Chinese Lantern Festival: Holiday Magic in Full Bloom!

The Chinese Lantern Festival is back at the Pomona Fairplex this November 21st through January 5th! The theme this year is, “Blooming Seasons.” Read on to learn what you can find there and our personal favorites at the festival!

This is a sponsored post. A SoCal Way of Life received free tickets in exchange for this post. However, all opinions are honest and my own.

My family headed out to The Chinese Lantern Festival at the Pomona Fairplex last night! This was our second year attending and we were once again entranced by the beautiful lights and artistic creativity.

The Chinese Lantern Festival theme this year is, “Blooming Seasons.” As you can imagine, the lanterns this year include beautiful floral and insect designs. You will also see lanterns depicting animals and even mythical creatures. Of course, you will find Santa and his reindeer among the lanterns.

Our personal favorites

My personal favorites were all of the beautiful lantern arches. Walking through the lit up arches gave a touch of whimsy to the Chinese Lantern Festival and made for some stunning photo opps.

My kids were HUGE fans of the mystical creatures! These were new to the festival this year. Kids ages 4 through 12 can climb onto these animatronic creatures while parents take pictures. They are not rides in the sense that they are relatively stationary, but there are sounds and the animals heads move. Sorry…adults can’t get on. I would have tried 😀 Honestly, my oldest is very tall and they initially stopped her because they thought that she was past the age limit.

The hubby said he liked the 85 foot ceramic dragon. It is huge! If you look closely you will see that it is made, in part, with plates and tea cups! That put it over the top in my book!

The Chinese Lantern Festival is definitely family friendly. Aside from lantern sighting, you will find bouncers and games at an additional price. There are also live performances and circular lights that kids get to jump on and see changing colors.

I personally think this would make for a great date night as well. The night sky with the beautiful ambiance of the lights, combined with the music streaming, makes for a lovely night.

Chinese Lantern Festival Tips:

Take cash for parking. Parking costs $12 at the Fairplex.
Take a jacket! We question each year whether we really need one. Every year, we’re reminded that it’s cold as you walk around the fairplex at night 😉
Arrive early! The lines start forming early on and it gets very busy. Try to avoid the rush and get the best pictures by arriving right at opening.
Take cash for food, drinks, shopping, and kid entertainment! There are all sorts of food options and snacks available throughout the festival. If your kids are into bouncy houses and carnival games, you will find these as well for an extra cost.

Check out the live performances! These performances are included with admission. Just be sure to take a look at the performance schedule upon entering. The performances are at specific times throughout the night.
Let your kids ride the magical creatures! These are for kids ages 4 through 12. They are also included with price of admission.

Chinese Lantern Festival Tickets:

There are a couple of options for purchasing your tickets to the Chinese Lantern Festival.

Tickets are available at Chinese Lantern Festival website or at the gate from$13-$27
You can also find tickets for select dates from $10.50 to $16.50 through my Goldstar affiliate link HERE.