Lễ hội Gàu Tào ở Đồng Văn.
 
As one of the 22 ethnic groups living and preserving the borderland in the northernmost region of the country, the Mong people in Ha Giang number 244,277, accounting for 31.8% of the province's total population. In the four highland districts in the northern part of Ha Giang, namely Quan Ba, Yen Minh, Dong Van, and Meo Vac, the Mong people make up nearly 90% of the population. The Mong ethnic group has a rich and diverse spiritual and cultural life, contributing to the unique cultural traditions of the Mong people.
One of the notable festivals that reflects the tradition of the Mong people is the Gau Tao festival. According to Mr. Hung Dinh Quy, a senior Mong poet in Ha Giang and former Director of the Department of Culture, Sports, and Tourism in Ha Giang: "In the life of the Mong people, they particularly enjoy the 'Hill Festival' or 'Mountain Festival' during the spring, known as 'Gau Tao' in Mong language. This is a form of ritual activity that, alongside the ceremony, expresses the cultural identity of the Mong ethnic group through community activities."
"Gau Tao" is the most representative festival of the Mong people, aiming to worship the sky, earth, and guardian spirits for health, prosperity, and good fortune. It seeks blessings for the people of the Mong village in the new year, hoping for a bountiful harvest, abundant livestock, and poultry. The opening of the Gau Tao festival is also an occasion for each Mong individual who has been away for work or business to return home and reunite with family and fellow villagers, preparing for the new year and the upcoming agricultural and husbandry season.
The Gau Tao festival typically takes place from the 1st to the 15th day of the Lunar New Year. If the festival is organized for three consecutive years, it lasts for three days each year. When the festival is combined into one year, it is held for nine consecutive days. The festival consists of two parts: the ceremony and the festival. The local authorities organize the festival in all villages and districts with a significant Mong population. The festival is usually held on a relatively flat hillside to facilitate movement and entertainment. The Gau Tao festival can be organized by a family, a lineage, or an entire village community.
 Múa khèn trong lễ hội Gàu Tào.

In the ceremony part, before the event, the host plants a "neu" tree (bamboo or apricot tree) with red or yellow paper attached to its trunk. Paper-cut figures are hung on the top of the "neu" tree. During the ceremony, the host prepares an offering tray, including a pig's head, a pair of boiled chickens, along with a bowl of rice, eggs, plates of sticky rice, a bundle of rice, a bundle of corn, and some incense, ceremonial papers, etc., to express gratitude to the heavens, earth, and guardian spirits for the health, happiness, and abundant harvest of the family and the entire village.

After the host or the shaman completes the important rituals, the event transitions to the festival part. The Gau Tao festival's most joyful aspect is the variety of traditional ethnic Mong folk games, such as hitting the shuttlecock, spinning tops, wrestling, martial arts, horse racing, archery, playing the "khèn" (traditional musical instrument), flute playing, bird fighting, cockfighting, and singing duets. The most attractive competition and the one with the highest participation is the "khèn" playing competition.

The "khèn" playing competition involves participants demonstrating their talent by playing the "khèn" (a traditional wind instrument). Participants must not only play the instrument but also perform various actions such as somersaults, spinning around, kicking banana plants, jumping on stakes, and especially performing "khèn" playing while balancing a heavy load on their heads.

The most captivating and popular part of the Gau Tao festival is the singing and responding competition. This competition mainly features young Mong men and women, engaging in a singing duel until one person concedes. The loser must present a gift to the winner, which is usually a flute, a mouth organ, or just a handkerchief. Through this competition, young men and women often find their soulmates, bringing happiness for years to come.

According to Mr. Hoang Van Kien, Director of the Department of Culture, Sports, and Tourism in Ha Giang: During the Tet Nguyen Dan (Lunar New Year) in the Year of the Horse 2014, the Cultural Department will collaborate with local authorities to organize various folk cultural festivals representing the ethnic minorities. For the four districts on the Dong Van Karst Plateau, the local authorities have thoroughly prepared for the Gau Tao festival in some designated areas of new rural development.

Visiting the Dong Van Karst Plateau during Tet Nguyen Dan, every tourist will immerse themselves in the sounds of "khèn" and the laughter of the ethnic minority people, celebrating the new year and welcoming spring. The Gau Tao festival of the Mong ethnic group promises a prosperous harvest and a happier life for the ethnic minorities on the Dong Van Karst Plateau in general, and specifically for the Mong ethnic group in the upcoming year.