Huge visitor demand sees Zigong lantern festival extended

Lanterns featuring three faces of the Monkey King greet visitors at an entrance to the lantern fair in Zigong, Sichuan province. [Photo by Huang Zhiling/chinadaily.com.cn]

It is the time of year when people from around the country flock to the lantern fair in Zigong, Sichuan province.

Lantern fairs are usually held during the Lantern Festival which is the end of the Spring Festival.

As so many visitors want to see lanterns in Zigong, the city's fair will not end until the middle of next month, said Li Jian, deputy chief of the city's tourism administration.

On February 10, the fourth day of this year's Spring Festival, organizers had to ask visitors not to rush to Zigong.

It was only five kilometers from Zigong on the expressway but it was taking vehicles more than two hours to reach the city because so many wanted to see the lanterns.

Organizers had to delay the sale of tickets to discourage visitors from thronging to the city.

"The influx of people from across the country offers testimony to how popular Zigong's lanterns are. Its organizers have held the lantern fair in some 40 countries in Asia, Europe and America and it has drawn nearly 300 million viewers," said Xu Huanying, a visitor from Pixian, Sichuan who has visited the lantern fair in Zigong twice.

The fair this year is unique because it features the ancient Silk Road with lanterns displaying sites along the route such as Chang'an, capital of the Tang Dynasty (AD 618-907), the Jiayu Pass and the Loulan Kingdom in China.

It also depicts scenes in Nagoya, Japan and landmark buildings in France such as the Arc de Triomphe and Eiffel Tower because the Silk Road started in China and radiated its influence on Asia and Europe culturally and economically.