Taiwan Lantern Festival

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The Lantern Festival (元宵節) marks the first full moon of the Lunar New Year, falling each year on the 15th day of the first lunar month. In 2026, the Lantern Festival falls on March 3. More than just a date on the calendar, it traditionally brings the Lunar New Year festivities to a close.

One of the festival’s most iconic traditions is the release of sky lanterns (天燈), especially in Pingxi (平溪) in New Taipei City. As evening falls, thousands of glowing lanterns drift into the night sky, each inscribed with handwritten wishes for the year ahead. In the Year of the Horse, many lanterns feature the character 「馬」, reflecting the horse’s cultural associations with vitality, speed, endurance, and forward momentum.

Beyond Pingxi, cities across Taiwan host Lantern Festival celebrations with elaborate light installations and zodiac-themed displays. Many local governments also distribute smaller paper lanterns for people to carry.

Food also plays a meaningful role during the Lantern Festival. Families gather to eat tangyuan (湯圓), soft glutinous rice balls served in sweet soup. Because of their round shape and name, which sounds like the word for “reunion” (團圓), tangyuan symbolize unity. In this way, the Lantern Festival brings loved ones together to welcome the new year with hope and optimism.

Now it’s your turn to celebrate—create and customize a lantern with your own wishes for the year ahead.

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Create your own lantern

1 Pick your lantern

2 Add a sticker

3 Write your wishes

Health

Fortune

Family

Work

4 Release

請先選擇燈籠 / Please select a lantern first

請先選擇圖案 / Please select a design first

Concept, design, illo: Daisy Chung

Concept, dev, motion, text: J. Janicki

Sayings research, illo: Yu-Wen Jan

Calligraphy: Jamie Wu (Daisy’s mom)

Copy editing: Joyce Chou