How to See the Hoi An Lantern Festival Full Moon Celebration [updated for 2026]
When travelling to Vietnam, you won't want to miss the Hoi An Lantern Festival. This unique event is held on the 14th day of each monthly lunar cycle, regardless of when the full moon occurs.
Domestic and international visitors flock to the "Unesco City of Lanterns" to participate in the full moon festivities.
Along the riverside, local vendors sell colourful paper lanterns containing tealight candles. You can buy one, light it, and float it on the Hoai River. Watching your lantern float on the water in the moonlight is lovely.
Lighting candles is an important ritual during the lantern festival for local people as it signifies a time to honour their ancestors. Vietnamese families will burn incense and offer food, drink, flowers, and fake money at family altars within their homes, believing they will be blessed with health, happiness, good fortune, and love.
Full moon offerings occur all over Vietnam, but Hoi An is especially famous for its lantern festival, so don't miss it!
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How to See the Lantern Festival in Hoi An
Lantern festival activities centre around the Japanese Bridge and Cau An Hoi Bridge along the Hoai River. Festivities start at 8 pm, but most people arrive earlier to enjoy dinner in the ancient town before proceedings officially begin.
From 8 p.m., all of Hoi An's Old Quarter buildings start turning off their electric lights. This allows only the soft glow from silk and paper lanterns to light the area, creating a magical atmosphere.
Hoi An's ancient town becomes fully pedestrianised during the Lantern Festival. Cars and motorbikes are prohibited at this time, allowing visitors to wander along the cobbled streets and enjoy traditional musical performances by locals.
Don't worry if you can't visit Hoi An during the Lantern Festival, as there are always lanterns in Hoi An. However, a particular vibe surrounds the actual festival, so try to coincide the lunar calendar dates with your trip to Hoi An.
2026 Hoi An Lantern Festival Dates
2026 - January 2nd, February 1st, March 2nd, April 1st, May 30th, June 28th, July 27th, August 26th, September 24th, October 23rd, November 22ndd, December 22nd.
The story of the lantern seller
We hadn’t realised our trip to Hoi An would coincide with the Lunar Lantern Festival. Although other Asian festivals are well documented, we hadn't read anything about Vietnam's monthly full-moon celebrations.
On our first night in Hoi An, we were pleased to find a perfect spot to view the evening's activities. We watched from our restaurant table as Vietnamese families wandered past, and tourists stopped to light lanterns and board riverboat cruises along the Hoai River.
And then I spotted her - a small girl about five years old with a cheeky grin, pigtails tied with ribbons, and a traditional conical bamboo hat.
A woman stood in the shadows with her and pointed out which people to approach.
The girls' job was to sell the small paper lanterns to tourists; from what we saw, she was doing a roaring trade.
The cute little girl
We could hear comments about how cute she was, and tourists parted with their money without hesitation.
At one point, the girl came into our restaurant with her wicker basket, full to the brim with red, blue, and yellow paper lanterns. Once again, diners eagerly paid her a few Dong (Vietnamese currency) to ensure her cheeky grin didn't turn to crocodile tears.
Then she came over to us, but we had already decided not to buy from her as we felt she was being exploited and didn't want to be part of it.
Instead, our eyes spotted an elderly lady sitting a few feet away. She was selling identical lanterns but was not getting the same response as the girl.
People passing would raise their hands to indicate they didn't want to buy a lantern, then see the girl and suddenly change their minds.
Our favourite Hoi An lantern seller
After dinner, we left the restaurant and headed to the lantern sellers. The elderly lady caught my eye, and a smile crept onto her lips. She looked at me and then looked away as the girl ran up to me with her lanterns. I said a polite no thank you to the girl and went to the old lady.
She looked up from her seated position on the ground, and I pointed to her lanterns.
She was delighted when I bought two: one for me and one for my son, who was my travelling companion.
I politely asked to have my photo taken with her as I love capturing local people in my travel shots, and she was more than happy to oblige.
We remembered our loved ones as we watched our illuminated lanterns floating down the Hoai River and bid farewell to our favourite lantern seller; a great memory to take with us of our time at the Lantern Festival in Hoi An.
Travel Tips
- The biggest Lantern Festival celebration is in February, the first full moon of the lunar new year.
- Ensure you have an excellent camera to capture some stunning night photos of the Lantern Festival.
- Don't pay over 20,000 VND (70p/$1) for a paper lantern.
- Check out local performances near the Japanese Bridge.
- Escape the crowds and ride on a sampan (traditional boat) to see the lanterns from the water.
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Angela Price: is an accomplished travel writer bringing extensive expertise and passion to the world of travel.
With over 40 years of globetrotting adventures under her belt and with a keen eye for unique experiences, she has established herself as an authoritative voice in travel, offering invaluable insights for fellow adventurers seeking to uncover the delights of worldwide destinations.
Her motto is “live life wandering not wondering”. Read more about Angie.
What a spectacle this must have been, an entire city lit by nothing but lanterns! Wow! Continuing an ancient tradition right through to the 21st century must have been a really special experience for you Angie. Another great read and something I’d never heard of so will definitely be visiting when the world is back to normal 😁
I'm so glad you found it interesting. I would definitely recommend a visit to the town of Hoi An, it is somewhere I plan on revisiting at some point in the future.