The 2025 Central Taiwan Lantern Festival will be grandly held at the Taichung Central Park from February 8 (Saturday) to February 23 (Sunday) next year. Taichung’s Tourism and Travel Bureau introduced the festival’s main visual today (6th), centered around the theme “Snakes Bringing Happiness.” This theme cleverly draws on a homophone of “realization” in Chinese, symbolizing the city’s vision of progressively becoming a city of happiness. The opening and closing ceremonies will feature lively performances, welcoming visitors from across the country to celebrate the festive Chinese New Year spirit in Taichung.

According to Director Chen Mei-hsiu of the Tourism and Travel Bureau, this year’s main visual highlights Taichung’s contemporary vibe. By blending elements like light halos, dots, and beams, the design team ingeniously integrated the Year of the Snake imagery. Drawing on the five signature colors of the city government’s emblem, the design forms a glowing, snake-like ribbon floating in the night sky. The snake’s tongue transforms into a dazzling light beam, evoking the image of a shooting star streaking through the deep night sky. This concept conveys wishes for Taichung citizens to achieve their dreams and embrace greater happiness in the Year of the Snake while also envisioning a brighter future for the city in the new year.

The Tourism and Travel Bureau further noted that the 2024 Central Taiwan Lantern Festival was a remarkable success, drawing over 3.55 million attendees and generating a tourism value of NT$8.2 billion. It also earned 12 international design awards, marking its impressive global presence. The 2025 Lantern Festival will showcase a completely new appearance, featuring spectacular lantern displays and a daily themed market. This large-scale event, organized by the local government, rivals the Taiwan Lantern Festival and promises to offer Taichung residents an unprecedented Lantern Festival experience. For the latest news about the festival and more information about Taichung tourism, visit the Taichung Tourism website (https://travel.taichung.gov.tw/).