Must-see attractions in Kinmen

  • Jhaishan Tunnels

    Kinmen

    Blasted out of solid granite by soldiers in the 1960s, this V-shaped arc of sea tunnels was designed to protect boats from bombs during the war years…

  • Siwei Tunnel

    Kinmen

    Also known as Jiugong Tunnel (九宮坑道), this four-entrance network of wide sea tunnels was blasted out of the gneiss in the 1960s to provide bomb shelters…

  • Deyue Mansion

    Shuitou Village

    Built in 1931, this is Kinmen's most famous 'western' building thanks to the 11m-tall gun tower in its yard, erected to ward off (or at least spot)…

  • Guningtou War Museum

    Kinmen

    For domestic tourists, this is one of Kinmen's top sights due to the pivotal nature of a battle fought here over 56 hours in October 1949. For outsiders,…

  • Juguang Tower

    Kinmen

    This three-storey tower, built in classical Chinese form, is an iconic local landmark that has often featured on Taiwanese stamps. Yet it only dates from…

  • Shanhou Folk Culture Village

    Kinmen

    With a fine setting in a bowl of green slopes, Shanhou is one of the island's prettiest old villages with dozens of classic tile-roofed Fujian homes,…

  • Koxinga Statue

    Kinmen

    This stern, 9m statue of Koxinga (鄭成; Zheng Cheng) gazes towards China from a tiny islet connected to the rest of Kinmen by a pedestrian causeway, which…

  • Yongshi Fort

    Kinmen

    Yongshi (Warriors') Fort is one of a pair of 1970s military bunkers in Huangtso. Descend through a 200m-long tunnel that now contains a museum about…

  • Beishan Broadcasting Wall

    Kinmen

    This vertical slab of concrete punched with 48 circular holes looks like a forgotten work of 1970s abstract sculpture set on a very low seaside 'cliff'…

  • Zhushan Village

    Kinmen

    All a-twitter with birdsong, Zhushan is Kinmen's traditional village core, chock-a-block with low-rise, tile-roofed homesteads built in archetypal Fujian…

  • Houpo 16 Art Zone

    Kinmen

    By day it looks a little over-gentrified, but at night the junction of Juguang and Zhongxing roads is one of Kincheng's most atmospheric corners. The so…

  • Chen Ching Lan Mansion

    Kinmen

    Considered Kinmen's finest 'western-style' residence, this 1921 two-storey villa features stone arcade balconies from which you gaze down through parkland…

  • Maestro Wu Factory-Store

    Kinmen

    Kinmen's famous super-sharp knives are still fashioned from bomb casings at a display workshop at the back of this stylish Banglin boutique. Each shell…

  • Military Brothel Exhibition Hall

    Kinmen

    This museum examines the rarely mentioned subject of officially-sanctioned prostitution to entertain military personnel. Euphemistically known as a …

  • Kinmen Qing Dynasty Military HQ

    Kinmen

    The oldest surviving Qing government building in Taiwan, this three-courtyard structure doubles as a passably interesting museum explaining Kinmen's place…

  • Memorial Arch to Qiu Liang-Kung's Mother

    Kinmen

    Kinmen's only national-level heritage site, this 1812 carved arch across Juguang Rd was built from Fujian granite and bluestone by a Kinmen native who had…

  • Mofan Street

    Kinmen

    This charming little street is lined with attractive shops behind brick-arched facades dating back to 1924.

  • Mt Taiwu

    Kinmen

    Peaking at 253m, Taiwu is less a mountain than an attractive hill ridge that forms Kinmen's east–west backbone. Knobbly patches of beige rock show through…

  • August 23 Artillery War Museum

    Kinmen

    Set in a beautifully peaceful garden of banyan trees, this engrossing bilingual museum documents the horrific 44-day bombardment in 1958 during which…

  • Kincheng Civil Defence Tunnels

    Kinmen

    Claustrophobes beware: Kincheng has 2.6km of wartime tunnels and you can walk 1.2km of them, but they're not much wider or taller than a large man. What…

  • Lingshui Lake

    Kinmen

    Divided by dykes, this array of channels and reed-fringed artificial lakes is a popular place for birdwatching, especially in winter when dozens of…

  • Beishan

    Kinmen

    Along with equally antique Nanshan (南山; Nánshān), a few hundred metres across Shuangli Lake, Beishan (北山; Běishān) is a settlement that retains a high…

  • Mt Lion Howitzer Station

    Kinmen

    Walk through a wide, 200m rock-hewn tunnel to reach the emplacement of a howitzer canon surveying a wide view towards distant China. Nothing is in English…

  • Ou Cuo Beach

    Kinmen

    From the attractive old town area of Ou Cuo, a concrete road leads 800m south to a superb, yet little frequented, sandy beach with small rocky islands…

  • Kuei Pavilion

    Kinmen

    Backed by a couple of classic, if crumbling, western-style 1930s buildings, this 1836 pavilion-shrine to the god of literature is a dinky, hexagonal…

  • City God Temple

    Kinmen

    Originally raised in the Qing dynasty, this Taoist delight is all you'd hope for in a fanciful Chinese temple, complete with ornate roof embellishments,…

  • Shuangli Wetlands Area Centre

    Kinmen

    This professional centre, across little Shuangli Lake from Beihai, has bilingual introductions to the region's flora and fauna, notably the cormorants,…

  • Wu River Academy

    Kinmen

    This handsomely restored walled complex was originally built as a centre of learning in 1780. The two main shrine-like study rooms honour Chu Hsi, a…

  • Qionglin Village

    Kinmen

    Qionglin (also written Cyonglin or Chiunglin) has 800 years of history, is famous for having more shrines than any other village on Kinmen and retains…

  • Wentai Pagoda

    Kinmen

    This small, hexagonal monolith was originally built in 1387 for the Ming emperor Hungwu as a place to honour the stars and celestial deities. It is…

  • Hujingtou War Museum

    Kinmen

    This small coastal fort has display boards and a looping video that give a sense of how young men were toughened into soldiers to endure life here during…

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