Short answer: the 2027 Nagasaki Lantern Festival runs for 17 days, from Friday 5 to Sunday 21 February 2027, around Shinchi Chinatown and the centre of Nagasaki. The Mazu Procession is on Sunday 7 and Sunday 14 February, and the Emperor's Parade on Saturday 13 and Saturday 20 February. Lunar New Year's Day falls on Saturday 6 February.
The festival grew out of the New Year celebrations of Nagasaki's Chinese community and now hangs about 15,000 lanterns across the city. We rent campervans from Hakozaki in Fukuoka, about two hours from Nagasaki on the expressway.
February is low season for us, so it is one of the easier times of year to get a van.
Which evenings to go
The lanterns are lit every evening of the festival, and they are at their best after dark. Saturdays bring the Emperor's Parade, a re-enactment of a Qing-dynasty emperor and empress celebrating the New Year with about 150 people in costume, and the biggest crowds. Thursday 11 February is a public holiday in Japan, so expect weekend crowds that day too.
Weekday evenings are calmer, and the lanterns are just the same.
The official guide warns that hotels for weekends and holidays fill up early. With a van you skip that problem, but car parks in the centre fill up too; more on that below. Parade times are published closer to the date on the official festival site, so check them before you plan a Saturday around one.
Where the lanterns are
- Shinchi Chinatown and Minato Park: the main lantern display, the opening lighting ceremony, stage shows every day and food stalls.
- Chuo Park: large lantern displays, plenty of food stalls and places to sit, which makes it the easiest venue with children.
- Nakashima River: yellow lanterns reflected in the water, and quieter than Chinatown.
- Kofukuji Temple and Tojin-yashiki, the old Chinese quarter: softer light and fewer people.
- Hamanomachi arcade: lanterns hang from the roof of the covered shopping street.
Getting in from the van
Central Nagasaki is squeezed between the harbour and steep hills, and the streets around Chinatown are tight and busy during the festival. Leave the van for the evening and ride the tram.
From the Nagasaki-eki-mae stop, trams towards Sofukuji stop at Shinchi Chinatown, and trams towards Hotarujaya stop at City Hall (Shiyakusho), the closest stop for Chuo Park and the Nakashima River.
There is a one-day tram ticket on your phone; check the current fare on Nagasaki Electric Tramway's site.
If you do park in the centre, read the height limit at the entrance first. All our vans are taller than an ordinary car, and multi-storey and mechanical car parks often cannot take them.
Where to sleep near Nagasaki
A simple plan is to sleep at a michi-no-eki (roadside station) outside the city and drive in during the afternoon. These three are within about 20 km of central Nagasaki in a straight line. When we checked them in July 2026, none had a posted rule against resting overnight in your vehicle:
- Michi-no-Eki Yuhigaoka Sotome, on the coast north-west of the city. Its rest area is open 24 hours, and it has about 100 car spaces.
- Michi-no-Eki 251 Iimori Jaga-Road in Isahaya, east of the city on Route 251 towards Shimabara. It opened in November 2025.
- Michi-no-Eki Nagasaki-Kaido Suzuta-Toge in Omura, a small one with 24 car spaces.
If you want a paid pitch with power, Michi-no-Eki Sonogi no Sho on Omura Bay has an RV park. At any michi-no-eki, stay inside the van: no tents, chairs or cooking outside. The station-by-station map covers the rest of Kyushu.
Nights in February
Nagasaki is mild for a Japanese winter. In an average January, the coldest month, nights fall to 4.0 °C and drop below freezing on fewer than two nights (Japan Meteorological Agency normals, 1991 to 2020).
Inside a van, that still feels cold by morning.
Our Bongo vans have no heater. They do have a sub-battery with AC outlets that works with the engine off, and from December to February we lend an electric blanket free on request, with extra sleeping bags and blankets. The Pocket Loft has a cabin heater that warms the cabin without the engine running. Whichever van you take, do not leave the engine idling overnight to stay warm.
Fitting the festival into a longer trip
A festival evening fits well into a loop of the west of Kyushu: Arita's porcelain and the onsen at Takeo and Ureshino on the way, Nagasaki for two or three nights, then the Shimabara coast and the car ferry to Kumamoto. Our Kyushu winter coastal route covers that loop, and the Nagasaki campervan guide covers the city for the rest of your stay. If you continue south from Kumamoto towards Kagoshima, read our update on the roads after the 2026 Kumamoto earthquake first.
To see which vans are free, try 10 days from 5 to 14 February 2027 and change the dates from there.
Photos: cover by Balon Greyjoy (Wikimedia Commons, CC0); Hamanomachi arcade by ぱちょぴ (CC BY-SA 3.0); van interior by VanTripJapan. Festival dates from the Nagasaki Lantern Festival official site and Nagasaki City's tourism office; venue notes from Nagasaki Prefecture's tourism site (nagasaki-tabinet.com).
Questions about the festival
When is the Nagasaki Lantern Festival in 2027?
From Friday 5 to Sunday 21 February 2027, for 17 days. Lunar New Year's Day falls on Saturday 6 February.
When are the Emperor's Parade and the Mazu Procession in 2027?
The Emperor's Parade is on Saturday 13 and Saturday 20 February 2027, and the Mazu Procession on Sunday 7 and Sunday 14 February. Check the start times on the official festival site closer to the date.
Can I sleep in a campervan near Nagasaki during the festival?
Yes. Michi-no-Eki Yuhigaoka Sotome, 251 Iimori Jaga-Road and Nagasaki-Kaido Suzuta-Toge are within about 20 km of the city in a straight line, and none had a posted rule against resting overnight in your vehicle when we checked in July 2026. Michi-no-Eki Sonogi no Sho has a paid RV park.
Is it too cold to sleep in a campervan in February?
Nagasaki's nights average about 4 °C in January and rarely drop below freezing. Our Bongo vans have no heater, so from December to February we lend an electric blanket free on request. The Pocket Loft has a cabin heater that works without the engine.
Where should I park for the festival?
Outside the centre if you can, then take the tram to Shinchi Chinatown or City Hall. If you park in the centre, check the height limit first, because our vans are taller than an ordinary car.