{"schema_version":"v1","type":"trip_article","slug":"yanshui-beehive-fireworks","locale":"en","canonical_url":"https://www.voucherdata.asia/trips/yanshui-beehive-fireworks","updated_at":"2026-10-14T00:00:00+00:00","headline":"Yanshui Beehive Fireworks 2027: est. 19–20 February, full protective gear required","one_sentence_summary":"The Yanshui Beehive Fireworks are run by the Yanshui Wu Temple around the Lantern Festival. In 2027 expect 19–20 February, with the main towers on 20 February. Full protective gear is required in the main firing zone.","facts":[{"label":"Event dates","value":"The 2026 edition took place on 2–3 March (procession from the Wu Temple at 19:00 on 2 March, main towers at Yanshui Junior High School at 21:00 on 3 March); Lantern Festival night in 2027 is 20 February, so expect 19–20 February","source":"https://www.twtainan.net/yanshuifireworks","sourceLabel":"twtainan.net"},{"label":"Location","value":"Yanshui District, Tainan: the procession starts at the Yanshui Wu Temple, and the main towers on Lantern Festival night are on the Yanshui Junior High School field","source":"https://www.taiwan.net.tw/m1.aspx?sNo=0001019&lid=081717","sourceLabel":"taiwan.net.tw"},{"label":"What happens","value":"More than 200 rocket towers of all sizes in 2026, with three 40-foot main towers fired together on Lantern Festival night","source":"https://news.pts.org.tw/article/796503","sourceLabel":"news.pts.org.tw"},{"label":"Essential safety gear","value":"The Yanshui Wu Temple recommends a full-face helmet, a towel round the neck, a mask, a cotton or denim jacket and trousers, gloves, and flat shoes or trainers, all in non-flammable materials","source":"https://www.taiwannews.com.tw/zh/news/5100611","sourceLabel":"taiwannews.com.tw"},{"label":"Main firing zone rule","value":"Full-body protective gear is required to enter the firing zone at Yanshui Junior High School","source":"https://www.twtainan.net/yanshuifireworks","sourceLabel":"twtainan.net"},{"label":"Transport","value":"From TRA Xinying Station, take the Brown Main Line or Brown 1 to 6 buses across the street to Yanshui; in 2026 the last bus from Yanshui to Xinying left at 1:00 and the last train from Xinying to Tainan at 23:00","source":"https://www.twtainan.net/yanshuifireworks","sourceLabel":"twtainan.net"}],"city_tabs":{"tainan":{"title":"Tainan · Yanshui","bullets":["The procession starts at the Yanshui Wu Temple, and the main towers are on the Yanshui Junior High School field","The Yanshui police station runs a temporary help centre during the festival","If you don't want to be hit, stay outside the main firing zone"],"source":"https://www.twtainan.net/yanshuifireworks","sourceLabel":"nownews.com"}},"faq":[{"q":"When are the 2027 Yanshui Beehive Fireworks held?","a":"Lantern Festival night in 2027 is 20 February, so the procession is expected to set out on the evening of 19 February with the main towers fired on 20 February; the Tainan City Government and the Wu Temple announce the final schedule. The 2026 edition took place on 2–3 March.","sources":["https://www.ettoday.net/news/20260521/3169805.htm","https://www.twtainan.net/yanshuifireworks"]},{"q":"Where are the Yanshui Beehive Fireworks, and how do you get there?","a":"The procession starts at the Yanshui Wu Temple in Yanshui District, Tainan, and the main towers are on the Yanshui Junior High School field. Take the train to Xinying Station, then the Brown Main Line or Brown 1–6 buses from across the street to Yanshui. From 15:00 on Lantern Festival day the town centre is closed to traffic, so buses and cars stop on the outskirts and you walk in for about 10 minutes.","sources":["https://www.twtainan.net/yanshuifireworks"]},{"q":"Can people who are afraid of being hit by the rockets still take part?","a":"Yes. The bottle rockets fire straight into the crowd, so if you don't want to be hit, stay outside the firing zone at Yanshui Junior High School and keep clear of towers being lit along the route. The Wu Temple advises staying about 5 to 10 metres from a tower.","sources":["https://www.taiwannews.com.tw/zh/news/5100611","https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yanshui_District"]},{"q":"What safety gear do participants need?","a":"The Wu Temple recommends a full-face helmet, a towel round the neck, a mask, a cotton or denim jacket and trousers, gloves, and flat shoes or trainers. Choose non-flammable materials and cover yourself completely, with no gaps.","sources":["https://www.taiwannews.com.tw/zh/news/5100611"]},{"q":"What are the rules in the main firing zone?","a":"The Tainan tourism bureau's event page says full-body gear is required to enter the firing zone at Yanshui Junior High School. The Wu Temple also advises picking towers that carry an inspection approval mark and staying about 5 to 10 metres away from them.","sources":["https://www.twtainan.net/yanshuifireworks","https://www.taiwannews.com.tw/zh/news/5100611"]},{"q":"How much does it cost to take part?","a":"The official event page lists no tickets or registration, and the procession runs through public streets. The main cost is protective gear, which you can bring from home or buy from stalls along the way that sell heavy jackets, helmets and gloves.","sources":["https://www.twtainan.net/yanshuifireworks"]}],"sources":["https://www.nownews.com/news/6790216","https://www.ettoday.net/news/20260521/3169805.htm","https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yanshui_District","https://www.twtainan.net/","https://eng.taiwan.net.tw/","https://news.pts.org.tw/article/796503","https://www.twtainan.net/yanshuifireworks","https://www.taiwan.net.tw/m1.aspx?sNo=0001019&lid=081717","https://www.taiwannews.com.tw/zh/news/5100611"],"key_takeaways":[{"text":"The Yanshui Beehive Fireworks are held at the Lantern Festival around the Wu Temple in Yanshui, Tainan. Rocket towers are lit wherever the palanquin passes, and the main towers fire at Yanshui Junior High School.","date":"2026-03-02","scope":"festival","source_url":"https://www.twtainan.net/yanshuifireworks","source_label":"twtainan.net"},{"text":"The rockets fire straight into the crowd. If you don't want to be hit, or you have children with you, stay outside the main firing zone and keep clear of towers being lit along the route.","date":"2026-03-02","scope":"festival","source_url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yanshui_District","source_label":"en.wikipedia.org"},{"text":"Full-body gear in non-flammable materials is required to enter the firing zone at Yanshui Junior High School, and the town centre is closed to traffic from 15:00 on Lantern Festival day.","date":"2026-03-02","scope":"festival","source_url":"https://www.twtainan.net/yanshuifireworks","source_label":"twtainan.net"}],"reading_outline":[{"id":"executive-summary","label":"Summary"},{"id":"city-routes","label":"Places and routes"},{"id":"rules","label":"Before you go"},{"id":"faq","label":"FAQ"},{"id":"sources","label":"Sources"}],"topic":{"chain":["trips","taiwan-festivals","yanshui-beehive-fireworks"]},"status":"published","hero_image":{"src":"/hero/yanshui-beehive-fireworks.webp","alt":"Enamel-style illustration of a tall rocket tower packed with fireworks seen from a distance at night, the first sparks breaking from its base, Yanshui Beehive Fireworks, Tainan, Taiwan — VoucherData editorial illustration"},"editorial":{"tagline":"From the Wu Temple send-off to the main towers at Yanshui Junior High","paragraphs":["The palanquin leaves the Yanshui Wu Temple on the night before Lantern Festival. In 2026 that was 19:00 on 2 March; the next day, Lantern Festival, the procession set out along several routes at 18:30, with each route scheduled to finish between 2:00 and 4:00 on 4 March. The dates follow the lunar calendar: Lantern Festival 2027 is 20 February, so expect the procession the evening before and the main towers on Lantern Festival night.","The custom is said to go back more than a century to a cholera epidemic, when residents set off firecrackers to invite Guan Gong, the deity of the Wu Temple, to tour the town and drive out the disease, and it has been repeated every Lantern Festival since.","A beehive tower is a rack packed with bottle rockets. It is lit as the palanquin passes, and the rockets fly flat into the people around it. In 2026 there were more than 200 towers of all sizes, about 10 percent more than the year before, holding around 200,000 rockets in all. The three main towers fired together at Yanshui Junior High School on Lantern Festival night were each 40 feet long."]},"guide":{"lede":"To enter the firing zone you need a full-face helmet and full-body cover; if you don't want to be hit, watch from outside it. In 2027 Lantern Festival night falls on a Saturday, with the palanquin expected to set out the evening before.","sections":[{"heading":"Dates: Lantern Festival 2027 and the 2026 schedule","body":"The date follows the lunar calendar, so it moves every year. In 2027 Lantern Festival night falls on a **Saturday**: the palanquin is expected to leave the Wu Temple on the evening before (the 14th of the first lunar month), with the main towers fired at Yanshui Junior High School on **Lantern Festival night**. The 2027 routes and times have not been published yet. In 2026 the palanquin left the Wu Temple in the evening, and the town-wide procession began the next evening and ran until morning.\n\nWith the festival on a Saturday, rooms around Xinying and Yanshui will be harder to find than on a weeknight."},{"heading":"Location: the Wu Temple and Yanshui Junior High School","body":"The event centres on Yanshui District in Tainan: the procession starts at the **Yanshui Wu Temple**, and the main towers on Lantern Festival night are on the **Yanshui Junior High School** field. Wherever the palanquin passes, the rocket towers along the route are lit.\n\nOn Lantern Festival night in 2026 the procession split into five routes, A to E. Route E ran from the Wu Temple along Jinhe Road to the school field, where the main towers stood. The field is the main firing zone, and you need full-body gear to enter it."},{"heading":"Stand in the barrage or stay outside?","body":"The rockets fly flat into the crowd, so standing in the barrage means getting hit, and even full gear doesn't stop you feeling it. The procession runs from evening until the early hours, lighting towers all along the way, and the noise and smoke are heavy. If you don't want to be hit, have children with you, or are sensitive to loud bangs or smoke, stay outside the firing zone at Yanshui Junior High School and keep clear of towers being lit along the route."},{"heading":"Transport and lodging","body":"Main route: take the train to **Xinying Station**, then the Brown Main Line or Brown 1–6 buses from across the street to Yanshui. In 2026 the last bus from Yanshui to Xinying left at 1:00 and the last train from Xinying to Tainan at 23:00. From 15:00 on Lantern Festival day the town centre is closed to traffic, so buses and cars stop on the outskirts and you walk in for about 10 minutes. Parts of Wumiao Road, Beimen Road and Sanfu Road are pedestrian-only from 18:00 to 23:00.\n\nFor lodging, look around Yanshui, in Xinying or in central Tainan. The main towers go up at 21:00, which leaves little time to make the 23:00 last train from Xinying to Tainan; a night in Xinying or Yanshui means you don't have to leave early for it."},{"heading":"Costs and stamina","body":"The official event page lists no tickets. The main cost is protective gear: a full-face helmet, a heavy jacket and trousers, gloves, a mask and a towel. You can bring your own, and stalls along the way sell heavy jackets, helmets and gloves.\n\nAllow for the physical effort too. On Lantern Festival night in 2026 the procession set out at 18:30 and each route was scheduled to finish between 2:00 and 4:00 the next morning, mostly spent standing and walking. Keep the next day light."},{"heading":"Protective gear checklist","body":"The Wu Temple recommends a full-face helmet, a towel round the neck, a mask, a cotton or denim jacket, cotton or denim trousers, gloves, and flat shoes or trainers, covering you completely with no gaps.\n\nChoose non-flammable materials. Cover the places that tend to be exposed, such as the neck, wrists and ankles, so sparks can't get in."},{"heading":"Rules in the firing zone, and where to get help","body":"**Main firing zone**: you need full-body gear to enter the Yanshui Junior High School field.\n\n**Towers and distance**: the Wu Temple advises picking towers that carry an inspection approval mark and staying about 5 to 10 metres away. Inside the barrage, keep your head down and turn sideways rather than facing the tower.\n\n**Help**: the Yanshui police station runs a temporary help centre during the festival if you get separated or need assistance."},{"heading":"Origin: a cholera epidemic and Lord Guan's procession","body":"The custom is said to date back more than a century to a cholera epidemic, when residents set off firecrackers to invite Guan Gong to tour the town and drive out the disease, and it has continued every Lantern Festival since. The more rockets, the more peace for the year ahead, and being hit is said to bring good luck."}]},"kind":"festival","available_locales":["zh-TW","en","th","id"],"event_start_date":"2026-03-02","event_end_date":"2026-03-03","dates_estimated":false,"next_edition":{"start_date":"2027-02-19","end_date":"2027-02-20","estimated":true,"source":"https://www.ettoday.net/news/20260521/3169805.htm"},"offers":[{"id":"yanshui-thsr-pass","title":{"zh-TW":"台灣高鐵國旅聯票（車票＋景點組合）","en":"Taiwan High Speed Rail tickets with attraction add-ons","th":"ตั๋วรถไฟความเร็วสูงไต้หวัน พร้อมตั๋วสถานที่ท่องเที่ยวเสริม","id":"Tiket Kereta Cepat Taiwan dengan tambahan atraksi"},"merchant":"klook","utility":"transport","landing_url":"https://www.voucherdata.asia/go/yanshui-beehive-fireworks?o=yanshui-thsr-pass&locale=en&src=data","checked_at":"2026-10-13"},{"id":"yanshui-tainan-tour","title":{"zh-TW":"台南一日遊：奇美博物館・四草綠色隧道・安平古堡","en":"Tainan day tour: Chimei Museum, Sicao Green Tunnel, Anping Fort","th":"ทัวร์ไถหนานหนึ่งวัน: พิพิธภัณฑ์ฉีเหม่ย อุโมงค์ต้นไม้ซื่อเฉ่า ป้อมอันผิง","id":"Tur sehari Tainan: Museum Chimei, Terowongan Hijau Sicao, Benteng Anping"},"merchant":"klook","utility":"experience","landing_url":"https://www.voucherdata.asia/go/yanshui-beehive-fireworks?o=yanshui-tainan-tour&locale=en&src=data","checked_at":"2026-10-13"}]}