The annual OC Moon festival celebration will take place Sunday, October 1, 2023 on the Freedom Hall Lawn at Mile Square Park. This free, family-friendly festival features food vendors, face painting, balloon animals, live entertainment, children’s activities, and free moon cakes and lanterns for kids.
The annual Moon Festival is also known as Mid-Autumn Festival. This traditional celebration dates back thousands of years and marks an important cultural event for Orange County’s East Asian-American communities including Vietnamese and Chinese.
Traditionally the festival is celebrated on the 15th day of the eighth month in the lunar calendar. The 2023 Mid-Autumn Festival (Moon Festival) falls on Friday, September 29 while the OC Moon Festival will celebrate this occasion on Sunday, October 1.
OC Moon Festival
Where: Mile Square Regional Park | Freedom Hall Lawn
Address: 16801 Euclid Street Fountain Valley, CA 92708
Enter Mile Square Regional Park off of Edinger or Ward
Date: Sunday, October 1, 2023
Time: 5:00 pm – 8:00 pm
Free Admission & Parking, simply reserve a spot
For more information, call the OC Supervisor’s office at 714-834-3110
Activities
- Food Vendors
- Face Painting
- Glitter Tattoos
- Balloon Animals
- Live Musical Performances
- Colorful Lanterns for Children
About the Moon Festival
The annual Moon Festival, also known as the Mid-Autumn Festival, is a traditional Asian celebration that typically falls on the 15th day of the eighth month in the lunar calendar, when the moon is though to be at its fullest and brightest. The festival holds great cultural significance in countries such as China, Vietnam, and Taiwan.
On this day, families gather to appreciate the moon’s beauty, offer prayers for good harvests and prosperity, and share delicious mooncakes—round pastries filled with sweet fillings that symbolize unity and togetherness. Lanterns are seen as symbolic beacons that light the path to prosperity and good fortune. They play an integral role in the festival, illuminating the night with their colorful glow in a multitude of different shapes and sizes. The Moon Festival showcases the importance of family, gratitude, and provides an opportunity to gather, reflect on the past, and give thanks for the harvest, or for harmonious unions.
In Vietnam, the Moon Festival (Tết Trung Thu) is the most important holiday after Vietnamese New Year. It is also known as the Children’s Festival due to the celebration’s emphasis on children. In ancient times, the Vietnamese believed children possessed the most direct link to the spiritual realm, making proximity to them a conduit for connecting with the divine. This tradition continues to be reflected in modern times, as most Vietnamese festival customs and activities are centered on or involve children, encompassing practices like gift-giving and the timeless art of traditional dragon dances.
Other regional festival names include Zhongqiu Jie (中秋节) in Chinese, Eighth Month Festival, Festival of Unity, and Mooncake Festival. There are also similar or variant festivals held in other Asian countries such as Tsukimi in Japan or Chuseok in Korea.
More Local Moon Festivals & Mid-Autumn Festivals
- Celebrate Cultures In Nature Mid Autumn Festival: Saturday, September 30 | Black Star Canyon
- Mooncake Festival: Sunday, October 1 | Garden Grove
- Mid-Autumn Festival: Friday, September 29 | Orange County Great Park Irvine
- Mid-Autumn Festival: Sunday, October 1 | 50 Furrow, Irvine
- Mid-Autumn Moon Festival/Lễ Hội Trung Thu: September 29 | Hope Community Services, Santa Ana
- Mid-Autumn Festival: Saturday, October 7 | Centennial Park, Santa Ana
- Asian Mid-Autumn Moon Festival: Sunday, October 8 | Bowers Museum, Santa Ana
- Mid-Autumn Children’s Festival/Tet Trung Thu: – Saturday, September 30, 2023 | Westminster Civic Center’s Sunken Gardens
- Senior Center Moon Festival: Friday, September 29 | Westminster Senior Center
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| OC Japan Fair | Greek Festivals In Orange County |
