What's on in Kaohsiung, Taiwan through the year

Peak crowds — Lunar New Year, Winter break (around Chinese New Year) in Taiwan

• Holiday

  Lunar New Year

  25 Jan – 25 Feb · usuallyCrowdedClosures

  The city empties of workers and fills with families home from Taipei. Small kitchens shut for a week, the temples run all night, and the Love River waterfront takes the lantern displays. Source ↗

Still on: Winter air-quality season (1 Oct – 31 Mar (usually))

Peak crowds — Lunar New Year, Winter break (around Chinese New Year) in Taiwan

Nothing new starts in February.

Still on: Lunar New Year (25 Jan – 25 Feb (usually)), Winter air-quality season (1 Oct – 31 Mar (usually))

Shoulder season — school holidays in 2 of the markets that fill it, an ordinary month

Nothing new starts in March.

Still on: Winter air-quality season (1 Oct – 31 Mar (usually))

Shoulder season — school holidays in 3 of the markets that fill it, an ordinary month

Nothing new starts in April.

Shoulder season — school holidays in 2 of the markets that fill it, an ordinary month

• Season

  Plum rain season

  1 May – 15 Jun · usuallyMonsoon

  The front that ends the long southern dry spell. It comes in heavy blocks rather than all day, and it is the first thing that clears the winter air off the harbour.

Quiet — school holidays in 3 of the markets that fill it, one of its worst months for weather

Nothing new starts in June.

Still on: Plum rain season (1 May – 15 Jun (usually))

Busy — Summer break in Taiwan, school holidays in 5 of the markets that fill it

• Hazard

  Typhoon season

  1 Jul – 15 Oct · usuallyClosures

  Southern Taiwan is hit less often than the east coast but harder by the rain when it is. A typhoon day here means a declared day off work and the whole city indoors. Source ↗

Peak crowds — Ghost Month, Summer break in Taiwan

• Holiday

  Ghost Month

  5 Aug – 15 Sep · usuallyMajor festival

  The seventh lunar month, when offerings burn on the pavements and locals put off weddings, house moves and swimming. Nothing shuts, but the beaches at Cijin are noticeably emptier. Source ↗

Still on: Typhoon season (1 Jul – 15 Oct (usually))

Busy — Ghost Month, school holidays in 3 of the markets that fill it

Nothing new starts in September.

Still on: Typhoon season (1 Jul – 15 Oct (usually)), Ghost Month (5 Aug – 15 Sep (usually))

Busy — Kaohsiung Film Festival, school holidays in 3 of the markets that fill it

• Hazard

  Winter air-quality season

  1 Oct – 31 Mar · usuallyWinter smog

  The rain stops, the wind drops and the petrochemical belt on the north side has nowhere to go. It is the trade you make for the dry, warm winter that otherwise makes this the best half of the year. Source ↗

• Festival

  Kaohsiung Film Festival

  10–31 Oct · usuallyCrowded

  A fortnight of screenings around the harbour with a long-running short-film and immersive strand. Dates are announced late in the summer, so check before you book around it. Source ↗

Still on: Typhoon season (1 Jul – 15 Oct (usually))

Shoulder season — an ordinary month

Nothing new starts in November.

Still on: Winter air-quality season (1 Oct – 31 Mar (usually))

Busy — school holidays in 5 of the markets that fill it, one of its best months for weather

Nothing new starts in December.

Still on: Winter air-quality season (1 Oct – 31 Mar (usually))