You can't appreciate what a mass release of Chinese lanterns look like until you see it. Back twenty years or so ago in the UK I saw several dozen lanterns released in a park across the street from my hotel one night. It was part of an Indian wedding reception. Very impressive sight, was able to keep some of them in view on that clear, almost windless night for at least 20-25 minutes.
A single lantern can be intriguing, however. Several years ago on the way home from Easter vigil service, I watched a single orange/red light for a good ten minutes as it floated over open farm country. The combination of fog/mist and flickering flame giving the thing a very eerie glow. It moved very slowly, and at one point passed over a cell tower in a field. Based on that, I'd say it was maybe 150 ft above ground level. It gradually grew dimmer, then went out. No question it was a lantern, but I can understand how it would appear to the uninitiated.
By the way, we used to make home-made lanterns back in 70s using dry cleaning bags, soda straws, and birthday candles. One local dry cleaner used blue tinted plastic bags, resulting in more of a purple/red glow when aloft. We'd then shoot them down with BB and pellet guns.