Nantou County
The imposing temple by Sun Moon Lake has superb natural lookouts and faux northern Chinese–style temple architecture. It's extremely popular with tour…
Must-see attractions in Western Taiwan
Taichung
There are only a few outlets left in this once-busy market – meat and vegetable operators are around from 4am to 10am; food stalls in the periphery open…
Taichung
This Buddhist columbarium-and-temple complex has a few unusual monuments – a giant golden laughing Buddha with oddly placed windows, and an old temple (c…
Chiayi
Offering a taste of life behind bars, free admission to this museum includes an hour-long guided tour, which is repeated four times per day Tuesday to…
Nantou County
The chapel was originally built as a post-disaster recovery project by survivors of the 6.8-magnitude earthquake that struck Kobe, Japan, in 1995. It…
Western Taiwan
Great for families with children, the fan-shaped train garage is the last of its kind in Taiwan. In essence, a single line of track connects with a short…
Taichung
To the west of the city, an ageing village has been transformed into an art piece with vibrant colours and drawings on every inch of the walls by Mr Wong,…
Chiayi
The sprawling 15-sq-km wetland park includes mud beaches, marshes, lagoons, fish farms, beefwood forests and tracts of thick shrub. Dozens of bird species…
Nantou County
Bowang New Village was one of several villages used to settle Shan ethnic soldiers from Burma (Myanmar) and Yunnan who fought for the KMT during the…
Western Taiwan
The museum sits in a lovely heritage building, and on its grounds is the 300-year-old Hongmao Well (紅毛井; Hóngmáo Jǐng). This is the last of the original…
Nantou County
This reservoir feeds a power station billed as the largest pumped-storage generating plant in Asia. The system uses surplus electricity at night from the…
Taichung
Adjacent to Taichung Broadcasting Bureau is a piece of interesting nostalgic sports architecture. This old stadium (1935) was once the home of several…
Chiayi
This huge park is a repository of the natural and urban history of the city, offering old trees, landscaped hills, a moat, Qing-dynasty stelae, a…
Western Taiwan
A remarkable structure standing inside the coastal park 8km west of the old town, this Lukang attraction is built with 70,000 pieces of glass, while the…
Western Taiwan
Don't bother counting the turns as you wend your way past some of the oldest and most charming residences in Lukang on Nine Turns Lane. The number nine…
Chiayi
A museum dedicated to cochin (koji), a low-fired, brightly coloured glaze style of ceramic traditionally used for temple decoration. It’s in the basement…
Taichung
An early work (1963) of the late IM Pei, the chapel that resembles a tepee is the landmark of Tunghai University. It stands on a lawn, one of many on the…
Western Taiwan
Lukang's City God Temple has roots in Fujian's Quanzhou and was probably built in the mid-18th century. Paying your respects here is believed to be…
Nantou County
A former military police station at the entrance of the Hanbi Trail has been turned into an attractive viewing spot after the 921 earthquake. 'Mei' and …
Nantou County
Exhibition boards and retired logging and railway gear inside a wood A-frame illustrate the history of the logging industry here. It's a popular picnic…
Western Taiwan
This now-filled well sits half inside the wall of a residence and half outside. The arrangement is a remnant of humbler days when not everyone could…
Taichung
The park is divided into several sections but most of the interesting material is to the far right as you enter. Don't miss the collections of folk…
Taichung
To the east of the city is a hilly area known as Dakeng. If you're going to spend any time in the city, Dakeng is worth exploring, as there are pleasant…
Nantou County
The stately Pagoda of Kindness and Grace (1969) was built by Chiang Kai-shek in honour of his mother. The ascent from the parking lot to the tower, 960m…
Alishan Forest Railway Chiayi Garage
Chiayi
The tree-lined garage is actually a park with an assortment of old steam locomotives. Train buffs and kids alike will love it. Look for the SL13 (built in…
Western Taiwan
This splendid southern-style temple, founded in 1763, boasts elegant, swallowtail rooftop eaves and a wealth of fine interior woodcarvings. The resident…
Zhongshan Road Furniture Shops
Western Taiwan
Zhongshan Rd from No. 100 up features a number of old furniture shops.
Nantou County
The winery's history is tied to the monopoly system established by the Japanese (and continued by the KMT) on core industries such as alcohol, tobacco and…
Western Taiwan
An ecological park that's celebrated more for its success at revival than its beauty. It's inside Shanmei village (山美村), a Tsou settlement. Tanayiku or…
Taichung
Not far from Taichung Park is this leafy complex with a quaint western-style building, a small lily pond and some lovely trees. The bureau was built in…
Western Taiwan
Perched among tea fields, 1300m above sea level, this tourist-friendly showcase of Tsou culture that will give you a taste of tribal architecture, history…
Western Taiwan
The pond is situated in a semicircular plaza reachable via a flight of stairs to your left when you finish your ascent to the top of Baguashan. Above it…
Western Taiwan
Enshrined here is a deified folk hero of the Ming dynasty – General Liu, known for his valour in fighting the Manchus. When a statue of the general was…
Chiayi
Wude Temple is one of Taiwan's earliest and largest temples dedicated to the God of Wealth (財神), the folk deity whose bearded image graces doors and red…
Endemic Species Research Institute
Nantou County
The institute's open-to-public section has a natural history museum for plant and animal species endemic to Taiwan. Displays are educational and come with…
Chiayi
The Chiayi Municipal Cultural Center comprises a concert hall, a library, the Chiayi Municipal Museum, and the Koji Ceramic Museum in its basement. It's…
Western Taiwan
The narrowest alley in Lukang gets its comical label from the fact that a man could not pass a woman down the narrow inner passageway without her breasts…
Western Taiwan
A small temple originally raised by Hakka migrants who treated it as both a place of worship and a compatriots' association. The resident gods are three…
