Liangshan hosts Torch Festival carnival for 300,000 people

Approximately 300,000 people gathered in Xichang City, within the Liangshan Yi Autonomous Prefecture, to celebrate the Torch Carnival Night on August 8, 2026. The event, a centerpiece of the 2026 Liangshan Yi Torch Festival, featured 86 bonfires and tens of thousands of torches along a 3.2-kilometer stretch of Hangtian Avenue.

The festival included 98 cultural tourism events held across 17 counties and cities in the Liangshan region. Activities such as traditional Yi folk dances, ethnic costume fashion shows, and intangible cultural heritage workshops were conducted in various locations, including Puge, Butuo, Yuexi, Huidong, Huili, and Dechang counties. The celebrations are scheduled to continue through the end of August.

Liangshan is home to China’s largest Yi ethnic community. The prefecture has seen significant growth in tourism, with a reported year-on-year increase of over 10% in tourist arrivals and consumption during recent major holidays.