The seventh Guangzhou International Light Festival, one of the world's top lighting spectaculars opened on Oct 27. 

The opening ceremony on Oct 27 for the event, which runs until Nov 19, featured a splendid laser light show cast from Guangzhou's iconic Canton Tower showing a spatiotemporal image of Guangzhou's past and modernization.

Visitors flock to Huacheng Square to enjoy the illuminating lighting show at the 2017 Guangzhou International Light Festival. [Photo/chinanews.com]

The light festival consists of five main parts including Light of the City, Light of the Sea, Light of Technology and Light of the Future. Visitors will be able to immerse themselves in the shining culture of Guangzhou – the birthplace of ancient Maritime Silk Road.

On Oct 28, the total number of visitors of the event totaled 270,000, with nearly 50,000 people visiting Huacheng Square, one of the three venues for the event.

The other two venues for the event are the five bridges (including Jiefang Bridge, Haizhu Bridge, Jiangwan Bridge, Haiyin Bridge and Liede Bridge) over the Pearl River and Zhujiang New Town. The lighting shows in these places will last until May 4 next year.

First held in 2011, the annual event has become a top lighting festival on par with the Lyon Festival of Lights in France and the Australian light festival Vivid Sydney. In 2015, the festival was selected as a special cultural event for the International Year of Light, a United Nations activity aiming to raise awareness of the achievements of light science and its applications, and its importance to humankind.

Guangzhou International Light Festival is a top lighting event on par with the Lyon Festival of Lights in France and the Australian light festival Vivid Sydney. [Photo/chinanews.com]

Visitors pose for a photo in front of a lighting installation at the seventh Guangzhou International Light Festival. [Photo/chinanews.com]