Something is always on in Tainan. The year opens with lanterns and fireworks around Lunar New Year, spring brings an art fair and the temple processions, summer is mangoes, lotus and dragon boats, and autumn is the city's arts season. Many of the traditional festivals follow the lunar calendar, so their dates move every year.
We give the most recent confirmed dates, and 2027 dates only where they are announced or fixed by the lunar calendar (from the Hong Kong Observatory, as in our best time to visit guide). Check the organizer's page before you plan around an event.
The year at a glance
| When | Event | Latest dates |
|---|---|---|
| Lunar New Year season | Yuejin Port Lantern Festival, Yanshui | Feb 7 to Mar 8, 2026 |
| Lantern Festival | Yanshui Beehive Fireworks | Mar 2 and 3, 2026; Feb 19 and 20, 2027 by the lunar calendar |
| Late Feb to March | Taiwan International Orchid Show, Houbi | Feb 27 to Mar 16, 2026 |
| March | ART TAINAN art fair | Mar 13 to 15, 2026 |
| March to April | Tainan International Music Festival | Mar 1 to Apr 11, 2026 |
| April | Mazu's birthday | Apr 29, 2027 (23rd of the third lunar month) |
| April to May | Meiling firefly season, Nanxi | Peak in April and May |
| Late May to July | Baihe Lotus Season | May 23 to late July, 2026 |
| June | Dragon boat races on the canal | Jun 17 to 21, 2026; Dragon Boat Festival is Jun 9, 2027 |
| Late June to July | Tainan International Mango Festival | Jun 27 to Jul 12, 2026 |
| July to August | Summer arts and music festivals | See below |
| August | Tainan Qixi Carnival | Aug 10 to 23, 2026; Qixi is Aug 8, 2027 |
| Seventh lunar month | Ghost Month | Aug 13 to Sep 10, 2026; Aug 2 to 31, 2027 |
| September | Mid-Autumn Festival | Sep 25, 2026; Sep 15, 2027 |
| October to November | Tainan Arts Festival | Oct 2 to Nov 22, 2026 |
| October to March | Tainan Art Biennale | Oct 31, 2026 to Mar 1, 2027 |
Winter: lanterns and fireworks
Yuejin Port Lantern Festival (月津港燈節). Every Lunar New Year season, the old harbor in Yanshui District, in the north of Tainan, fills with light art over the water and lanterns in the lanes of the historic streets. In 2026 it ran from February 7 to March 8 at Yuejin Port Water Park (月津港親水公園), lit from 17:30 each evening. The 2027 dates are not announced yet; the call for 2027 artworks closed in September 2026. Official site: yuejinlanternfestival.com.
Yanshui Beehive Fireworks (鹽水蜂炮). Tainan's most famous festival. It began in the Qing dynasty, when Yanshui's people paraded the god Guandi through town to drive out an epidemic. Today the palanquin from the Yanshui Wu Temple (鹽水武廟) passes walls of rockets that are fired into the crowd, not the sky. In 2026 it ran on March 2 and 3, with the main rocket wall on the Yanshui Junior High sports field on the night of the Lantern Festival. By the lunar calendar, 2027 falls on February 19 and 20. Confirm the dates with the city first.
- Safety: the city says anyone entering the firework zone needs full protective gear. Helmets, thick jackets and gloves are sold in town.
- Getting there: the city suggests the train to Xinying, then a bus to Yanshui. Downtown Yanshui closes to traffic from 15:00 on the main day.
- Official site: Yanshui Beehive Fireworks Festival.
Taiwan International Orchid Show. Tainan grows about 30% of Taiwan's moth orchids, and this show in Houbi District mixes giant floral displays with the trade. In 2026 it ran from February 27 to March 16.
Spring: art, music and Mazu
ART TAINAN (台南藝術博覽會). Tainan's art fair, run by the Taiwan Art Gallery Association. Galleries from Taiwan and abroad show and sell work across two floors of a hotel, Silks Place Tainan (台南晶英酒店). It runs for three days in March: in 2026, the 14th edition, it ran from March 13 to 15 (noon to 19:00, closing at 18:00 on the last day), and in 2025 from March 14 to 16. The 2027 dates are not announced yet. Official site: ART TAINAN.
Tainan International Music Festival. Classical concerts and talks, mostly at the Tainan Cultural Center. In 2026 the program ran from March 1 to April 11. Official site: tainanmusicfest.tainan.gov.tw.
Mazu's birthday and the temple processions. The sea goddess Mazu's birthday falls on the 23rd day of the third lunar month, April 29 in 2027, and it is a big day at the Grand Mazu Temple (大天后宮) and the city's other Mazu temples. Spring is also procession season in the north of the city:
- Xuejia Shang Baijiao (學甲上白礁). A nationally recognized folk procession from Xuejia Ciji Temple (學甲慈濟宮). In 2026 it was held on April 25.
- Xigang Incense Festival (西港刈香). A huge procession held once every three years in the fourth lunar month by Xigang Qing'an Temple (西港慶安宮). The next one is in 2027. The temple will set the dates early in 2027.
Summer: lotus, dragon boats and mangoes
Baihe Lotus Season. Baihe District is Taiwan's biggest lotus-growing area, and the flowers peak in May and June. In 2026 the season opened on May 23 at Machouhou Guandi Hall (馬稠後關帝廳) and its events ran into late July.
Dragon boats. The Tainan City International Dragon Boat Championships are raced on the canal around the Dragon Boat Festival, which is the 5th day of the fifth lunar month. In 2026 the races ran from June 17 to 21 between Anyi Bridge and Chengtian Bridge. In 2027 the festival falls on June 9.
Tainan International Mango Festival. In 2026 it ran from June 27 to July 12, opening at Zoumalai Farm (走馬瀨農場) with market days in Nanxi, Zuozhen and Yujing. → Tainan's fruit seasons
Summer arts and music. In 2026: the Summer Solstice Arts Festival around Xinying (July 4 to August 29), the Sixteen Is Youth Arts Festival (July 18 to August 23) and the Jiangjun Roar music festival (August 1 and 2).
Late summer: Qixi and Ghost Month
Tainan Qixi Carnival. Qixi, the 7th day of the seventh lunar month, is Chinese Valentine's Day, and in Tainan it is also the birthday of Qiniangma (七娘媽). Families with children turning 16 mark their coming of age, a Tainan tradition linked to the old Five Canals port and best known at Kailong Temple (開隆宮). The city's carnival ran from August 10 to 23 in 2026. Qixi falls on August 8 in 2027.
Ghost Month. The seventh lunar month, when the gates of the underworld are said to open. Families and temples set out offerings of food, fruit and flowers for wandering spirits, peaking on the 15th day, the Zhongyuan festival. In 2027 the month runs from August 2 to 31, and the 15th is August 16. If you watch, be respectful around the altars.
Autumn: the moon and the arts
Mid-Autumn Festival. The 15th day of the eighth lunar month: September 25 in 2026 and September 15 in 2027. It is also pomelo season, and Tainan is Taiwan's biggest pomelo-growing area.
Tainan Arts Festival (臺南藝術節). The city's main performing arts festival, with theater, dance and music from Taiwan and abroad, some of it staged in historic buildings. The 2026 program runs from October 2 to November 22. Official site: tnaf.tainan.gov.tw.
Tainan Art Biennale. The first edition, run by the Tainan Art Museum (臺南市美術館), runs from October 31, 2026 to March 1, 2027, with art spread across 32 venues around the city, from the museum to the Confucius Temple and other historic buildings.
Hot spring season. The city also holds a Guanziling Hot Spring Festival in autumn and winter. → Guanziling day trip
Want help planning around a festival? → Work with us
Sources: Tainan City Government Major Events 2026 (July to September) and orchid show news; Tainan Tourism Bureau (2026 event calendar, Yanshui Beehive Fireworks); Tainan Agriculture Bureau (Baihe Lotus Season, May 2026); ART TAINAN; Tainan Arts Festival; Tainan International Music Festival; Yuejin Port Lantern Festival; Taiwan Tourism Administration, traditional festivals; Hong Kong Observatory 2027 calendar; CNA (ART TAINAN 2026); Liberty Times (Xuejia, April 2026, Xigang, May 2026); UDN (Sixteen Is Youth Arts Festival); CNA (coming of age at Kailong Temple); Tainan Agriculture Bureau (Madou pomelos, September 2026); Veterans Affairs Council (Xigang Incense Festival); UDN (Yuejin 2027 call for artworks); Commercial Times (Tainan Art Biennale); NOWnews (Yuejin 2026); ETtoday (dragon boats 2026). Checked October 2026.