Youngsters pose for a photo under prunus cerasoides cherry trees (credit: nhandan)

A ceremony will be held at Sacom Resort, on the peninsula of Tuyen Lam Lake, to kick off the festival and to announce the recognition of Tuyen Lam National Resort and Da Lat city as ASEAN Environmentally Sustainable City, at 8:30 am on January 27.

A series of events will take place across the city during the three-day festival, including art performances, musical fountain shows, a golf tournament, a Gong music night and an exhibition of classic cars.

The festival aims to promote the local prunus cerasoides cherry tree known as the city’s floral emblem. The flower blooms in pink in the first months of the year to welcome the spring. The trees mostly grow in Da Lat city and forests in Lac Duong district.

"I have never seen cherry blossom as beautiful as this year. The flowers started to bloom at the beginning of January and in such cool weather, they will last until early February,” said Nguyen Xuan Thanh, Director of the Tuyen Lam National Resort and head of the festival organising board.

Da Lat was honoured with the ASEAN Environmentally Sustainable City title at the ASEAN Environmental Award in Brunei in July last year.