Lights, lanterns, legends: Mid-Autumn festivities mark SG60

SINGAPORE – Shimmering lights and dazzling lanterns have lit up Chinatown in celebration of the Mid-Autumn Festival, which falls on Oct 6.

Across Singapore, colourful displays featuring familiar motifs like rabbits and the full moon have been set up to mark the festival – with some carrying commemorative hints of the nation’s 60th birthday.

The Chinatown Mid-Autumn Festival 2025 celebrations, with the theme “60 Glorious Years: Celebrating Mid-Autumn in Singapore”, run from Sept 7 to Oct 20.

Speaking at the official street light-up and opening ceremony at Kreta Ayer Square on Sept 18, Minister for Digital Development and Information Josephine Teo said: “It is heartening to see Chinatown’s streets lit with joy and meaning, and to witness how our rich multiculturalism continues to connect people of all races in Singapore.

“I hope this celebration brings families, friends, neighbours and visitors together in appreciation of where we’ve come from and where we are headed.”

The displays include a striking 8m-tall centrepiece with the number 60 flanked by rabbits, mooncakes and orchids against a backdrop of the Singapore skyline.

In New Bridge Road and Eu Tong Sen Street, visitors can stroll beneath a vibrant overhang featuring lotus flowers, jade pendants, fans with rabbits and a full moon.

In Upper Cross Street, a glowing moon palace welcomes visitors, while South Bridge Road features the mythical moon goddess Chang’e, surrounded by peonies, mountains and poetic calligraphy panels.

At People’s Park Square, traditional delicacies and handicrafts are on sale until Oct 6.

The Chinatown Mid-Autumn Festival 2025 celebrations are organised by the Chinatown Festival Committee and supported by the Kreta Ayer-Kim Seng Citizens’ Consultative Committee.

Those who wish to soak in the festive spirit are spoilt for choice.

Lighting up Singapore’s transformation

Gardens by the Bay’s Mid-Autumn Festival will commemorate SG60 by charting Singapore’s journey from a fishing village to metropolis.

Its five key lantern sets feature Ang Ku Kueh Girl, a local character inspired by the traditional cake, and her friends.

The Gardens’ senior director of programming, Ms Linda Tay, said: “In the year of SG60, the lantern sets were designed to evoke warm feelings for traditions of the past, while inspiring pride in how the country has transformed to its modern-day incarnation.”

Two of the lantern sets are glowing symbols of Singapore’s diplomatic milestones.

One of them is from the Embassy of the Republic of Korea to celebrate 50 years of diplomatic friendship with Singapore. It features the Merlion and the Haetae, a lion-like mythical guardian of justice in Korean folklore.

The other lantern set, which marks 35 years of diplomatic ties between Singapore and China, is inspired by Chinese philosopher Zhuangzi’s butterfly dream.

It was created by the company behind Shanghai’s annual Yuyuan Lantern Festival.

The Gardens by the Bay festival opens on Sept 22 with a community lantern walk and lantern giveaway, followed by another giveaway on Oct 6.

Running until Oct 12, the celebration also features fringe activities including craft workshops, a food street and carnival games.

Moon-gazing with Monday Bruce

Hop over to the Singapore Chinese Cultural Centre (SCCC) to catch Moongazing With Monday Bruce, an art installation at the centre’s roof garden.

It features five giant illuminated inflatables of Monday Bruce, the main rabbit character from a series of collectible blind boxes.

The installation is on display from 10am to 10pm daily until Nov 30.

On the weekend of Oct 4 to 5, the SCCC and Singapore Chinese Orchestra (SCO) will present Mid-Autumn Family Fun 2025.

There will be 27 free and ticketed programmes at the SCCC and Singapore Conference Hall – the largest line-up for the festival, since its launch in 2023, to celebrate SG60.

Highlights include SCO’s concert on Oct 4 featuring festive pieces, and craft workshops.

The SCCC’s multi-purpose hall will be transformed into a teahouse with activities such as mooncake sampling and tea tasting.

Free activities at the concourse include drumming acts, poetry recitals and lantern riddles.

SCCC chief executive Alvin Tan said: “Through the festival, we hope to transform our centre into a festive hub where families and friends can get together and celebrate Mid-Autumn Festival in uniquely Singaporean ways, and, in doing so, inject more cultural vibrancy into the CBD (Central Business District).”

Guppy Glow: Lights of Harmony

The Wan Qing Mid-Autumn Festival 2025 @ SCCCI will bring a buzz to Hill Street on Sept 27 and 28 from 4pm to 9pm.

Visitors can join activities such as tea and mooncake sampling and lantern-making, and music and dance performances. A creative marketplace will feature artisanal crafts and home-grown flavours.

Presented by the Singapore Chinese Chamber of Commerce and Industry (SCCCI) and Sun Yat Sen Nanyang Memorial Hall, or Wan Qing Yuan, the event at SCCCI is free to the public.

From Sept 22 to Oct 9, a lantern display will take centre stage at SCCCI’s outdoor landscape. Named “Guppy Glow: Lights of Harmony”, its dazzling colours reflect Singapore’s multicultural harmony, while the fish’s agility mirrors the country’s dynamic spirit over 60 years of progress.

The display will be open from 10am to 6pm daily, with extended hours till 9pm on Sept 27 and 28.

Sun Wukong, Spider Demon Cave

Step into the world of myth and magic as Jurong Lake Gardens transforms into a Chinese literary wonderland from Sept 27 to Oct 12, 6.30pm to 10.30pm daily.

Catch Sun Wukong, the Monkey King from Journey To The West, brought to life in illuminated installations at Lights By The Lake 2025.

From the dramatic Five Elements Mountain, where Sun Wukong was imprisoned for his crimes against heaven, to the mystical Spider Demon Cave, where spider spirits disguised themselves as beautiful women to seduce Buddhist monk Tang Sanzang, each lantern set tells a chapter of the Chinese classic.

Other displays include Chang’e’s Moonlit Garden at the Stone Boat (Chinese Garden); the story of Little Mei at Resthouse Pond (Japanese Garden); and the serene Blossoms Beneath the Moon installation at the Floral Garden (Japanese Garden). 

The festival, organised by the National Parks Board (NParks), also offers lantern riddles, arts performances, a food market and light shows.

NParks’ concert series Rockestra will be held at the Ficus Lawn in Chinese Garden on Oct 11 from 6.30pm. 

Themed “Dancing in the Moonlight”, this SG60 edition features local talents performing English and Mandarin hits under the stars.