[Dad, this time let me take your hand]
The secret of the Father’s Day moustache, and a gentle Tainan trip through nostalgic food, nature and monuments
Every family has a mountain standing quietly in it. He rarely says anything sweet; lean on him and all you get is “are you hungry? let’s go eat.” He falls asleep within seconds in front of the television, yet turns into an all-capable superhero the moment you run into trouble.
That’s Dad. We mark Father’s Day here every year on 8 August, but do you know where the day came from? The story behind it has plenty to move you, and a few details that will make you smile.
💡 Where did Father’s Day come from? Warm secrets hidden in history
1. The American story: a hardened soldier takes on a parenting marathon, six children deep
Back to 1909, in the United States. A woman named Sonora Smart Dodd came out of a Mother’s Day service and thought, with a pang: what about fathers?
Her father, William Jackson Smart, was no ordinary man – a hardened Civil War veteran. After her mother died in childbirth, this iron-willed soldier did not walk away. Alone on a bleak farm, with rough hands, he taught himself to sew, to cook, to pat a child to sleep, working the land while raising six children.
Picture it: a man used to the smoke of the battlefield, clumsily changing a baby’s nappy and braiding hair. Isn’t that both endearing and quietly heartbreaking? To Dodd, her father’s love was as solid as a shield. She campaigned tirelessly, and in 1910 the world’s first Father’s Day was held. It was more than a date on a calendar; it was a daughter’s deepest tribute to a father who had been both parents at once.
2. Taiwan’s “88 Festival”: not just wordplay – there’s a moustache hidden in it too
So why does Taiwan mark Father’s Day on 8 August? For that we go to Shanghai in 1945. The war against Japan was drawing to a close, and many fathers had gone to defend their homes, some never to return. To honour their selflessness, local writers and patriots gathered signatures proposing a Father’s Day.
Putting their heads together, they realised the eighth day of the eighth month was a gift from heaven:
- The sound is perfect wordplay: “ba-ba” (eight-eight) is exactly how you say “papa” in Chinese. Possibly the most successful pun in history.
- The characters hide a visual code: look closely at the Chinese characters for “eight eight”. Overlap them, and don’t they look remarkably like the two proud tufts of a moustache on a father’s face?
And so the 88 Festival – historical respect, a memorable sound and a charming visual joke all in one – took root in Taiwan as the day we tell our fathers we love them.
💌 For those of us who aren’t good with words: the things we say quietly
“Dear Dad,
Thank you for always being the quietest and the most reliable support in this house.
When I was small I thought you were a superhero who could do anything. You could fix whatever broke, and with you around no difficulty was frightening. Only as an adult did I understand that superheroes get tired too, that your shoulders ache as well – you had simply got used to hiding the exhaustion in a sigh once you turned away, and keeping the most forgiving smile for us.
You were never good at sayingI love you, but your love was there: in the sound of the engine when you drove out to fetch me in the rain, in the big piece of fish you quietly put on my plate, and in that short line on every phone call – tell me if you’re short of money.
Thank you for holding up a sky with no wind and no rain in it, with those callused hands. This time, let me take your hand. Let’s go for a walk and feel the breeze.Happy Father’s Day, Dad. You have worked so hard.“
🌿 A slow walk through old Tainan: two days at your father’s pace
Fathers generally don’t enjoy itineraries that are rushed or exhausting, but they do want places with history and a story to them. This route brings together monuments, nature and plenty of local food at an unhurried pace, and suits a whole family walking slowly alongside Dad.
📅 Day one: culture and nostalgia in the old city
● Chimei Museum (an art palace that could be in Europe)
About the place:A magnificent Apollo Fountain and white Roman columns, housing Western paintings, precious violins and – most popular with fathers – the arms and armour gallery and the animal specimen hall. Medieval armour and pikes are guaranteed to fire up the teenager still inside your dad.
Food nearby:When your legs have had enough, walk over to the nearbyRende Sugar Factoryfor an old-fashioned red bean and milk ice lolly. Sweet without being heavy – the classic cooling treat for the older generation.
● Lunchtime roll call: Guohua Street and Youai Street
Must-eats:
1. Yeh’s Squid Rice Noodles: a clean, sweet broth with springy, fresh squid – a Tainan classic.
2. Fushenghao Savoury Rice Pudding: topped with a special black bean soy sauce, dense in texture, with old-style minced pork and shrimp inside.
3. Xiu-an Shoulder PoleDouhua: handmade brown sugar fenguo jelly and silky tofu pudding – the perfect full stop to lunch.
● Tainan Art Museum Building 2 and Hayashi Department Store (a journey back in time)
About the place:
1. Tainan Art Museum Building 2: designed by the Japanese architect Shigeru Ban, its half-open geometric roof lets daylight fall naturally through the building. It is comfortably air-conditioned with plenty of seating – ideal for looking at art with your father in a quiet atmosphere.
2. Hayashi Department Store: a heritage department store from the Japanese colonial period, with the remains of a shrine still on the roof. Ride the retro needle-dial lift with your dad and browse old-fashioned design pieces; nothing brings nostalgia back faster.
Food nearby:While you are passing, pick up the signature Klin steamed bun – generously filled and wonderful straight from the steamer – or head to Lily Fruit Shop for a plate of old-style tomato with ginger and soy dip, a way of eating unique to the south.
● Around Chihkan Tower (a monument walk at dusk)
About the place:Visit Chihkan Tower as the sun sets, look at the weathered red brick and stone stelae, and hear the history of Koxinga.
Dinner recommendation:Shijingjiu Beef Soup:Tainan’s beef soup shops usually hide a formidable supporting act. The minced pork rice that comes with, or can be added to, the soup at Shijingjiu is braised from pork with the skin and fat left on – fragrant, sweet and so soft it melts. That salty-sweet southern character alongside a bowl of fresh beef soup is exactly the kind of local eating any father will nod approvingly at.
📅 Day two: nature, and an adventure aboard a steel warship
● Sicao Green Tunnel (through the green, to the Angel’s Kiss)
About the site:This was once an old canal carrying salt and goods; today it is a carefully protected mangrove reserve. Put on a traditional woven bamboo hat with your dad and slide gently into the waterway on a small bamboo raft. Mangroves on both banks weave a natural vault overhead, casting shimmering green reflections. As the boat reaches the middle of the channel, the branches meet overhead and the reflection on the water takes the shape of a pair of gentle lips – which is why people romantically call it the Angel’s Kiss. Beyond the greenery, you can watch fiddler crabs and mudskippers busy on the flats, and egrets resting in the branches. A trip that asks nothing of your legs while putting you close to nature in a breeze is exactly what a father tense from work needs.
● Anping Old Fort (the starting point of four hundred years of Tainan history)
About the site:Originally Fort Zeelandia, built by the Dutch in 1624, this was the first castle in Taiwan’s history and an important base in the Age of Exploration. Inside the grounds, the most striking thing is not the white watchtower that was rebuilt later, but the towering, weathered red-brick remains of the southern outer wall of old Fort Zeelandia. Nearly four centuries of wind and rain, wrapped in the tangled roots of old banyans, give the wall a real weight of time. Look closely and you find the builders mixed glutinous rice liquid, sugar water, gravel and burnt oyster shell – you cannot help but admire the ingenuity. Take your father’s hand up the steps, look out over Anping harbour from the tower with the sea breeze on your face, and history seems to murmur. For a father who loves history and a good story, this is a genuinely rich experience.
Anping essentials:Work in the famous Chou’s Shrimp Rolls (crisp pastry, sweet shrimp), Chen’s Oyster Rolls (juicy and tender), and afterwards a bowl of Tongji Anping Douhua (silky and fine).
● Anping Dingqing Wharf and Deyang Warship Park (a steel memory for the men of that generation)
About the place:This is the only destroyer museum in Taiwan. The imposing steel hull, the precision radar and the formidable guns make this a direct hit of nostalgia for any father who did military service. Board the ship together, visit the bridge and the helicopter deck, and listen as he talks animatedly about his service years – that is the best company there is.
🏡 A slow place to come back to: the top choice near Tainan Railway Station, with a holiday-only welcome
When you travel with older family members, however well the days are planned, sleeping well at night is what decides everything. To spare your father the strain of long journeys, choosing somewhere well connected and quiet matters enormously.
Among the manyrecommended places to stay near Tainan Railway Station,3 Door Hotel– in the city centre and within walking distance of the station – is a warm, well-made choice.
📞 Hotel telephone: (06) 2223088
The hotel provides a dedicated butler service, attentive to the needs of older guests. The rooms are calm and understated in design, so even a light-sleeping father gets a genuinely deep rest after a full day. For the coming holiday, the hotel has put together something designed with fathers in mind – come and enjoy a relaxed drink together.
🎉 [3 Door Hotel | Father’s Day 2026 stay offer]
Book by telephone or LINE to receive our Father’s Day stay offer.
● Offer period: Fri 7 Aug 2026 – Sun 9 Aug 2026
● Included with your stay:
- 🎁 One pack of Liandetang century-old senbei crackers(one per room)
- ⏰ One hour of free late check-out(until 12:00 at the latest)
- 🍹 Welcome drink and snack bar
“A hundred years of craft passes on more than flavour; it carries the warmth of home.
May every father feel his family close by, and may every household be happy and every bond long-lasting ❤️”
✦ 88 Festival long weekend only ✦
During your stay,craft beer is 12% off.
Raise a glass with your father and make the trip one of the most memorable parts of Father’s Day. 🍻
💡 Terms:
- Offer period:Fri 7 Aug 2026 – Sun 9 Aug 2026.
- This offer applies totelephone and LINE bookings only .Reservations: (06) 2223088.
- One pack of Liandetang century-old senbei per room; two packs for quad rooms. Quantities are limited and available while stocks last.
- One hour of free late check-out, until 12:00 at the latest, subject to occupancy on the day.
- The 12% discount on craft beer applies during the offer period only, to the items on sale at the time.
- This offer cannot be combined with other promotions.
- 3 Door Hotel reserves the right to adjust, amend and interpret this offer.
This Father’s Day, start with a good story, walk your father slowly through Tainan’s monuments and food, and leave each other the warmest, deepest memories in a welcoming hotel.
💡 Five common questions about Father’s Day and a family trip to Tainan Q&A
Q1. Why is Taiwan’s Father’s Day on 8 August when most countries mark it in June?
Taiwan set Father’s Day on 8 August out of a patriotic movement during the war years, playing on the Chinese wordplay between “eight eight” and “papa” and on the visual joke that the overlapped characters look like a moustache. Father’s Day in the United States and elsewhere – the third Sunday in June – grew from Sonora Smart Dodd’s early twentieth-century campaign to honour the soldier father who raised six children alone, and became an international convention from there.
Q2. Any practical advice for planning a Tainan trip with older family members?
Aim for a slow rhythm:fewer sights, generous time, less walking. Keep the hotter middle of the day for air-conditioned indoor places with seating, such as Tainan Art Museum Building 2 or Hayashi Department Store. And choose somewhere easy to come and go from, quiet in the middle of the bustle, so older guests can return to the room to rest at any point.
Q3. Are the Sicao Green Tunnel and Anping Old Fort suitable for older visitors who tire easily?
Very much so. The Sicao Green Tunnel is done entirely by bamboo raft, with seating and a sun hat provided, so you can take in the ecology without any long walk. Anping Old Fort has well-laid paths and shaded spots, so you can rest in the shade while looking at the historic walls, and set your own pace according to how you feel.
Q4. Why does 3 Door Hotel suit a trip with parents?
Beyond the excellent location (close to the station, with easy connections to public transport or a taxi), the hotel’s attentivebutler servicegives older guests real peace of mind. The quiet soundproofing and the rooftop garden also suit a father who goes to bed early or sleeps lightly, and make a good place to relax and talk.
Q5. Does the 2026 Father’s Day offer at 3 Door Hotel have to bebooked by telephone or LINE?
Yes.This offer applies only to bookings made by telephone (06-2223088) or through our official LINE account, so that we can arrange the senbei and late check-out for you. We suggest calling early to secure both your room and the gift.
