The Sound Before the Flags
You hear it before you see anything — a low, reverberating drumroll echoing off the concrete facades of Zhongzheng District, bouncing between the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the old Bank of Taiwan building. It’s maybe 6:15 AM on October 10th, and the sky over Taipei is that specific shade of gray-blue that hasn’t committed to being morning yet. Around you, a few hundred people are already lined up along Ketagalan Boulevard, some clutching small ROC flags, others just holding coffee from the 7-Eleven on Gongyuan Road. The flag-raising ceremony doesn’t start for another forty-five minutes, but nobody wants to miss the opening.
Double Ten Day — Taiwan’s National Day — commemorates the Wuchang Uprising of October 10, 1911, which set off the chain of events that ended the Qing dynasty and established the Republic of China. In 2026, the holiday falls on a Saturday, which means the Friday before (October 9) becomes the observed day off. For visitors, that translates to a proper long weekend.
What Actually Happens on the Boulevard
The morning ceremony in front of the Presidential Office Building is the anchor of the whole day. The president delivers a nationally televised address — the content changes year to year but the format is remarkably consistent. Flag-raising at dawn, national anthem, speech, then the performances begin.
The parade portion is hard to characterize in a single sentence. There are military marching units, yes, and usually a flyover by the Air Force (weather permitting — Taipei’s October weather doesn’t always cooperate). But there are also high school marching bands, indigenous dance troupes, martial arts demonstrations, and elaborately themed floats that range from impressive to endearingly awkward. The whole thing runs roughly three hours.
One thing the guides don’t mention: the Presidential Office Building itself often hosts a light projection show in the evenings around National Day. In 2024, the theme was Taiwanese animation and comics — 43 works projected onto the building’s facade over three nights. Whether they’ll do something similar in 2026 is anyone’s guess, but it’s been a recurring feature in recent years. Worth checking closer to the date.
The Fireworks Aren’t Where You Think
Here’s something that trips up a lot of first-time visitors: the National Day fireworks display does NOT happen in Taipei. Since 2000, the central government has rotated the main fireworks show to a different county or city each year. In 2024 it was Yunlin, in 2025 it went to Nantou for the first time ever. The 2026 host city probably won’t be announced until mid-year.
The fireworks shows are massive — typically 30,000+ shells over 40 minutes — and each host city treats it as a major event with concerts, markets, and local food festivals. If you’re specifically coming for the fireworks, you’ll need to plan a side trip outside Taipei. Train tickets to wherever the fireworks are held sell out fast, so book as soon as the location is announced.
Taipei isn’t completely dark though. In recent years, Taipei 101 has put on its own National Day show with fireworks, laser projections, and light displays. It’s shorter and smaller than the main event, but you can see it without leaving the city.
Getting There and Surviving the Crowds
The Ketagalan Boulevard ceremony area is most easily reached from NTU Hospital Station on the Tamsui-Xinyi (Red) Line. Exit 1 puts you closest to the boulevard. Taipei Main Station works too, but it’s a longer walk.
Here’s the honest assessment of the crowd situation: if you want a decent viewing spot for the parade, you need to be there by 7 AM at the latest. By 8 AM, the good spots are gone. By 9 AM, you’re watching between people’s heads. The area around Liberty Square (across from the boulevard) fills up more slowly and offers a slightly less compressed experience, though you’re farther from the action.
Phone signal is going to be terrible. With tens of thousands of people concentrated in a few city blocks, cellular networks crawl. Download offline maps beforehand and don’t count on being able to use ride-hailing apps easily.
October in Taipei is transitional — temperatures hover around 25-30°C, and afternoon rain showers are more likely than not. Bring water, sunscreen for the morning, and a compact umbrella. There’s no shade on the boulevard.
The Long Weekend Beyond Taipei
With the Saturday-to-Monday long weekend (October 9-12 if you take the Friday off), a lot of locals head out of Taipei. Popular destinations include the east coast — Hualien and Taitung — and the southern cities of Tainan and Kaohsiung, which usually have their own local celebrations.
This is peak domestic travel season, so accommodation prices go up and availability goes down. If you’re planning to leave Taipei for the weekend, book early. Seriously, like a month early for popular areas.
For tours and activities around Taiwan, KLOOK is decent for booking day trips and attraction tickets — I’ve used it for things like Taroko Gorge tours and it saves the hassle of arranging everything yourself. For accommodation, Booking.com has the widest selection, though Agoda sometimes has better rates for hotels in Taiwan specifically. Worth comparing both.
If you want to try the traditional route, 四方通行 (Easytravel) is a local platform that specializes in Taiwan hotels and often has packages that the international sites miss.
A Few Things Worth Knowing
Government offices and banks close for the holiday, obviously. Most shops and restaurants stay open — this is Taiwan, after all, where convenience stores are a constitutional right. MRT runs on a holiday schedule, which means slightly reduced frequency but still perfectly usable. Buses near Ketagalan Boulevard get rerouted; check the Taipei City Government website closer to the date for specifics.
One quirk for international visitors: Taiwan counts years from the founding of the Republic in 1912, so 2026 is ROC Year 115. You’ll see “115” on official documents and banners. It’s not a mistake.
The mood on Double Ten Day is hard to pin down. It’s patriotic without being aggressive about it. There’s pride, but it’s mixed with the complicated feelings that come from Taiwan’s unique political situation. For visitors, it’s a genuine window into something you won’t find anywhere else — a national identity celebration that’s still actively being defined.
I walked back to the MRT after the 2024 ceremony with a small ROC flag sticking out of my backpack. A woman at the station smiled and gave me a thumbs up. I still have the flag somewhere in a drawer.
