SAN DIEGO–A holiday celebration that draws 400,000 people a year to Sacramento is opening in San Diego for the holidays.
Global Winter Wonderland will open its doors at SDCCU Stadium on November 19, and will run through January 7, 2018.
The distinctive multi-cultural event is the largest display of traditional Chinese lanterns outside of China. San Diego marks the fourth city to host this light festival. Nearly 100 artisans will arrive in San Diego to design and sew by hand intricate lantern displays that can reach heights of 20 feet. The art of designing and illuminating lanterns by hand is a rich custom dating back 2,000 years.
Global Winter Wonderland is centered on large luminescent, hand-crafted lanterns inspired by international landscapes around the world. Crowd favorites include the Taj Mahal and Eiffel Tower. This Circus of Lights event features Cirque du Soleil level acrobatics, 35+ carnival rides, holiday-themed activities, games, international food, shopping and more. The idea behind this event is for visitors to travel the world in just one day. For this reason, many consider the event to be a one-of-a-kind holiday experience that celebrates holidays around the world.
International Culture Exchange Group (ICEG), the producer of Global Winter Wonderland, was founded by President Lulu Huang. Huang is a Chinese native whose vision was to re-create this vibrant multi-cultural festival in the United States.
San Diego’s Global Winter Wonderland will include an interactive craft center for children to explore their creative side. Visitors can design their own ornaments, decorate lanterns and participate in a variety of interactive games. Children can also take photos with mascot Penny the Penguin and write letters to Santa Claus when visiting Toyland, Candyland and the North Pole.
“This is a great event to add to San Diego’s holiday season,” said Mark Neville, executive director of the San Diego Bowl Games. “This festival will bring jobs and visitors to San Diego at a time when we have some of the best weather of the year.”
San Diego has not hosted a large-scale holiday lights attraction since 2013 when the Holiday of Lights attraction at the Del Mar fairgrounds closed after nearly two decades.
For more information on Global Winter Wonderland, visit globalwonderland.com.