Hong Kong's famous Bun Festival has drawn large crowds to Cheung Chau Island – an island off the coast of the densely populated city – to celebrate a long-standing tradition rooted in prayers for peace and blessings.
The event unfolds in a lively atmosphere, featuring key activities including a bun tower climbing competition, parades, and distinctive religious ceremonies. The festival's highlight is the "bun snatching" contest, where daring participants climb a 14-metre bun tower to grab lucky buns.
This tradition originated about 200 years ago, when fishermen on Cheung Chau Island organized the festival to ward off evil spirits and pray for favourable weather and bountiful catches. Today, the festival is not only a spiritual occasion but also a unique cultural tourism draw, attracting tens of thousands of visitors from around the world.
Throughout the three-day festival, the atmosphere on Cheung Chau Island is filled with colour and sound. Stalls selling buns, souvenirs, and local cuisine are bustling with customers. Traditional rituals such as lion dances, Chinese opera, and folk games are also vividly re-enacted.
This year, an estimated 70,000 people are participating in the festival, nearly double the island's permanent population. Security measures and traffic controls have been tightened to ensure the safety of residents and visitors.
