Written by TC Team
The Lantern Festival is held on the final day of the Chinese Spring Festival, taking place in Yokohama’s Chukagai Chinatown at the Ma Zhu Miao, Shrine to the Goddess of the Sea, known as Masobyo in Japanese.
What happens?
Yokohama Chinatown’s Chinese New Year Lantern Festival celebrates the Year of the Horse under the theme “Auspicious Omens”, filling the streets with red lanterns, glowing arches, and one of Japan’s largest dragon lanterns.
This year’s highlights include the 200-metre “Promenade of Light” linking Yamashita Park and Chinatown, and the illuminated “Bridge of Light” across Ichiba-dori Bridge. All illuminations are powered by renewable energy as part of Chinatown’s effort toward a carbon-free future.
Schedule 2026
The lighting ceremony takes place near Zenrinmon Gate at 6 p.m. on Saturday, November 1, featuring lion dances and a dazzling switch-on moment.
History
The Lantern Festival has a variety of origin myths and a variety of customs depending on where it is held — in Hong Kong, apparently, it has been commercialized as something like Valentine’s Day — but wherever it is, it marks the end of the Spring Festival.
For more about the Hong Kong festival, see our event post on the Spring Lantern Festival on our sister site Hong Kong Cheapo.
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- 317 m from Motomachi-Chūkagai Station Minatomirai Line (MM6)
- 0.6 km from Ishikawachō Station Negishi Line (JK4)
- 0.7 km from Nihon-ōdōri Station Minatomirai Line (MM5)
