Residents in Royal Tunbridge Wells, Kent, will see the town centre light up this Saturday, February 7, 2026, for the annual Winter Lantern Parade. The free event will finish at Grosvenor & Hilbert Park, where organisers hope to raise money for new children’s playground graphics and interpretation boards.
The procession will begin at 5:30 PM at the Calverley Precinct (outside Royal Victoria Place) before moving down Camden Road. Local groups like Bloco Fogo will provide samba music as thousands of people carry handmade paper-and-willow lanterns through the streets.
The parade will end at the Auckland Road entrance of Grosvenor & Hilbert Park. The Friends of Grosvenor & Hilbert Park are using the event to collect donations that will pay for children’s playground graphics and new interpretation boards explaining the history of the park.
According to Visit Tunbridge Wells, the celebration is open to everyone and serves as a way for the community to come together. Previous reports by Times Local News show the event often draws large crowds, helping to support the park’s ongoing improvement following a major restoration funded by the National Lottery Heritage Fund in 2014.
