The Night the Ocean Catches Fire
The first firework goes up at nine o’clock, and for a second nothing happens. Then the sky cracks open — a chrysanthemum of gold and white unfolds over Guanyinting Bay, and the sea below lights up like somebody flipped a switch. A few hundred people gasp at once. That sound, multiplied across an entire summer, is basically the soundtrack of the Penghu International Fireworks Festival (澎湖國際海上花火節).
This year’s edition runs from May 4 through August 25, 2026 — nearly four months, which makes it one of the longest-running fireworks festivals in Asia. Shows happen every Monday and Thursday from May 4 to June 25, then shift to every Tuesday from June 30 onward. All shows start at 9 PM at Guanyinting Recreation Area in Magong City. There were also two trial shows on April 20 and 27, though those are shorter — ten minutes each.
Dragon Ball Z Takes the Sky
The big news for 2026: the festival has partnered with Dragon Ball Z for its theme. The drone light shows — which have been a fixture for a few years now — will feature Dragon Ball characters assembled from hundreds of drones over Magong Harbor. There are also interactive character photo zones on the ground, large figurine installations, a themed park area, and limited-edition collaborative merchandise.
Whether you care about Dragon Ball or not, the drone shows are genuinely impressive. Each one runs alongside the fireworks at 9 PM, though drone performances depend on weather and flight safety clearance, so they can get cancelled on windy nights. The fireworks themselves still happen regardless — it takes a lot more than wind to stop those.
Getting to Penghu (And the Part Nobody Warns You About)
Penghu is an archipelago off Taiwan’s western coast. You can fly there from Taipei Songshan, Taichung, or Kaohsiung — flights take about 50 minutes. The other option is a ferry from Budai Harbor in Chiayi County, which runs about 90 minutes and can get rough if the sea is choppy.
Here’s the thing nobody tells you until it’s too late: flights during fireworks season sell out fast. Not fast like ‘book a week ahead’ fast — fast like ‘the good weekends are gone a month out’ fast. If you’re planning a trip around a specific show date, book your flights before anything else. Hotels too, but flights are the real bottleneck. Penghu’s airport is small and there are only so many daily slots.
For flights and hotel packages, Trip.com sometimes has Penghu bundles that are cheaper than booking separately — worth checking, though availability swings wildly during peak festival weeks.
Where to Watch (And Where Not To)
The main venue is Guanyinting Recreation Area (觀音亭休閒園區). The inner area closest to the launch site gives you the best view of the drone formations — you can make out individual character details. The tradeoff is more smoke from the fireworks, especially on still nights.
A few alternatives worth knowing:
The basketball courts near Guanyinting have stepped seating that gives you an elevated angle without fighting for grass space. Not a lot of people seem to know about this one.
The Jingui Battery area (金龜頭砲台) sits to the side of Guanyinting. You lose the music audio, but you get the full Rainbow Bridge profile with fireworks behind it — good for photography.
Boat tours run from the harbor during show nights. Tickets are roughly 350 to 500 TWD depending on the operator. You avoid the crowd entirely and get a wide-angle view of the drones rising from sea level. The downside is that boat operators set their own routes, so your vantage point varies.
If you want a good spot at Guanyinting itself, arrive at least 90 minutes early. The grassy areas near the Rainbow Bridge are the most popular. During shows, the surrounding roads become pedestrian-only zones — no scooters or cars allowed — so plan your transport accordingly.
Beyond Magong: Satellite Shows and Island-Hopping
Not everything happens at Guanyinting. The festival sends smaller shows to outlying islands: Wangan on June 6, Qimei on June 13, and Jibei on June 27 (all Saturdays). There are also township shows in Huxi (June 20), Xiyu (July 4), and Baisha (July 18). These satellite events draw fewer people, which means less competition for viewing spots — but they’re also smaller in scale.
The outlying islands are worth visiting regardless of fireworks. Qimei has the Twin Hearts Stone Weir, Jibei has one of the best sand spits in Taiwan, and Wangan has old coral-stone villages that feel like a different century. Getting between islands usually involves local ferries or speedboat tours.
Penghu’s main island has its own draws: the columnar basalt formations at Daguoye, the Great Bridge connecting Baisha and Xiyu, and snorkeling spots scattered around the archipelago. The water clarity here is some of the best in Taiwan — you don’t need to go far offshore to see coral and tropical fish.
Eating Your Way Through the Islands
Penghu seafood is a different tier. The squid (小管) comes in fresh enough to eat raw as sashimi, grilled, or dried — dried squid strips are the standard souvenir, and honestly they’re good. Cactus fruit ice cream (仙人掌冰) is the other signature thing: bright magenta, mildly sweet, and genuinely refreshing after a day in the sun.
Seafood congee spots near Magong’s harbor area stay open late during festival season. Nothing fancy, just rice porridge loaded with whatever came off the boats that day. Most places don’t have English menus, but pointing works fine.
For organized food and activity tours, KLOOK has Penghu-specific packages that bundle snorkeling, island-hopping, and sometimes fireworks boat viewing together. The pricing is usually comparable to booking each thing separately, but it saves you the hassle of coordinating with multiple local operators.
The Practical Stuff
Penghu weather during festival season is warm — think low 30s Celsius — with strong sun and a persistent sea breeze. The breeze makes it feel more comfortable than mainland Taiwan, but it also means sunburn sneaks up on you. A hat and sunscreen are non-negotiable.
For the fireworks specifically, bring a portable mat to sit on (the grass gets damp by evening) and a light jacket. The temperature drops noticeably once the sun goes down and the wind picks up off the water.
Renting a scooter is the standard way to get around. Magong has rental shops near the airport and harbor. You’ll want one — public transport on the islands is limited and doesn’t run late enough for post-fireworks returns.
One more thing: phone signal gets crushed right after shows end. Thousands of people trying to upload fireworks videos at the same time. If you need to coordinate meetup points with friends, agree on them beforehand.
Accommodation-wise, the islands have a mix of B&Bs (民宿) and a few larger hotels. The B&B scene is strong — many are family-run, reasonably priced, and surprisingly well-designed. Book through Booking.com or check Easytravel 四方通行 for Taiwan-specific listings that sometimes don’t show up on international platforms.
When the Smoke Clears
The walk back from Guanyinting after a show is its own kind of experience — everyone moving in the same direction down roads that still smell faintly of gunpowder, the Rainbow Bridge cycling through its colors behind you. By the time you get back to wherever you’re staying, your clothes smell like sulfur and your phone is full of blurry photos that looked so much better in person.
The convenience store near the harbor will be packed. Grab a beer and sit outside. The stars over Penghu are actually visible — not something you can say about most of Taiwan.
