Surging crowds, deafening cheers and, most importantly, fantastic light shows, the night of Lyon is one of the best recommendations when you encounter the romantic France.

Integrating traditional art with state-of-the-art technologies, the Lyon Festival of Lights, or Lyon's Fête des Lumières in France, is a major event in Lyon and one of the largest visual arts festival across the globe.

It usually takes place around Dec 8 for four consecutive nights. When 8 pm rolls around, all you have to do is to immerse yourself in this major celebration that is free and open to all.

Meanwhile, the origin of the festival is a wonderful story to tell. In 1850, the religious veterans of Lyon decided to build a statue of the Virgin Mary at the top of Fourviere district and launched a competition to choose a sculptor. 

The statue was eventually completed by the sculptor Joseph-Hugues Fabisch. The inauguration ceremony was originally scheduled to take place on Sept 8, 1852, when Roman Catholics honor the Virgin Mary on the Feast of the Immaculate Conception. Unfortunately, the event had to be postponed until Dec 8 due to sudden flooding on the Saone River.

Three months later, a torrential rain in Lyon seemed about to force the event to be postponed again. As dusk approached, the sky cleared, and Lyon citizens all lit candles in their windows to celebrate the day. Since then, this day has been designated as the day of light shows, and evolved into a world-famous festival.