{"id":2307,"date":"2023-02-14T22:56:29","date_gmt":"2023-02-14T11:56:29","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/luxuryescapes.com\/inspiration\/worlds-best-lantern-festivals-top-5-cities-to-witness-the-magic\/"},"modified":"2026-07-27T11:43:00","modified_gmt":"2026-07-27T01:43:00","slug":"worlds-best-lantern-festivals-top-5-cities-to-witness-the-magic","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/luxuryescapes.com\/inspiration\/worlds-best-lantern-festivals-top-5-cities-to-witness-the-magic\/","title":{"rendered":"World\u2019s Best Lantern Festivals: Top 6 Cities to Witness the Magic\u00a0"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Sky lanterns over Chiang Mai, river lanterns in Hoi An, ocean-bound lanterns in Honolulu \u2013 the tradition looks different everywhere it lands.<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The beloved tradition of lantern festivals first began in China as a celebration meant to promote prosperity, peace and forgiveness. Often aligning with a particular day of the lunar calendar, the festivals see thousands of lanterns lit in unison to drive the darkness away and shed light on a bright future. Cultural performances, lantern riddles and street food fill the night. While the Chinese Lantern Festival remains the most famous, several other destinations have built their own striking versions of this tradition.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Read on for our picks of the world’s best lantern festivals.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Pingxi Sky Lantern Festival, Taiwan<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

In the hillside town of Shifen, in New Taipei’s Pingxi District, thousands of visitors gather each year to release glowing paper lanterns into the night sky \u2013 a tradition tied to the final day of the Lunar New Year period. The festival typically spans two nights in February or early March, with mass releases of hundreds of lanterns launched simultaneously roughly every twenty minutes, drawing crowds that can exceed 80,000 people.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Before the lanterns take flight, visitors write wishes on the rice paper in coloured ink, one colour for each hope \u2013 love, health, wealth or safe travel. The town itself sits along an old coal-mining railway line, with the Shifen Waterfall, known locally as Taiwan’s answer to Niagara, a short walk from the main lantern-launch site.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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