Scenes from a lantern festival
Video of the 2026 Taiwan Lantern Festival in Chiayi…
Since I arrived in Taiwan in January 2023, attending the Taiwan Lantern Festival has become a personal tradition. Having just attended this year’s event in Chiayi, I’m now 4‑for‑4:
- 2023: Taipei City
- 2024: Tainan City
- 2025: Taoyuan City
- 2026: Chiayi County
The festival kicks off on the 15th day of each lunar new year (March 3 in 2026), and runs for around two weeks. Chiayi’s only 33 minutes from Kaohsiung by bullet train, so attending was an easy decision.
Last year I shared a bunch of photos, but this year I didn’t bring my camera. Instead, to more effectively convey the vibe, here are some clips from my phone:
My favorite is the ghost-banishing deity Zhong Kui (鍾馗; 0:41–0:54). I also thought the 10-meter-tall Rain Horse (雨馬; 4:21–4:42) was pretty impressive. It comes from a Taiwanese Hakka children’s book (and play) of the same name.
If you have a chance to see the festival this year—along with 20 million others—I highly recommend it. Entry’s free, there are literally hundreds of stalls at the night market, and the lanterns are impressive (if not outright enchanting).
But be sure to allow extra time. It’s a 50-minute (semi-rural) walk from the Chiayi High Speed Rail Station—and if you don’t want to walk, there are long queues for the free buses.
But for me, the hassle was worth it—I got to ride in a disco bus again:
🏮