Easy Travel Guide: 3 Must-Do Events in Tainan During Chinese New Year & Tips to Avoid Traffic Jams

▲ The 2016 Yuejin Harbor Lantern Festival. (Photo / Provided by Tainan City Transportation Bureau)

Reported by Lai Wen-xuan / Taipei

This year’s top three must-do events in Tainan during Chinese New Year are the “Nanying Green Heart Flower Festival,” the “Yuejin Harbor Lantern Festival,” and the “Yanshui Beehive Rockets.” With large crowds expected during the holiday season, the Tainan City Transportation Bureau advises that all these events are located along the Brown Line of the Greater Tainan Bus system. They recommend taking public transport to reduce traffic congestion and the hassle of finding parking.

▲ The Nanying Green Heart Flower Festival in Xinying features the theme “Monkey King Garden” with a welcoming Monkey King. (Photo / Provided by Tainan City Transportation Bureau)

Zhang Zheng-yuan, Director of the Tainan City Transportation Bureau, said visitors can take the Brown Line bus to enjoy the flower displays at Nanying Green Heart during the day and the lantern festival at Yuejin Harbor at night. During the lantern festival period, the Brown Line extends its service hours until 10 p.m., and passengers using electronic transit cards can enjoy free rides for the first 8 kilometers.

Nanying Green Heart in Xinying District is one of the key highlights of the Flower Festival. In addition to being home to Taiwan’s only solar-powered facility and utilizing live water from the Chianan Irrigation Canal, this year—being the Year of the Monkey—the festival’s theme is “Monkey King Garden.” Featuring the Monkey King as the central character, the event uses oversized props to create an immersive story-themed space. Among the highlights is a playful statue of the Monkey King wielding his golden cudgel, which is sure to be a favorite among children.

▲ Yuejin Harbor Lantern Festival. (Photo / 2015 Yuejin Harbor Lantern Festival Official Website)

Known by the saying “First Tainan, second Lukang, third Mengjia, fourth Yuejin,” the Yuejin Harbor Lantern Festival attracted around 600,000 visitors last year. This year’s exhibition is themed “Moonlight Treasure Box, Lighting Up Today’s Yuejin,” and the display area is divided into four main sections: “Bridges and Moonlit Nights” showcasing Yuejin’s past, “Moonlit Blossoms” reflecting the present, “Lucky Yuejin” connecting traditional festivals with contemporary art, and “Parting Clouds to Reveal Yuejin’s Colors” symbolizing the future. Spanning a 9-hectare lantern zone, there are 60 illuminated art installations, including 20 pieces specially commissioned from universities and colleges for the first time.

▲ Yanshui Beehive Rockets. (Photo / From the Taiwan Tourism Year Calendar website, Tourism Bureau, MOTC)

Aside from the Yuejin Harbor Lantern Festival and Beehive Rockets, Yanshui also boasts famous attractions such as the Octagonal Building, the Catholic Church, Qiaonan Old Street, blacksmith shops, and Yongcheng Theater. The area is also known for local delicacies like Yanshui noodles and pig’s head rice. Coupled with the Greater Tainan Bus Brown Line, which connects the Flower Festival at Nanying Green Heart, this makes for an ideal light travel route to enjoy flowers by day and lanterns by night during Chinese New Year.

Helpful Bus Tips (Brown Line – Flowers & Lanterns During Chinese New Year)

1. From Xinying Railway Station, board the Brown Line, Brown Line 2, or Brown Line 3 Branch buses at the Xinying Bus Terminal. Get off at Minzhi Center Station to visit the Nanying Green Heart Flower Festival, or alight at Qiaonan Old Street Temporary Stop to see the Yuejin Harbor Lantern Festival.

2. From Xinying Railway Station, take the Brown Line 1, 2, or 3 Branch buses at the Xinying Bus Terminal, and get off at Qiaonanli Station or Yanshui Station to explore Yanshui and visit the Yuejin Harbor Lantern Festival.

3. At Xinying Railway Station, take the Yellow Line or Yellow Line 6 Branch buses from the Xinying Bus Terminal, and get off at Xinying District Office Station to visit the Nanying Green Heart Flower Festival. Then transfer at Minzhi Municipal Government Center Station to the Brown Line, Brown Line 2, or Brown Line 3 Branch buses to explore Yanshui and view the Yuejin Harbor Lantern Festival.

4. From Chiayi High-Speed Rail Station, take the Yellow Line 9 Branch bus and get off at Minzhi Municipal Government Center Station to see the Nanying Green Heart Flower Festival. Then transfer to the Brown Line, Brown Line 2, or Brown Line 3 Branch buses to explore Yanshui and visit the Yuejin Harbor Lantern Festival.