The Taipei Lantern Festival Grand Parade blends local flavors with shrimp hand rolls and sushi, taking you on a stroll through West Gate.

By MOOK Scenic Spots Editorial Team

The “West Gate Carnival Grand Parade” is another highlight of this year’s Taipei Lantern Festival, kicking off on February 11. It showcases local elements of Ximending—“people, crowds, chickens, and energy”—highlighting the area’s culture, such as youth fashion trends, local delicacies loved by tourists, chicken-themed designs for the Year of the Rooster, and sports events from the Universiade, all featured on elaborate floats that will join the parade. Road closures will begin at noon on the 11th for float assembly and movement of the large floats. The parade will start promptly at 6:00 PM from the intersection of Section 1, Zhonghua Road, and Wuchang Street. Performances by various groups will take place along the parade route starting at 5:00 PM, so visitors can come early to enjoy the shows.

Starting at noon on the day of the parade, sections of Zhonghua Road and Chengdu Road will be closed to traffic. Spectators can enjoy the carnival parade performances on the eastbound express lane of Zhonghua Road and on both sides of Chengdu Road. Those wanting to experience the largest-ever parade in the western part of the city are advised to arrive early to secure a good spot for this rare western district event.

Ximending has always been a hub of trendsetting culture. Popular items among young people, such as stylish shoes and bags, along with local delicacies favored by tourists—like pineapple buns, star fruit ice, and shrimp hand rolls—have been transformed into eye-catching floats by the creative team at Paper Windmill Theatre. The parade will also feature an 8-meter-tall Universiade float and a 10-meter-tall inflatable “Superman Rooster” that have yet to be unveiled.

Within the 700-meter-long parade, there will be 65 arrays consisting of 41 large and small floats and performance groups, involving over 1,600 performers and technicians. Before the start, 50 Harley-Davidson motorcycles will cruise the city to warm up the event. Among them, the “West Gate Story” float will be 17 meters long, the solar prominence rooster float will stand 8.5 meters tall, and the Lin Mo-niang float will feature performances by anime groups. In addition to performances by Taipei’s student marching bands, cheerleading squads, military bands, street dance groups, indie bands, and folk performance troupes, a group of new immigrant sisters from Changhua will travel north specially for the event, joined by a foreign troupe from South Africa—making this an impressively diverse and powerful lineup.

The grand parade will assemble at Fuxing Elementary School on Section 1, Zhonghua Road, at 6:00 PM on the 11th and will start from the intersection of Wuchang Street. The route will pass through Chengdu Road and Kangding Road. Extensive traffic controls and road closures will be in place that day, so participants are strongly advised to use public transportation.