Written/Compiled and Reported by MOOK Scenic Spots Family Travel Life Network, Chen Guanxin
As Mother’s Day falls this Sunday (the 13th), besides enjoying a nice meal or giving gifts, you can also send your blessings to Mom with a sky lantern, replacing the traditional card, as part of a time-honored tradition. The New Taipei City Government Tourism and Travel Bureau, in partnership with the “Shifen is Awesome, Sky Lanterns Every Month” event, will prepare two sky lanterns shaped like a mother hen with her chicks to be launched on Mother’s Day, along with 50 standard sky lanterns. The event will take place at 16:00 that afternoon at the Shifen Visitor Center, and the public can also bring their own sky lanterns to participate. Those who have registered must check in by 4:00 PM, and any unfilled spots will be offered to walk-in visitors.
Visit Pingxi this Sunday to release sky lanterns and give Mom a Mother’s Day experience full of traditional charm. (Photo provided by New Taipei City Tourism Bureau)
The well-known traditional custom in Pingxi District, New Taipei City—releasing sky lanterns—has long been a key destination for northern residents to witness paper lanterns slowly ascending into the sky. Thanks to the Tourism Bureau’s “Shifen is Awesome, Sky Lanterns Every Month” initiative, lantern releases in Pingxi have become a regular event tied to holidays such as Mother’s Day, Mid-Autumn Festival, and Christmas. This month’s event takes place this Sunday, featuring mother hen and chick-shaped lanterns in harmony with the Mother’s Day theme. This particular lantern design was also the winning entry in last year’s “Love Earth Eco-Creative Sky Lantern Design Competition.” Fans of sky lanterns can take this opportunity to see this rare design up close.
May is also when tung flowers bloom, and fireflies add to the mountain scenery at night. Visitors to Pingxi can enjoy not only sky lanterns but also the sights of blooming tung trees and glowing fireflies. For transportation, visitors can purchase the “Pingxi One-Day Pass” (full fare NT$52, half fare NT$28), and take branch-line trains from Badu or Ruifang Railway Stations. They can get on and off freely at any station along the Pingxi line, including Jingting and Houtong, regardless of the train schedule.
As the sky lanterns slowly ascend, your blessings for Mom will reach the heavens. (Photo provided by New Taipei City Tourism Bureau)
Since March this year, the Tourism Bureau has launched the monthly “Shifen is Awesome, Sky Lanterns Every Month” event, offering 50 free sky lanterns at each session. Other upcoming event dates are: June 23 (Saturday), July 21 (Saturday), August 19 (Sunday), September 30 (Mid-Autumn Festival), October 10 (Double Ten Day), November 11 (Sunday), and December 9 (Sunday). For reservations and event information, please call the Shifen Visitor Center at 02-2495-8409.
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