If you have kids, plan a summer trip around the Yilan Children's Festival. If you don't, Toucheng's Qiang Gu is the one to see, in a year when it's held. Yilan's big festivals follow the calendar closely, so they're easy to plan around, and the dates below are the latest ones announced. For what's on in the next few weeks, see → What's on.
| When | Festival | Where |
|---|---|---|
| Late March to May | Yilan Green Exposition | Wulaokeng, Su'ao |
| Dragon Boat Festival | Erlong dragon boat race | Erlong Village, Jiaoxi |
| July to mid-August | Yilan Children's Festival | Dongshan River Water Park, Wujie |
| July | Su'ao Cold Spring Carnival | Su'ao |
| Last night of the seventh lunar month | Toucheng Qiang Gu (ghost grappling) | Toucheng |
| September and October | Nanfang'ao Mackerel Festival | Nanfang'ao, Su'ao |
| Late November to early March | Jiaoxi lantern season | Jiaoxi |
| December | Winter hot spring festival | Jiaoxi |
Yilan Green Exposition (spring)
A family day out in the hills. The county's Green Expo (宜蘭綠色博覽會) has been held every spring since 2001 at Wulaokeng Scenic Area (武荖坑風景區) in Su'ao, with themed pavilions built from reusable materials, gardens, play areas and farm activities. The 2026 Expo, "The Gezhi Treasure" (格致寶藏), ran 44 days, from March 28 to May 10, with 18 exhibition zones and 19 play areas. Adult tickets were NT$150 on weekdays and NT$250 at weekends, so go on a weekday if you can.
Erlong dragon boat race (Dragon Boat Festival)
This isn't the dragon boat race you've seen on TV, and that's why it's worth the trip. In Erlong Village (二龍村), Jiaoxi, two villages have raced boats on the Erlong River (二龍河) for more than 220 years. The boats have no dragon heads, the paddlers race "for safety, not to win", and there's no prize money. It began as a rite for those drowned in the river, and it's now a Yilan County folk cultural asset, held on the day of the Dragon Boat Festival (the fifth day of the fifth lunar month). You can have a go yourself in the experience boats, with a life jacket. In 2026 the festival fell on June 19.
Yilan International Children's Folklore & Folkgame Festival
With kids in summer, this is the reason to come. The Yilan Children's Festival (宜蘭國際童玩藝術節) is Yilan's biggest summer event, with water play, folk dance and music groups from around the world, and games for children, at Dongshan River Water Park (冬山河親水公園). In 2026 it ran July 4 to August 16, the 31st festival, daily 09:00 to 21:00, with 26 groups from 18 countries. Adults paid NT$250 on weekdays and NT$350 at weekends, and children NT$100 and NT$200. Everyone gets wet, so bring swimwear and a change of clothes. → Yilan with kids
Check before you go: dates and ticket prices change every year, so confirm next summer's on the festival's official site, yicfff.tw, run by the Yilan County Cultural Affairs Bureau. Type that address yourself, and buy tickets only through links from it, not from ads or search results. We last checked the dates there on November 2, 2026.
Su'ao Cold Spring Carnival (July)
Held every July since 2000, with water play in the cold spring, stage shows, and a parade with water fights down the street from Su'ao Station. Expect to get soaked.
Toucheng Qiang Gu, ghost grappling (seventh lunar month)
Nothing else in Taiwan looks quite like it. Toucheng's Qiang Gu (頭城搶孤) closes the Ghost Month. On the night the "gates of the underworld" shut, the last night of the seventh lunar month, teams climb tall greased poles to reach a high platform stacked with offerings and seize the flag at the top. The tradition is more than 200 years old. It was banned in the Qing era after too many accidents, and revived as a competition in 1991 with safety measures. Come a night early if you can: the night before, water lanterns (放水燈) are set out to guide wandering spirits to the grounds.
Good to know: it isn't held every year. Ask locals and they'll tell you it often rests one year after three, and it was off from 2020 to 2022 before returning in 2023. Check What's on or the news that summer before you plan a trip around it. It runs late into the night and draws big crowds.
Nanfang'ao Mackerel Festival (autumn)
Nanfang'ao, Taiwan's biggest mackerel port, has celebrated its catch every September or October since 1997 with a festival of fishing-village life. Come hungry. → Su'ao and Nanfang'ao
Winter in Jiaoxi: lanterns and the hot spring festival
Winter is hot spring season, and Jiaoxi makes an evening of it. The town lights up its plazas for the lantern season (礁溪溫泉燈花季): the 2025-26 season ran from November 28, 2025 to March 4, 2026, lit nightly 18:00 to 23:00, around the Jiaoxi Hot Spring Plaza (礁溪溫泉廣場) and the town's other squares and parks.
The county's winter hot spring festival (冬戀蘭陽溫泉季) follows. As announced in June 2026, this year's festival is set for December 4 to 12, with an opening parade, five concerts and a main stage at the foot of Wufengqi Mountain. → Hot springs
Lunar New Year
At Lunar New Year, Yilan's big temples hand out free "peace congee" (平安粥) to the crowds of worshippers, with fried noodles and soy milk. The catch: small family shops may close for a few days over the holiday, so check before you go.
→ What's on · Best time to visit · Yilan with kids · More things to do
Sources: Yilan County Government, 2026 Green Expo; Liberty Times on the 2026 Green Expo; Su'ao Township, festivals of the year; PTS on the Erlong race; Jiaoxi Township, festivals; Yilan International Children's Folklore & Folkgame Festival, official site (dates checked November 2, 2026); Liberty Times on the 2026 Yilan Children's Festival; UDN on Qiang Gu (August 2026); UDN on the water lanterns; Liberty Times on the 2023 return of Qiang Gu; UDN on the 2025-26 lantern season; Liberty Times on the 2026 hot spring festival; Lanyang Museum on Yilan's rice food. Checked November 2026.