Nha Trang's beachfront got a cultural boost this month. On October 20, the Vietnam Art Photo Exhibition 2026 handed out its awards at Beach Park, right beside the city's striking Trầm Hương Tower, and put 200 of the country's best contemporary photographs on public display.
The scale is impressive. The biennial national contest, run by the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism, drew 9,291 entries from 1,263 photographers across Vietnam. A jury whittled that mountain of submissions down to 200 works shown in Khánh Hòa Province, and from those picked 32 prize-winners: three Gold medals, six Silver, eight Bronze and 15 Consolation prizes. Among the honoured was Vietnam News Agency photographer Bùi Cương Quyết, whose image of the Golden Star Female Warriors took a Consolation prize.
What's on the walls is essentially a visual tour of the country. The selected work spans contemporary daily life, heritage, history and natural scenery — from highland terraces to street-level city moments — with organisers framing the theme around authenticity and social responsibility. Deputy Culture Minister Tạ Quang Đông praised entrants for experimenting with fresh techniques and perspectives, and described the exhibition as a way to connect Vietnam's photography community while promoting the country's cultural industries.
The competition has been running since 2000 and takes place every two years, so it has become one of the country's more established art events — a talent spotter as much as a showcase.
For travellers, the appeal is practical as much as artistic. If you're planning a Vietnam trip and want a compressed sense of what the country looks like beyond the postcard shots, an exhibition like this is an efficient stop: 200 curated images covering every region and theme, all in one place. It's also a good scouting tool — plenty of visitors leave with a shortlist of landscapes they hadn't considered, from lesser-known provinces to heritage sites worth building an itinerary around. And Nha Trang itself needs little excuse: a long sandy beach, diving and island trips offshore, and a growing food scene make it an easy base for a few days on the south-central coast.
If the exhibition has closed by the time you arrive, the setting alone justifies the walk — Beach Park sits right on Trần Phú seaside boulevard, with the Trầm Hương Tower nearby. Check locally whether the show has a touring edition, as national exhibition entries sometimes travel to other provinces afterwards.
