Take the Kids: Head to Cary for Chinese lanterns, Christmas trees

The pandemic shut the big event down in 2020, but Cary did manage to put up a handful of Chinese lanterns, which are scattered across downtown. They're part of a festive display that also includes Cary's Gifting Tree Project and Christmas music with synchronized lights at the fountain at Downtown Park. For a quick stroll during this unusual year, it makes for a fun night out. And it was great to see nearly everybody wearing masks outsides as they enjoyed the displays.

Here's what you'll see ...

The festival opened in 2015 and drew more than 121,000 people to Booth Amphitheatre in Cary last year. The giant lanterns, which require hundreds of parts and thousands of LED lights, are a popular tradition for lots of families and visitors. It's scheduled to return in November, but you can get a taste of the festival this year with six displays in downtown Cary. You can see them from your car or get out and walk around.

“We worked closely with Tianyu, our partner in the festival, to hand-pick a collection of lanterns to share with the citizens of Cary,” said William Lewis, Town of Cary Cultural Arts Manager, in a press release. “So many people enjoy the unique experience and the exquisite beauty of the lanterns every year at Koka Booth. We are thrilled to bring a piece of that to downtown Cary.”

You'll see tigers, bears, elephants, soaring eagles and more. Lanterns are located at:

And, finally, at Downtown Park, we enjoyed the giant Christmas tree and fountain lights, which were synchronized to Christmas music when we were there. You can't really hear the music in this video, but you get the idea. The synchronized lights run only through Dec. 25. It's at 319 S. Academy St., Cary.