Taiwan
Keelung Ghost Festival 2027: 2–31 August (seventh lunar month), water lanterns on the night of 15 August
At a glance
- Dates
- Next: 2–31 August 2027
- Where
- Central Keelung; lanterns are released at Wanghai Lane, Badouzi
- Getting there
- TRA train from Taipei to Keelung, 45 minutes to an hour
- Cost
- Not listed
- Limits
- Part of Beining Road was closed on lantern night (2026)
The 2026 edition has passed
Dates last checked: 14 October 2026
The festival
Each clan's lantern house is pushed into the sea at Wanghai Lane
On the night of the 14th day of the seventh lunar month, floats carry each clan's lead water lantern through central Keelung and on to Wanghai Lane in Badouzi, where the lanterns are lit and pushed into the sea. In 2026 that night was 26 August, with the Liu-Tang-Du clan association as chief host; in 2027 it falls on a Sunday.
The rotation started as a truce. In 1853, the third year of the Xianfeng reign, Keelung's Zhangzhou and Quanzhou settlers fought with heavy losses (the Ministry of the Interior also lists 1851). Elders from both sides brokered peace, buried the dead together as the "Elder Lords" and agreed that the surname clans would take turns hosting the festival, competing with performance troupes rather than fists. The rotation began in 1855, and on 29 January 2008 the Council for Cultural Affairs, now the Ministry of Culture, designated the festival a national Important Folk Custom.
The lantern release is one rite in a month of them. Matched against the Central Weather Administration almanac for 2027: the shrine gate at the Laodagong Temple opens on the afternoon of the 1st of the month. The main altar in Zhongzheng Park is lit on 13 August, the Dipper lanterns are carried in procession the next day, the lanterns go out on the 14th and the universal salvation follows on 16 August. On 1 September, the 1st of the eighth month, the gate closes and the host's incense burner is handed over at Qing'an Temple.
Booking
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Prices and ratings checked 13 Oct 2026
Tickets and tours
Keelung
Heping Island Geopark ticket
Sea-carved rocks by day, back to town for the water lanterns at night.
from NT$60
See pricesKeelung
Keelung Islet landing: island loop, lighthouse & Elephant Trunk Rock
Open seasonally, in the same summer as the Ghost Festival. Landings are capped at 1,200 people a day; weekend places are confirmed 30 days ahead, and trips that don't fill are rescheduled or refunded.
from NT$700
See pricesKeelung & New Taipei
Northeast Coast day tour
From Taipei Main Station, about 9 hours: the Bitou Cape trail, Zhengbin Fishing Port and Heping Island, then Keelung's Miaokou night market. No driving needed.
from NT$1,070
See prices
Details
The lanterns go into the sea late on the night of the 14th, a Sunday in 2027, and Wanghai Lane is a bus ride from Keelung Station. With work the next day, sort out your late-night ride back to Taipei before you go, or stay over in Keelung.
Dates: the seventh lunar month in 2026 and 2027
The festival runs through the seventh lunar month, with dates converted from the new moons in the Central Weather Administration almanac, so the Gregorian dates change every year; in 2027 the lantern release falls on a Sunday night.
One rite sits on each side of the month: the lamp-lighting at the Laodagong Temple on the night before the 1st, and the closing of the shrine gate on the 1st of the eighth month. Exact times are set by the year's host clan and Keelung City Government; in 2026 the city and the host clan presented the programme at a press conference on 4 August.
Lantern release times and the shuttle
The 2026 schedule: participants gathered at 17:30, the city parade ran 19:00–22:00, and the lead lanterns were released at Wanghai Lane, Badouzi at 23:00. By tradition, spirits in the water lose their way in the seventh month, and the lanterns guide them ashore for the universal salvation.
The release site is on the coast, too far to walk from the city. In 2026 the host clan ran free shuttle buses to Wanghai Lane from a temporary stop at Keelung Cultural Plaza on Xinyi Road, starting at 21:30.
On release night in 2026 the road from Pinglang Bridge on Beining Road to Badouzi Station was closed from 21:00 to 01:00.
The main altar and clan altars
The host clan builds the main altar in Zhongzheng Park and lights it on the evening of the 12th. Other clans set up altars around the city, some six or seven tiers high, with every offering and paper effigy in a set place. The altars are open to view by day, so the afternoon before the parade works well. People come to burn incense all month, so step around worshippers and leave the offerings alone.
Getting there and back
Taiwan Railway trains from Taipei reach Keelung Station in 45 minutes to an hour, and intercity buses run from Taipei Bus Station, so getting to Keelung is easy. Getting back is the hard part: the lanterns go out late at night, and Wanghai Lane is a bus ride from Keelung Station. In 2027 the release is on a Sunday night before a working Monday, so check the late Sunday trains and buses to Taipei or book a room in Keelung.
Etiquette and Ghost Month taboos
The officiants perform their rites on the shore during the release, so do not stand in front of them for photos or aim a flash at the ceremony. Leave the offerings on altars and tables alone. Local Ghost Month taboos include not swimming and not calling out someone's name at night.
If you can go only one night
Pick the 14th, the lantern release: clan altars in the afternoon, the parade in the evening and the release at Wanghai Lane late at night. To see the main altar fully laden for the universal salvation, go the following day. The opening of the shrine gate is on the afternoon of the 1st at the Laodagong Temple.
Good to know
- Lantern release
- The night of the 14th day of the seventh lunar month: Sunday 15 August in 2027. On 26 August 2026 the city parade ran 19:00–22:00 and the lead lanterns were released at Wanghai Lane, Badouzi at 23:00.
- Opening and closing the shrine gate
- The gate at the Laodagong Temple opens on the afternoon of the 1st of the seventh month and closes on the 1st of the eighth. In 2026 that was 13 August at 14:00 and 11 September at 17:00.
- Origin
- A truce after the Zhangzhou-Quanzhou feud of 1853, the third year of the Xianfeng reign (the Ministry of the Interior also lists 1851). The surname clans have taken turns as host since 1855.
- Heritage status
- Designated a national Important Folk Custom on 29 January 2008 by the Council for Cultural Affairs, now the Ministry of Culture.
- Host clan
- Fifteen surname associations rotate as chief host. In 2026 it was the Liu-Tang-Du association.
FAQ
5
Where is the Keelung Ghost Festival held, and how do you get there?
The rites take place at the Laodagong Temple, the main altar in Zhongzheng Park and Qing'an Temple in central Keelung, and the lanterns are released from the shore at Wanghai Lane in Badouzi. Trains from Taipei reach Keelung Station in 45 minutes to an hour, and intercity buses leave from Taipei Bus Station. The release is late at night, so a day trip depends on the last service back.
What is the main event of the Keelung Ghost Festival?
The water lantern release on the night of the 14th: floats carry each clan's lead lantern through the city, and the lanterns are pushed into the sea at Wanghai Lane. Over the month there is also the opening of the shrine gate on the 1st, the lighting of the main altar on the 12th, the Dipper lantern procession on the 13th, the universal salvation on the 15th and the closing of the gate on the 1st of the eighth month.
What is the origin of the Keelung Ghost Festival?
After a feud between Zhangzhou and Quanzhou settlers in Keelung in 1853, leaders of both sides made peace, buried the dead together as the "Elder Lords" and agreed that the surname clans would take turns hosting the festival, competing with performance troupes instead of fighting. The Ministry of the Interior also lists 1851 for the feud. The rotation began in 1855.
Why are the water lanterns released?
By tradition, spirits in the water cannot find their way during the seventh lunar month, so people on shore light lanterns to guide them to land, where the offerings of the universal salvation wait.
What etiquette applies at the Keelung Ghost Festival?
Stay quiet during the release, keep out of the officiants' way when taking photos and leave the offerings on the altars alone. Local Ghost Month taboos include not swimming and not calling out someone's name at night.
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