Nagasaki Lantern Festival 2027 Dates TBA
長崎ランタンフェスティバル — Nagasaki (Kyushu)
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- Dates
- Dates TBA (usually: about two weeks around Chinese New Year, between late January and late February)
- Venue
- Shinchi Chinatown (Minato Park), Central Park and central Nagasaki (新地中華街会場（湊公園）ほか市内7会場)
- Tickets
- Free to walk around the lantern venues.
- Official site
- www.at-nagasaki.jp
For about two weeks around Chinese New Year, central Nagasaki is hung with some 15,000 Chinese lanterns across seven venues, led by the main site in Shinchi Chinatown. The lighting ceremony, when every lantern comes on at once, opens the festival, and the Emperor's Parade, dragon dances, Chinese acrobatics and lion dances fill the following days.
Background
The festival grew out of the Spring Festival celebrations of Nagasaki's Chinese community — a legacy of the city's centuries as a trading port — and is now one of the city's biggest winter events.
Getting there
The main Shinchi Chinatown venue is next to the Tsukimachi and Shinchi Chukagai stops on the Nagasaki Electric Tramway, a short tram ride from Nagasaki Station.
Getting around Japan
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Tips
- The dates follow Chinese New Year, which falls on February 6 in 2027; the organizers publish the exact festival period in the months before. Until then, plan on late January to late February.
- Come for the lighting ceremony on the first evening if you can — all the lanterns switch on at once.
- Check the programme for the Emperor's Parade, the festival's most elaborate procession, which only runs on certain days.
Frequently asked questions
- Where is Nagasaki Lantern Festival, and how do you get there?
- Nagasaki Lantern Festival is held at Shinchi Chinatown (Minato Park), Central Park and central Nagasaki in Nagasaki. The main Shinchi Chinatown venue is next to the Tsukimachi and Shinchi Chukagai stops on the Nagasaki Electric Tramway, a short tram ride from Nagasaki Station.
- Do I need a ticket for Nagasaki Lantern Festival?
- Free to walk around the lantern venues.
Last verified against the official source: Sat, September 26, 2026
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