Extended Victoria Park lantern show attracts thousands for National Day

Thousands of Hongkongers, domestic helpers and tourists have taken advantage of the extended lantern show in Victoria Park as the National Day “golden week” holiday kicked off in mainland China.

Many people arrived early at sunset on Thursday to avoid the huge crowds that had previously gathered for the International Lantern Spectacular, organised by the Hong Kong Tourism Board, which has attracted more than 500,000 visitors since its debut in September.

Before many of the lanterns turned on in the evening, the South China Morning Post observed hundreds of visitors to the park snapping selfies and walking around, including domestic helpers, tourists and locals.

Among the early birds was Anant Raj, a 36-year-old banking employee, who was visiting the lantern show with his wife and their two young sons.

Raj, an Indian national who has lived in Hong Kong for a year, said the family was keen to take part in the National Day celebrations and would head to the harbourfront to watch the fireworks later in the evening.

“Even though we are in essence foreigners, you can see all segments of society, all people, enjoying the atmosphere,” he said.

Initially scheduled to run until September 27 to coincide with the Mid-Autumn Festival, the Tourism Board on Wednesday announced a second extension, with the show now set to wrap up at the end of the golden week on October 7.

The event has attracted enormous public interest, with entry times on certain days being cut short to prevent overcrowding.

The Tourism Board said the event recorded about 580,000 visits over the first 13 days after it opened on September 17, with peak daily attendance exceeding 200,000.

Zhou Sipeng, a 25-year-old visiting from Shenzhen with her boyfriend, James Chau Chun Yeung, said the lanterns were part of the reason they chose to visit Hong Kong for the holiday.

“It’s very popular on [mainland] Chinese social media,” she said. “The [World Lantern Boulevard] is the one I’m looking forward to the most.”

Zhou was referring to an installation that features a path showcasing 3,000 lantern designs from different countries and regions.

Other highlights include the Giant Masterpiece Lantern – an eight-meter banyan tree installation that greets visitors as they come through the entrance.

“It’s really beautiful,” exclaimed 31-year-old Victoria Ling Ouyang, who was visiting from Shenzhen with her family.

Ling said the family were visiting the city for three days and was staying at a hotel in Central. They also planned to catch the fireworks after seeing the lanterns.

While Hongkongers have left the city in droves for National Day, the SCMP had observed that many had nonetheless chosen to stay and check out the displays.

Among the locals visiting the event was Polytechnic University student Carly Cheung, who was visiting with her boyfriend Isaac Tsang.

Cheung said the couple had been too busy earlier in the week to visit and had seen lots of posts on social media warning about the huge crowds.

“We saw on social media that it took nearly an hour to line up and get in,” the 20-year-old said. “It was the right choice to come early.

She said she was interested in seeing the World Lantern Boulevard installation the most, but would skip the fireworks afterwards to avoid the large crowds.