September 11, 2026
Thom Carroll/For PhillyVoice
The Chinatown Friendship Gate stands at 10th and Arch streets, near where the neighborhood’s 31st annual Mid-Autumn Festival will take place Saturday, Sept. 26.
Philadelphia’s Chinatown Mid-Autumn Festival has been postponed one week because of rain and wind in the forecast.
The 31st annual celebration, originally scheduled for Saturday, Sept. 26, will now take place Saturday, Oct. 3, from noon-8 p.m. Organizers said the festival program will remain the same.
The street festival will stretch along 10th Street from the Chinatown Friendship Arch at 10th and Arch streets toward Vine Street. Activities will include cultural performances, art activities, carnival games, a mooncake-eating contest and an evening lantern parade.
Families can participate in free art activities and watch performances throughout the afternoon. Organizers have not listed a general admission charge.
Asian Americans United created the festival in 1996 with local middle school students. It offered Chinese Americans in Philadelphia a way to celebrate the holiday when they could not travel to China to be with family.
Today, more than 300 youth and community volunteers help put on the event. Organizers say approximately 7,500 people attend each year.
The Mid-Autumn Festival is traditionally a time for families to gather and give thanks during the harvest season. Lanterns, one of the holiday’s most recognizable symbols, will be carried through Chinatown during the festival's evening parade.
Stage performances, art activities and carnival games are scheduled from noon-6:30 p.m. The lantern parade will begin at 6:30 p.m. and travel through Chinatown before concluding with a short rally.
The festival carries added significance as residents and community groups work to preserve Chinatown, which was named one of Philadelphia’s most endangered historic places in 2023.
Oct. 3 | Noon-8 p.m.
Chinatown
10th Street near the Friendship Gate
Philadelphia, PA 19107
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