Lantern Festival Shines for 2023

Ōpōtiki celebrated 10 years of the Lantern Festival on the weekend, with another successful afternoon and evening of entertainment.

The i-SITE Manager, Joseph Hayes, said that it was a great celebration, in spite of the rain.

“Saturday night was outstanding – the artists and the bands were top shelf and we were just so lucky to have such national and international talent right here in Ōpōtiki.

“It was raining right up until 1pm on Saturday and we were so lucky to be able to hold it. To be honest, so many events around the country have been cancelled or postponed because of the weather this summer, we counted our lucky stars we got a clear-ish afternoon and evening. I am sure the rain kept a few people away, but those who came were well-rewarded!

“We had such good feedback, including from the artists who love playing here. World-class acts who performed their hearts-out for our local crowd.

“Huge thanks to everyone who helped to make it happen – particularly those who got wet in the set-up, pack-down or all the hard work that goes into keeping an event like this running, particularly this year. Especially our sponsors – Trust Horizon, Aotearoa Gambling Trust, New World Ōpōtiki, Lions Foundation, and of course Ōpōtiki District Council,” Joseph Hayes said.