As you all know I am always promoting Dayton events, but I gotta tell you,The Dragon Lights running through Monday, January 6th in Columbus is simply spectacular. Displayed at the Natural Resource Park at the Ohio Expo Center, just off I 71 north of the city, this walk through display of 38 vignettes of Chinese Lanterns is certainly worth a trip to see.
And while they are called lanterns, they are really huge sculptures created by hand using silk fabric, steel frames, and tens of thousands of LED lights.
You’ll see pandas and peacocks, tulips and traditional characters representing the animals in the Chinese zodiac are all on display, but the 200 foot long dragon might just be the most impressive of all. The project is the work of 20 artisans from China, who were in Central Ohio for six weeks of set up, organizers said. Columbus is the seventh American city to host the festival. Previous tour stops included LA, Milwaukee, Philadelphia, New Orleans and Spokane.
There are also daily performances at 6:30 and 8:00pm with a third set at 9pm on Friday & Saturday of traditional Chinese acts including jar balancing, kicking bowls on a rolling board, Chinese face-changing, martial arts, and umbrella juggling. Also offered a variety of Chinese fair food and some novelty merchandise booths.
Tickets: These prices are for advance purchase online. Tickets are a few dollars more at the door.
Adults $17
Military with ID $14
Youth 5- 16 years old$12
Family 4 Pack – 2 adults, 2 children $50
You can buy tickets online and avoid the line
Parking is charged separately at $6/car in cash.
This is all outside, so be sure and dress warmly! However, the Marketplace, food vendors and stage performance are indoor.
