mr. Nguyen Huu Long, a member of a family making incense in the village, happily shared: “Even though it’s the end of the year and work is much busier, the people here still prioritize time and space to serve tourists. We have two workers to assist and guide tourists in choosing and taking satisfactory photos. They also help tourists avoid knocking over bundles of incense, ensuring the best experience.” The overarching theme in the stories shared by incense makers in Quang Phu Cau with tourists is pride in their craft and the concerns they have for preserving it. Interestingly, the incense makers in Quang Phu Cau highly value their craft. Despite using many machines and production methods, they always ensure the quality of their raw materials. These are herbal ingredients, blended with a unique secret recipe, to create incense sticks that are always fragrant, colorfast, and visually appealing.
Marine Le, a French tourist of Vietnamese descent, said: “I’ve never seen a place so vibrant. The red of the incense bundles fills the space with energy. The locals are also very friendly, meticulously explaining the incense-making process. I think this is a truly unique tourist attraction in Hanoi.”
According to the Hanoi Craft Village Development Plan until 2030, the Hanoi Department of Tourism has identified Quang Phu Cau as one of the key craft village tourism destinations in the capital. Despite the large number of visitors, the craft village still faces numerous challenges: waste disposal, noise from bamboo splitting machines, incense drying areas encroaching on the road, etc. The local government is implementing a plan to integrate tourism with the sustainable preservation of the craft village.
According to the Hanoi Department of Tourism, the Hanoi People's Committee has recognized the "Quang Phu Cau Incense Stick Craft Village as a Tourist Destination". This is an important step, affirming the tourism potential and value of the craft village, creating momentum to promote local economic development... The Quang Phu Cau incense village will receive support in promotion, development of distinctive products, and connection with tourist routes in southern Hanoi.
Quang Phu Cau is improving the quality of its visitor reception areas; organizing the "Quang Phu Cau Incense Village Festival" in the twelfth lunar month; training local people in community tourism; and developing a tour route called "A Day as an Incense Craftsman." The incense-making craft not only provides income for the people but also becomes an indispensable part of the rich cultural landscape of Hanoi. This place not only preserves the soul of an item with spiritual and cultural significance but is also a beautiful tourist destination that visitors should visit when coming to the countryside of the Northern Delta.
In this centuries-old craft village, the villagers, who were once accustomed to making incense, have now adapted to become tour guides. With their simple, genuine hearts and warm hospitality, the people of Quang Phu Cau village have helped tourists not only learn more about the incense-making craft but also develop a greater appreciation for Vietnamese traditional culture.
Source: https://baophapluat.vn/lang-tam-huong-ruc-ro-sac-mau-don-tet.html
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