After stumbling upon a Facebook ad for a magical, paper lantern festival called “Light up the New Year”, I couldn’t resist making this a part of my 2020 celebration. The description on Eventbrite promised an “an unforgettable NYE party! Food, music, dancing, games, and of course – an amazing sky lantern launch!” It definitely sounded like it would be an amazing night. The company that ran the event, The Lights, has been running similar events all over the country, and I was able to find very good reviews of past events in other states. Totally convinced, I bought my ticket a month in advance and could not wait for the experience!
Finally New Year’s Eve arrived, and it was time to head to the event. The ticket said doors would open at 5:30pm. In order to ensure the best view, I wanted to get there as close to open as possible. After driving for a little over an hour, we arrived at Little Everglades Ranch. What a beautiful place! The wide open space would be perfect for the midnight lantern launch!
Pompeii: The Immortal City at Orlando Science Center
After paying $70 for two tickets, I was a little surprised that they were charging $10/car for parking. Once parked, we gathered our lawn chairs and blankets (It was in the high 40’s that night, and that’s really cold for Floridians!) and headed towards the lantern festival area. Wow. That was a hike! I’m not sure how long the walk was exactly, but it certainly felt like a mile. I don’t mind walking, but the pathways were unpaved and poorly lit. It truly felt like a safety hazard to be walking that far with so little lighting.
Once we finally arrived at the lantern festival, we checked in, got our lantern packets (They included one lantern per person and a marker to write/decorate your lantern.), and picked a spot to put our lawn chairs. It was around 6:30pm, and we were already anxiously awaiting the promised midnight lantern show! But despite my excitement, I wasn’t worried that the big moment was still hours away. The event organizers promised plenty of entertainment to pass the time.
Well….. expectations and promises did not exactly match reality. There were games. The organizers brought 2 giant Connect Four boards and 2 cornhole games. Lawn activities are always fun, but again there wasn’t enough lighting provided. Once the sun set, you couldn’t see the games from a few feet away; forget about playing them.
The food was another awkward situation. As promised, the event included various food trucks providing a variety of options like burgers, pizza, hot dogs, coffee, donuts, and Cuban sandwiches. As soon as we sat down, a woman told me the pizza was “the worst (she’d) ever had,” so I decided to opt for a Cuban sandwich instead. When I tried to pay, I was informed the both cash and credit cards were not accepted at the trucks. You had to buy food tickets from a nearby tent to be redeemed for food and drink. Unfortunately, they only sold these tickets in $10 batches. Even if all you wanted was a coffee or bottle of water, you had to buy the full batch of tickets. This was an unexpected frustration.
Based on the advertising and the fact that it was New Year’s Eve, I expected a high-energy, party atmosphere. The music selections did not match those expectations. There were several single or duo artists performing folk covers or original songs accompanied by a single guitar. These musicians were certainly talented in their chosen genre of music, but it was a much different feel than I expected. I kept waiting for the “party” to begin. Sadly, it never did.
….But then the evening really started to get awkward….
Then the organizer got on stage and said he needed to make an announcement. Apparently, some people had been complaining that it was too cold (There were no space heaters or fire pits.), and they didn’t want to wait until the midnight launch… SO, he decided there would be a 8pm lantern launch for all of those people that didn’t want to wait any longer. To say I was disappointed is an understatement. I had driven 65 miles into the middle of nowhere for a NEW YEARS EVE party. To participate in a MIDNIGHT lantern launch. Not only was it far from the “party” I was promised, but now people were going to launch at 8pm and leave?
The time for the “first launch” came and about half of the field got ready to light their lanterns. The organizer started shouting instructions on how to properly light the lanterns. He told people to wait for everyone to launch together, but no one seemed to be listening to him any longer. Several people launched their lanterns early. This angered the organizer, and he promptly started calling people out on the microphone. He even started insulting people, insinuating that their inability to light a lantern was indicative of their ability to manage their lives.
It was so cold that I considered packing up and leaving, but I didn’t have any other plans for New Years Eve. I decided to stick it out. Shortly after the first “unofficial” launch, the organizers decided to play the movie “Tangled”. Don’t get me wrong. I love that movie! But if I thought I’d be watching it on a jumbo screen in the middle of the field instead of dancing my way into the New Year, I wouldn’t have come.
The good news is that the final launch was as beautiful and magical as I had hoped (although considerably smaller as so many people launched their lanterns hours earlier). Nothing that happened up until this point can take away the true magic of writing our New Year’s hopes on our lantern, preparing them for launch, and watching them float into the sky. The accompanying music fit the moment perfectly.
Will I attend another lantern festival? Probably not. The final moments were a neat experience, but the hours of awkward and borderline unpleasant circumstances prior were a high price to pay. If you’re looking to participate in a similar event, I highly recommend that you arrive prepared. Bring your own snacks and drinks. Make sure you dress appropriately, and bring flashlights or other light sources.
