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Editorial research resource

2026 US lantern festivals: dates, places & sources

Compare 34 published event seasons overlapping 2026, with venue cities, festival formats, date evidence and recorded checks. Built for journalists, travel authors and tourism researchers from our existing source-linked directory.

This is an independent selection, not an organizer publication or a complete census of US festivals. Each row links to the underlying evidence and the current event guide.

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2026 research table

Dates are local calendar dates, shown as YYYY-MM-DD. The range includes its first and last date; many seasons open only on selected nights. Scroll the table horizontally to view evidence. Downloads include schedules, exceptions and source-level check dates.

34 source-linked seasons overlapping 2026, ordered by opening date
Event / venue cityFormatPublished date rangeCalendar status / noticesRecord last checkedDate evidence
Animals AglowSt. Louis, MOSaint Louis ZooWalk-through lantern installation to America/ChicagoFinishedOrganizer / venue event page
Start date:
End date:
Grand Rapids Lantern FestivalGrand Rapids, MIJohn Ball ZooWalk-through lantern installation to America/DetroitFinishedOrganizer / venue event page
Start date:
End date:
Wild Lights at Louisville ZooLouisville, KYLouisville ZooWalk-through lantern installation to America/New_YorkFinishedOrganizer / venue event page
Start date:
End date:
Philadelphia Chinese Lantern FestivalPhiladelphia, PAFranklin SquareWalk-through lantern installation to America/New_YorkFinished

Important schedule change: The 2026 season was extended to August 30 and has now ended. (Recorded 2026-09-26)

Organizer / venue event page
Start date:
End date:
Asian Lantern Festival presented by MeijerCleveland, OHCleveland Metroparks ZooWalk-through lantern installation to America/New_YorkFinished

Important schedule change: The 2026 closing date was extended from August 23 to September 12. That season has now ended. (Recorded 2026-09-26)

Organizer / venue event page
Start date:
End date:
Bright Nights at Four MileDenver, COFour Mile Historic ParkWalk-through lantern installation to America/DenverWithin published seasonOrganizer / venue event page
Start date:
End date:
National Harbor Water Lantern FestivalOxon Hill, MDNational Harbor SouthPointeWater lantern festival to America/New_YorkFinishedOrganizer / venue event page
Start date:
End date:
Boston Lights: A Lantern ExperienceBoston, MAFranklin Park ZooWalk-through lantern installation to America/New_YorkWithin published seasonOrganizer / venue event page
Start date:
End date:
Columbus Zoo Lantern FestivalPowell, OHColumbus Zoo and AquariumWalk-through lantern installation to America/New_YorkFinishedOrganizer / venue event page
Start date:
End date:
China Lights WisconsinHales Corners, WIBoerner Botanical GardensWalk-through lantern installation to America/ChicagoWithin published seasonOrganizer / venue event page
Start date:
End date:
Atlanta BeltLine Lantern ParadeAtlanta, GAAtlanta BeltLine Marketplace at Allene (parade start)Cultural lantern festival / paradeAmerica/New_YorkFinished

Important schedule change: The 2026 parade was postponed because of weather and rescheduled for September 26 on a revised Southwest Trail route. (Recorded 2026-09-26)

Organizer / venue event page
Start date:
End date:
Dragon Lights RenoReno, NVWilbur D. May Arboretum and Botanical GardenWalk-through lantern installation to America/Los_AngelesWithin published seasonOrganizer / venue event page
Start date:
End date:
Lexington Water Lantern FestivalLexington, KYKentucky Horse ParkWater lantern festivalAmerica/New_YorkFinishedOrganizer / venue event page
Start date:
End date:
San Antonio Water Lantern FestivalSan Antonio, TXElmendorf Lake ParkWater lantern festivalAmerica/ChicagoFinishedOrganizer / venue event page
Start date:
End date:
Tri-Cities Water Lantern FestivalKennewick / Tri-Cities, WAColumbia Park PondWater lantern festivalAmerica/Los_AngelesFinishedOrganizer / venue event page
Start date:
End date:
Wild LightsWichita, KSSedgwick County ZooWalk-through lantern installation to America/ChicagoWithin published seasonOrganizer / venue event page
Start date:
End date:
Sarasota Water Lantern FestivalSarasota, FLNathan Benderson ParkWater lantern festivalAmerica/New_YorkFinishedOrganizer / venue event page
Start date:
End date:
Seattle Water Lantern FestivalSeattle, WASeward ParkWater lantern festival to America/Los_AngelesFinishedOrganizer / venue event page
Start date:
End date:
Spokane Water Lantern FestivalSpokane, WAManito ParkWater lantern festivalAmerica/Los_AngelesFinishedOrganizer / venue event page
Start date:
End date:
Mays Landing Water Lantern FestivalMays Landing, NJLake Lenape LighthouseWater lantern festivalAmerica/New_YorkFinished

Important schedule change: The organizer says its September 26 and 27 event dates were rescheduled to October 23, 2026 because of a severe weather warning, and that tickets were transferred automatically. (Recorded 2026-10-08)

Organizer / venue event page
Start date:
End date:
Staten Island Water Lantern FestivalStaten Island, NYWolfe's Pond ParkWater lantern festivalAmerica/New_YorkFinishedOrganizer / venue event page
Start date:
End date:
GloWildLittle Rock, ARLittle Rock ZooWalk-through lantern installation to America/ChicagoUpcomingOrganizer / venue event page
Start date:
End date:
Tempe Water Lantern FestivalTempe, AZKiwanis ParkWater lantern festival to America/PhoenixUpcomingOrganizer / venue event page
Start date:
End date:
Las Vegas Water Lantern FestivalLas Vegas, NVSunset ParkWater lantern festivalAmerica/Los_AngelesUpcomingOrganizer / venue event page
Start date:
End date:
Central Florida Zoo Asian Lantern Festival: Into the WildSanford, FLCentral Florida Zoo & Botanical GardensWalk-through lantern installation to America/New_YorkUpcomingOrganizer / venue event page
Start date:
End date:
Memphis Zoo Lantern FestivalMemphis, TNMemphis ZooWalk-through lantern installation to America/ChicagoUpcomingOrganizer / venue event page
Start date:
End date:
San Jose Water Lantern FestivalSan Jose, CAAlmaden Lake ParkWater lantern festival to America/Los_AngelesUpcomingOrganizer / venue event page
Start date:
End date:
Houston Water Lantern FestivalSpring, TXCity Place PlazaWater lantern festival to America/ChicagoUpcomingOrganizer / venue event page
Start date:
End date:
Radiant NatureHouston, TXHouston Botanic GardenWalk-through lantern installation to America/ChicagoUpcomingOrganizer / venue event page
Start date:
End date:
Fort Lauderdale Water Lantern FestivalFort Lauderdale, FLMills Pond ParkWater lantern festivalAmerica/New_YorkUpcoming

Important schedule change: Pending Commission Approval: the organizer lists this event as pending commission approval. Confirm the date and venue on the official page before planning travel or purchasing. (Recorded 2026-10-08)

Organizer / venue event page
Start date:
End date:
North Carolina Chinese Lantern FestivalCary, NCKoka Booth AmphitheatreWalk-through lantern installation to America/New_YorkUpcomingOrganizer / venue event page
Start date:
End date:
Portland Water Lantern FestivalPortland, ORLaurelhurst ParkWater lantern festivalAmerica/Los_AngelesUpcomingOrganizer / venue event page
Start date:
End date:
Fort Worth Water Lantern FestivalFort Worth, TXPanther Island PavilionWater lantern festival to America/ChicagoUpcomingOrganizer / venue event page
Start date:
End date:
San Diego Water Lantern FestivalSantee, CASantee LakesWater lantern festival to America/Los_AngelesUpcomingOrganizer / venue event page
Start date:
End date:

Outside this 2026 dataset

These directory records are excluded from the CSV and the JSON records array; the JSON lists them separately under excluded_records.

Methodology & responsible use

Selection and evidence

One row represents one published event record, not one operating night. We include valid published date ranges that intersect January 1–December 31, 2026, including seasons continuing into 2027. A 2027-only announcement is not evidence of a 2026 edition. Records without a valid overlapping range are excluded rather than assigned inferred dates.

Dates come from the directory’s field-level source references: organizers, venues or official tourism bodies. Start and end evidence are retained separately, so an extension may cite a different source. Source roles and checks are labels recorded by our editors, not endorsements. The organizer is definitive; linked pages can change or roll over to a later season.

Status, times and caveats

Upcoming, Within published season and Finished compare the generation time with the published date range in the event’s recorded timezone. An editorial status override takes precedence and is identified in status_basis. “Within published season” does not mean open today or open now. Notices remain separate, so an upcoming date can still be pending approval, postponed or cancelled.

City means the recorded venue municipality, which may differ from the marketed event name. Schedules and closures are retained in the downloads. Prices, availability, attendance estimates and firsthand experiences are not part of this dataset. No future edition is inferred from a completed season.

Download field guide

event_id; name; city; state; state_code; venue; event_type
Stable directory identifier, published event name, recorded venue location and editorial format category. An ID identifies the event record, not an immutable annual edition.
start_date; end_date; timezone
Inclusive published season boundaries, not a list of operating days; timezone is the recorded IANA identifier.
season_status; status_basis; status_as_of
Calendar status, calculation or override basis, and the UTC timestamp for that calculation.
last_checked; official_event_url; event_page_url
Recorded event-level verification date, organizer or venue link, and our current guide. The latest event check does not mean every field was checked that day.
start_date_sources; end_date_sources
Arrays of source ID, label, role, URL and source-level last_checked date for each date field.
schedule; schedule_exceptions; notices
Recorded schedule text, dated exceptions and editorial notices, with their source references. Notices also preserve their recorded check date. An empty array means none recorded, not proof of no restrictions.

CSV is UTF-8 with a header row, CRLF line endings and quoted cells. Array fields contain JSON inside each CSV cell; parse CSV before parsing those cells as JSON. Missing scalar values are blank in CSV and null in JSON. Potential spreadsheet formulas are prefixed with an apostrophe in CSV. JSON also includes schema version, generation time, coverage and excluded records.

Citing and checking a claim

For a date claim, open that row’s start or end source and confirm the season year. For this compilation, a suggested citation is: US Lantern Festival Guide, “2026 US lantern festivals: source-linked data,” https://lanternfestival.site/resources/lantern-festivals-2026-data/, followed by your access date. Keep the downloaded file and its status_as_of timestamp when documenting a snapshot. A citation or backlink is not required to download or use this resource.

Event records and exports update together when editorial records change; generating a download does not recheck external sites. Read our verification methodology and about page for more context.