Taichung's calendar has one event that is famous across Taiwan, the Dajia Mazu Pilgrimage in spring, and a run of big free city festivals. Dates move every year, and some are only fixed a few weeks ahead, so here are the dates as officially announced, plus what is known about the next edition.
| Event | When | 2026 dates | Next |
|---|---|---|---|
| Central Taiwan Lantern Festival | Around Lunar New Year | 15 Feb to 3 Mar | Not yet announced |
| Houli Cherry Blossom Festival | Late Feb to early Mar | 27 Feb to 8 Mar | Not yet announced |
| Dajia Mazu Pilgrimage | Spring, set each year by divination | 17 to 26 Apr | 2027 dates set at the Lantern Festival, 20 Feb 2027 |
| Hanxi Mazu procession of the 18 villages | From the 1st day of the 3rd lunar month | 17 Apr to 8 May | Not yet announced |
| Taichung Jazz Festival | October | 16 to 25 Oct | Not yet announced |
| Xinshe Sea of Flowers and Flower Carpet Festival | November | 31 Oct to 22 Nov | Starts 31 Oct 2026 |
Dajia Mazu Pilgrimage
The Dajia Mazu Pilgrimage (大甲媽祖遶境進香) is the event Taichung is known for. Every spring the Mazu of Dajia Jenn Lann Temple is carried in a palanquin from Dajia to Fengtian Temple in Xingang, Chiayi, and back: nine days and eight nights, over 300 km through Taichung, Changhua, Yunlin and Chiayi, stopping at more than 100 temples. The Ministry of Culture listed it as an Important Folk Custom of Taiwan in 2010.
- 2026 Set off on Friday 17 April at 22:05 from Jenn Lann Temple; scheduled to return on 26 April. The palanquin arrived back in the early hours of 27 April, more than two hours late because of the crowds.
- 2027 The dates are set each year by divination blocks (擲筊) at the temple on Lantern Festival day, which falls on 20 February 2027. In 2026 it set off on the first day of the third lunar month.
- Getting there TRA Dajia Station, about 6 minutes on foot from the temple. On the departure and return days in 2026 the city ran free shuttle buses.
Good to know: the departure and return are very crowded around the temple; in 2026 the crowds held the palanquin up by more than two hours. Come by train, leave plenty of time, and use the free shuttles when the city runs them.
Hanxi Mazu procession
Lecheng Temple's Mazu tours the 18 villages (旱溪媽祖遶境十八庄) around Hanxi every year from the first day of the third lunar month. In 2026, its 205th year, it ran 22 days, from 17 April to 8 May, through 11 districts and 99 temples.
Taichung Jazz Festival
The Taichung Jazz Festival (臺中爵士音樂節), held since 2003, fills Civic Square (市民廣場) on the Calligraphy Greenway with ten days of concerts every October. The main stage is free, with no ticket needed; some indoor concerts are ticketed. In 2026 it ran from 16 to 25 October, with 23 main-stage shows, and the city counted more than 120,000 people on the opening night. The 2027 dates were not announced in October 2026.
Getting there: Bus 159 from HSR Taichung Station to 土庫停車場(國美館), then walk north along the greenway. → The Calligraphy Greenway
Lanterns at Lunar New Year
- Central Taiwan Lantern Festival (中臺灣燈會). Taichung's own lantern festival. In 2026 it ran from 15 February to 3 March in Taichung Central Park, with a Moomin theme and a light show every evening, 18:00 to 22:00. The 2027 venue had not been announced in October 2026.
- Taiwan Lantern Festival (台灣燈會). The national festival moves each year. It was in Chiayi County in 2026, and the 2027 edition goes to Miaoli County, not Taichung, planned for 20 February to 7 March 2027.
Flowers
- Xinshe Sea of Flowers and Taichung International Flower Carpet Festival (新社花海暨臺中國際花毯節). Flower fields and a giant flower carpet in Xinshe District; the 2026 main carpet is 19 meters long. The 2026 edition runs from 31 October to 22 November, daily 08:30 to 16:30, at the Second Nursery of the Taichung District Seedling Improvement and Propagation Station, No. 30, Xiexing St., Xinshe District. Festival shuttle buses run during the event; see the official site for the routes.
- Houli Cherry Blossom Festival. In 2026 it ran from 27 February to 8 March.
The rest of 2026
- Taichung Shopping Festival: 24 October to 25 December 2026. → Shopping in Taichung
- Christmas and New Year: the city plans events in December 2026; dates and venues were not out when we checked.
→ The best time to visit Taichung · Shows and concerts · Things to do
Sources
Dajia Jenn Lann Temple (dajiamazu.org.tw, 2026 pilgrimage); Taichung City Cultural Heritage Office (Dajia pilgrimage, Hanxi procession); Focus Taiwan (2026 pilgrimage dates, 2026 return); Taichung City Government (pilgrimage transport, Hanxi procession 2026, Jazz Festival 2026, autumn events, 2026 Central Taiwan Lantern Festival); Taichung Tourism (Jazz Festival, Flower Carpet Festival, 2026 events calendar); Flower Carpet Festival (flowercarpet.tw); Liberty Times (free main stage, 2027 Taiwan Lantern Festival); CNA (lantern festival hosts); UDN (2027 lantern festival dates). Checked October 2026.