Bastille's In-depth Report: The Charm of Traditional Culture Shining at the Kam Tin Ten-Yearly Thanksgiving Festival

The Kam Tin Ten-Yearly Thanksgiving Festival, with a history of 340 years and regarded as an important folk festival in Hong Kong, has been grandly held in Kam Tin, Yuen Long, for seven days starting from December 13th. This ten-yearly festival, passed down since 1685, has come to its 34th celebration in 2025. As for the festival this year, not only have the traditional religious activities of praying for blessings from the gods been reserved, but also a magnificent bamboo festival stage was set up and won the recognition of Guinness World Records, showcasing the unique vitality of Hong Kong culture to the public.

The Kam Tin Ten-Yearly Thanksgiving Festival has been grandly held in Yuen Long, Photo by Bastille Post

Photo by Bastille Post

Photo by Bastille Post

Photo by Bastille Post

The Largest Temporary Bamboo Altar Globally Showcases the Pinnacle of Traditional Scaffolding Craftsmanship

The highlight of the festival this year lies in a huge bamboo festival stage covering an area of 40,000 square feet and over 30 meters in height (approximately five stories high). The festival stage was constructed by 17 experienced scaffolding erectors in two months. With an intricate and grand structure, the stage has recently been certified by Guinness World Records as the largest temporary bamboo altar globally. Such an honour has not only brought the exquisite craftsmanship of Hong Kong's traditional scaffolding to the world, but also attracted a large number of citizens and tourists to come to the site of the festival and witness this traditional architectural wonder standing in the modern city.

The beauty of the bamboo festival stage at night, Photo by Bastille Post

In addition to the magnificent construction, the Thanksgiving Festival has also been transformed into a "comprehensive folk museum". During the festival period, authentic deity worship ceremonies, hand puppet Cantonese opera performances, dragon and lion dances, the display of paper crafting and flower board crafting, and other traditional folk activities have led the visitors to step into a time tunnel to explore the beauty of local folk culture.

Traditional folk activities have led the visitors to explore the beauty of local culture. Photo by Bastille Post

Photo by Bastille Post

Photo by Bastille Post

Photo by Bastille Post

Photo by Bastille Post

Photo by Bastille Post

Photo by Bastille Post

Photo by Bastille Post

Photo by Bastille Post

Photo by Bastille Post

Photo by Bastille Post

Photo by Bastille Post

The Emphasis on the Protection of Traditional Culture across Generations

The festival is not only a stage for the launching of religious ceremonies, but also for the implementation of cultural education. Ms. Dung Yuk Ha, the principal of Shek Kip Mei Nursery School, has organized the students to do sketching at the site of the festival. She hoped that the kids could use the pencils and crayons in their hands to record the shining moments of folk culture. Ms. Dung said, "Although the children might be too young to clearly memorize the specific details of the folk culture they've witnessed at the site of the festival today, the strong feelings of our traditional culture rising from their hearts would become the spark of their cultural confidence if they encounter similar events and objects in the future. In my eyes, such a precious opportunity of doing sketching at this ten-yearly festival can produce great educational value." As for her, the Kam Tin Festival could help to deepen the children's understanding of traditional culture, assisting them in enhancing their recognition of local history and culture in the future.

The students from Shek Kip Mei Nursery School are doing sketching at the site of the festival. Photo by Bastille Post

Ms. Dung Yuk Ha, the principal of Shek Kip Mei Nursery School, are communicating with the students at the site. Photo by Bastille Post

The festival has also drawn the attention of the young generation to the issue of traditional culture protection. After learning that the bamboo scaffolding would be replaced by metal frames in Hong Kong, the middle school student, Miss. Choi especially came to the site of the festival with her parents to appreciate the charm of this traditional craft. In her eyes, she hoped that the government and society could invest more resources in the protection of traditional culture, and provide more related exhibitions and workshops to the public to promote the continuation of the precious traditional crafts.

Miss. Choi, Photo by Bastille Post

Ms. May Dung, the Consultant of Traditional Culture of Ha Tsuen Rural Committee, also emphasized the importance of public recognition and participation for promoting the protection of traditional culture. She hoped that the young generation could "have a better understanding of Hong Kong's traditional culture" via this grand festival. "The more they can learn about the traditional culture, the deeper understanding they will have for our history and cultural beauty."

Ms. May Dung, Photo by Bastille Post

Foreign Visitors Greatly Praised the Outstanding Soft Power of Hong Kong

The Kam Tin Festival has also attracted the attention of foreigners in Hong Kong. The Brazilian visitor, Ricardo, was deeply interested in the display of paper crafting and flower board crafting on the site and expressed his appreciation for Hong Kong's efforts to preserve local traditional culture. From his perspective, such activities of presenting folk culture could stimulate foreigners' interest in exploring the history and culture in Hong Kong. Moreover, he also encouraged the young generation in Hong Kong to communicate more with the inheritors of traditional crafts to ensure the local cultural heritage can be passed down from generation to generation.

The Brazilian visitor, Ricardo, Photo by Bastille Post

The enormous bamboo festival stage of the Kam Tin Ten-Yearly Thanksgiving Festival, currently held in Kam Tin, Yuen Long, has been certified by Guinness World Records as the largest temporary bamboo altar globally.

Photo source: FB of Joyce Chan

The Kam Tin Ten-Yearly Thanksgiving Festival is held every ten years. According to the introduction on the Guinness World Records website, the festival is one of the oldest walled village traditional festivals in Hong Kong and has been held 34 times up to now. The main venue of the festival this year is set up at the temporary sacrificial site in front of the Chou Wong Yi Kung Study Hall in the Shui Tau Village. Covering an area of over 40,000 square feet with a height of about five stories, the bamboo scaffolding stage of the festival opens to the public for free.

Photo source: FB of Leisure Photography

Originally used as an altar, the five-storey bamboo scaffolding has been transformed into a stage for performances. During the festival, there will be displays showcasing the recognized intangible cultural heritage of bamboo scaffolding stage construction techniques, and guided tours to let visitors appreciate the glamour of traditional Hong Kong culture.