2025 Taiwan Lantern Festival Guide 台灣元宵節指南 – A Complete List of Events in Taiwan

The Lantern Festival in Taiwan is an exciting time when many cities and counties in Taiwan put on colorful displays of lanterns for visitors to enjoy. There are usually lanterns in all the big cities including Taipei, Hsinchu, Taichung, and Kaohsiung. In this guide, we will share how Taiwan celebrates the Lantern Festival and how you can get involved.

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When is Lantern Festival in Taiwan?

In 2025, the Lantern Festival is on Wednesday, February 12th.
2026: Tuesday, March 3rd
2027: Sunday, February 21st
2028: Wednesday, February 9th
2029: Tuesday, February 27th

When and Where are 2025 Lantern Festival Events in Taiwan?

Taiwan International Lantern Festival 台灣燈會

Dates: February 2nd to February 16th 2025
Location: Taiwan’s National/International Lantern Festival will be held in Taoyuan at Chintan Park near the Toayuan MRT A18 and A19 stations.
Address: No. 5, Section 1, Gaotie N Rd, Zhongli District, Taoyuan City, 32056

Pingxi Lantern Festival (New Taipei) 平溪天燈節

Dates and locations: In 2025 the Pingxi Sky Lantern Festival will be held Saturday, February 8th from 6 to 9 PM at Pingxi Junior High School, and Wednesday, February 12th from about 6 PM to 8:30 PM at Shifen Square.
Addresses: Pingxi Junior High School: No. 295, Section 2, Jing’an Rd, Pingxi District, New Taipei City, 226
Shifen Square: No. 226, Shifen Street, New Taipei City, Pingxi District

You can check out our full blog on the Pingxi Lantern Festival here.

Taipei Lantern Festival 台北燈節

Dates: February 2nd to February 16th, 2025
Location: Near Taipei Zhongshan Hall, Ximen MRT Station, and Beimen MRT station (中山堂、西門、中華路一段等地)
Address: No. 83, Yanping S Rd, Zhongzheng District, Taipei City, 100

New Taipei Lantern Festival 新北燈會

Dates: February 1st to February 16th, 2025
Location: Xingfu Shuiyang Park, inside New Taipei Metropolitan Park, near Sanchong MRT Station
Address: No. 36, Jieyun Rd, Sanchong District, New Taipei City, 241

Miaoli Bombing Dragon Festival 苗栗火旁龍之夜

Dates: February 9th, 5:00 PM to 9：30 PM, 2025
Location: Houlong Riverside Park (苗栗市經國路河濱公園)
Address: No 360, Jiuhou Wen Highway, Miaoli City

Taichung Lantern Festival 中臺灣元宵燈會

Dates: February 8th to February 23rd, 2025 (performances from 6 PM to 9 PM)
Location: Taichung Central Park (台中中央公園)
Address: No. 138, Jingmao 9th Road, Taichung City, Xitun District

Jiji Lantern Festival (Nantou) 集集燈會

Dates: January 26th to February 12th, 2025 (activities from 6 PM to midnight)
Location: Nantou Jiji Weekend Market (南投集集假日廣場)
Address: No. 7, Chuzhong St, Jiji Township, Nantou County, 552

Yunlin Douliu Lantern Festival 雲林縣斗六蛇年燈會

Dates: January 1st to March 31st, 2025 (activities from 6 PM to midnight)
Location: Penghshu Forest Park near (雲林斗六膨鼠森林公園)
Address: No. 222-1, Section 3, Daxue Rd, Douliu City, Yunlin County, 64054

Yanshui Beehive Fireworks (Tainan) 鹽水蜂炮

Dates: February 11th to February 12th, 2025, 9 PM to midnight. There will be more fireworks on the 12th.
Location: Yanshui Junior High School (鹽水國中操場)
Address: No. 63, Sanfu Rd, Yanshui District, Tainan City, 737

The Yanshui Beehive Firewors involve people shooting lots of fireworks at each other. Check out this news story for more background information.

Tainan Tucheng Zhengtong Luermen Shengmu Temple Fireworks 台南土城正統鹿耳門聖母廟高空花火嘉年華

Dates: February 18th, 2025, 9 AM to 10 PM.
Location: Tainan Tucheng Zhengtong Luermen Shengmu Temple (台南土城正統鹿耳門聖母廟)
Address: No. 160, Chengan Rd, Annan District, Tainan City, 70958

Yuejin Lantern Festival (Tainan) 月津港燈節

Dates: January 18th to February 16th, 2025
Location: Yanshui Old Street (臺南鹽水月津港 X 鹽水歷史街區鹽水老街燈展)
Address: Yuejin Rd, Yanshui District, Tainan City, 737

Tainan Fucheng Puji Lantern Festival 台南府城普濟燈會

Dates: January 24th to March 1st, 2025
Location: Puji Temple 普濟殿廟埕
Address: No. 79, Puji Street, West Central District, Tainan City, 700（台南市西區普濟街79號）

Kaohsiung Wonderland 高雄冬日遊樂園

Dates: January 25th to February 16th, 2025
Location: Love River Peir (高雄市苓雅區愛河灣, 愛河灣及16-18號碼頭)
Address: No. 1, Zhen’ai Rd, Yancheng District, Kaohsiung City, 803

Fengshan Light Festival (Kaohsiung) 鳳山光之季

Dates: January 18th to February 12th, 2025
Location: Dadong Park 大東公園
Address: No. 41-1, Lane 539, Bo’ai Rd, Fengshan District, Kaohsiung City, 830

Pingtung Lantern Festival 屏東燈節

Dates: January 17th to February 16th, 2025 (performances from 6-9 PM)
Location: Wanniang River, Xianmin Park, Shengli Village, Hakka Lantern Area 萬年溪、縣民公園、勝利星村、客家燈區
Address: Fuxing Rd, Pingtung City, Pingtung County, 900

Hualien Pacific Ocean Lantern Festival 花蓮太平洋燈會

Dates: January 11th to February 16th, 2025
Location: Hualien Sunrise Blvd. 花蓮市日出大道 (花蓮重慶市場旁表演廣場)
Address: No. 81-1, Mingyi St, Hualien City, Hualien County, 970

Taitung Lantern Festival 臺東好神愛在元宵嘉年華

Dates: January 11th to February 16th, 2025
Location: Taitung City Municipal Office Square (臺東市公所廣場)
Address: No. 365, Bo’ai Rd, Taitung City, Taitung County, 950

Taitung Bombing Lord Handan 玄武堂慶元宵炮炸寒單爺

Dates: February 11th, 2025 8:00 PM
Location: Taitung City Municipal Office Square (臺東市公所廣場)
Address: No. 365, Bo’ai Rd, Taitung City, Taitung County, 950

This festival features people dressed in only red shorts and showered with fireworks. For more about this festival, you can check out this blog by Taiwan Everything here.

Yilan Lizejian “Zao-Wang“ －“Wife Carrying” Festival 宜蘭利澤簡走尪

Date: February 25th, 2025 6 AM to 11 AM
Location: Lize Jianan Temple (利澤簡永安宮)
Address: No. 26, Lize Rd, Wujie Township, Yilan County, 26841 (宜蘭縣五結鄉利澤路26號)

The “Zou Wang” tradition in Wujie Township of Yilan, involves men carrying a ceremonial sedan along with fireworks to newlywed homes for blessings and protection.

Map:

Please see below for a map of Lantern Festival locations throughout Taiwan.

History of Lantern Festival in Taiwan

The Lantern Festival, originating in the Qin and Han dynasties (200 BC), evolved through various traditions, including lighting lanterns to honor deities, ward off pests, and celebrate Buddhism. By the Sui and Tang dynasties, it became a vibrant event with dazzling lantern displays, elaborate structures, and public festivities. The Song dynasty introduced lantern riddles, while the Ming and Qing dynasties expanded the celebrations with parades, dragon and lion dances, fireworks, and tangyuan, marking the end of the Chinese New Year period. Over time, the festival flourished as a joyful and culturally rich tradition.

Because Taiwan’s Lantern Festival is traditionally celebrated during the fifteenth day of the Lunar New Year and is rich with diverse traditions and activities centered around lantern displays. Historically, “welcoming lanterns” held at temples were the main events, evolving into government-organized lantern festivals with increasing scale. Taiwan’s Lantern Festival was officially initiated by the government in 1990, allowing local government entities to showcase elaborate lantern displays, attract international tourists, and promote cultural heritage.

The Lantern Festival is one of Taiwan’s most significant traditional festivals, celebrated alongside Chinese New Year, Tomb-Sweeping Day, Dragon Boat Festival, Ghost Festival, and Mid-Autumn Festival. Historically, it featured customs like unmarried women stealing green onions for good marriage prospects and lantern-related activities at temples like Longshan Temple. Over time, it has evolved into nationwide cultural celebrations, including major events like the Taiwan Lantern Festival and regional festivities such as Pingxi’s Sky Lantern Festival, Yanshui’s Beehive Fireworks, Taitung’s Bombing of Master Han Dan, Penghu’s Turtle-Blessing Ceremony, Miaoli’s Fire Dragon Dance, and Matsu’s Lantern Night Rituals. These events highlight the rich diversity of Taiwan’s cultural traditions

The practice of lighting off sky lanterns in Taiwan began in Shifen, when during the Qing Dynasty local villagers would flee into the mountains during raids from bandits. Once the bandits had left, the remaining villagers sent sky lanterns into the air to let the fleeing villagers know that it was safe to come down from the mountains.
The people of Shifen send off sky lanterns as a symbol of peace and celebrate every year during the Lantern Festival (元宵節), a Chinese holiday.
Setting off sky lanterns as a tourist attraction began in the 1990’s and you can find people lighting off lanterns every day from Shifen. Since 1990 the Lantern Festival has been held every year (except in 2021 due to COVID-19).
The Pingxi Lantern Festival is part of larger festivities around Taiwan at the time, known as the Taiwan Lantern Festival.
Because of the hundreds of sky lanterns set off every day, this create an environmental problem with lantern trash piling around the forests and mountains of Pingxi District. The local people and volunteers help to clean up, but because of the tourism allure associated with lighting off the sky lanterns, it seems that this practice is not going away anytime soon.

Our Lantern Festival Experience in Taiwan:

Pingxi Lantern Festival 平溪天燈節

The Pingxi Lantern Festival in New Taipei has some of the most popular attractions in Northern Taiwan and is known as one of the best festivals in the world. Thousands of lanterns are set off during the festival, to celebrate the traditional Chinese Spring Lantern Festival Holiday. It is definitely worth the experience if you are in Taiwan during the Lantern Festival. However, lighting off sky lanterns is bad for the environment and you should not do it.