Taiwan blog — The fullest Taiwan travel guide first-timers

Jiufen, Shifen, Houtong Cat village: You should spend at least a day traveling to these ancient villages in Taipei with red-tiled roofs, narrow alleyways with full street foods, souvenir shops and sip a cup of tea in truly Taiwanese style. Getting there: Go to the station of Zhongxiao Fuxing Exit 1 MRT, take bus No.1062 to Jiufen village. After discovered Jiufen, take the bus No.1062 back to Riufang train station, buy a train ticket to Cat Village, then take the train to Shifen.

Read more: Visiting Jiufen village — Explore one of the most beloved destinations of Taiwan.

Beitou Hot Spring: An unique cultural feature of Taiwan, this is a hot springs tourist area with fairy scenery, enjoy hot spring bathing with a very pleasant feeling. In addition to Beitou, you can refer to the Volando Wulai Hotspring which is also a very popular hot springs in Taipei, take the MRT to Xindian Station and take Bus 849 to Wulai.

Read more: Must do in Taipei — Top 12 best places to visit & best things to do in Taipei.

Alishan Mountains

Alishan is a destination you can not miss while visiting to Taiwan. The first point that makes this place become Taiwan’s No. 1 tourist attraction is the specialty of Alishan Oolong Tea. Go to this mountain, you should definitely spend a few minutes to enjoying a cup of hot tea mixed with fragrant.

The Alishan Mountains is also known as the fairyland of Taiwan. With a railroad running between the forests of the mountains. You can buy this ticket and tour on the train. Alternatively, visit the corridors along the mountainside. Whatever your choice, ensure that you will still enjoy the fresh air and natural beauty of Alishan.

Read more: Alishan travel guide — Top places to visit and what to do in Alishan, Taiwan.

Tainan

If Taipei weather is as erratic as the 18-year-old girl, Tainan is always sunny and beautiful. Tainan is not too crowded, not many tall buildings and traffic are as complex as in Taipei. Here there are many lovely old streets, lightly slow, and the night markets with a lot of delicious foods and decorative fancy.

Anping Old Street: Here, there are the most old streets in Taiwan, the vintage street corners and the bustling night markets.

Confucius Temple: Located in the center of Tainan, it offers many souvenirs and has an ancient streets opposite the temple.

Sicao Green Tunnel and Qigu Salt Mountain: These two places are located in the suburbs of Tainan, you can take the bus No.99 from the central station they will take you around both places. The salt mine of Qigu is beautiful but quite monotonous. The Sicao Green Canal is a famous natural canal in Tainan, where you can rent a boat to explore the canal.

Chin Mei Museum: The museum is very European style, you should visit in the evening to watch the museum lights up.

Kaohsiung

Kaohsiung is Taiwan’s second largest city, after Taipei.

Sizih Bay (Sizihwan Bay): Famous for its beautiful sunset and natural coral reefs. The bay includes places such as the Sizihwan beach, Hai Bin Park, Former British Consulate at Takao, etc … From here, you can admire the sea and see the port of Kaohsiung from afar.

Liuhe Night Market: This market mainly sells seafood, food. In general, seafood is delicious, fresh, not too high price.

Xin Jue Jiang Night Market: A busy and bustling night market in Kaohsiung, located at the R9 (Central Park) subway station – the crowded and very beautiful subway station in the city. This night market sells a variety of clothing, footwear and cosmetics made in Taiwan and Korea.

EDA World Complex: Everything from entertainment, sports, shopping, hotels, hospitals to schools. When you come here, people often like to sit on the giant ferris wheel to see the entire kingdom of EDA World. Or you can strolling around the splendid and sumptuous shopping area, there is also a large ice skating rink. For those who love adventure games or explore the beauty of European style, you can choose EDA World Theme Park.

Lotus Pond (Lotus Lake): Known as the jewel of Kaohsiung’s architecture art design, is a large lake located in central Kaohsiung surrounded with many temples, observatories and markets. Walking around the lake and watching lotuses that is inspiration source to name the lake.

Pier-2 Art Center: Built from abandoned beachfront warehouses, it is like a collection of many museums with creative works.

The world’s most beautiful MRT station Formosa Boulevard Station: Step out of the train and walking up to the hall you will see a performance of lights and LED in the grand house. Exterior view is 4 exit points around the 4 corners of the intersection is also designed impressively.

Love River: The river of love is decorated with circle bridges, so in the evening you will see the lights running along the bridge creating an impressive landscape.

Fo Guang Shan Temple: Located 40 km from the center of Kaohsiung, one of the largest and most magnificent temples in the world.

Read more: Kaohsiung blog (Kaohsiung travel blog) — The fullest Kaohsiung travel guide for a budget trip to Kaohsiung, Taiwan.

Hualien

Hualien is a place have to visit in Taiwan with many attractive attractions

Taroko National Park: Known as Taiwan’s most diverse national park, Taroko National Park is home for saving of Taiwan’s most beautiful natural sceneries, with majestic cliffs, beautiful hanging bridges and spectacular waterfalls. Visitors will be walking around the canyons and exploring ancient ruins in a very unique way. Read more: Explore Taroko Gorge National Park — One of the most beautiful national parks in Taiwan.

Qingshui Cliffs: Located on the Suao-Hualien Highway stretching between Heping and Chongde Stations, is one of the most spectacular sights on the Pacific coast of Taiwan. When departing early, you can admire the magnificent sunrise over the Pacific Ocean with its majestic natural surroundings.

For those who like adventure, conquered nature, this is also a very ideal place with kayaking activities, sailing on the sea. Besides, you can take a walk on the Chongde Sea, from here watch the panoramic view of cliffs, as well as watch the sunrise or sunset on the Pacific Ocean.

Mukumugi Valley: With its beautiful landscape, aboriginal culture, rich seafood cooked in Taiwanese cuisine, Mukumugi Valley has attracted many visitors here to experience the native culture of destination and swim in clear water.

Chishingtan beach: In addition to Taroko National Park, the Chishingtan beach is a destination you can not miss in Hualien. This place is hailed as the most beautiful beach in Hualien. It is characterized by clean, clear sea water, rock formations with many unique shapes. It is not suitable for swimming, but Chishingtan is a place for sea walking and live “virtual”.

Read more: Hualien travel guide — Top things to do & must go places in Hualien, Taiwan.

Sun Moon Lake

The lake is located in Taichung, also a fairyland of Taiwan. It can be said that this convergence is full of harmony between water – trees and the immense sky. As the largest lake in Taiwan, you can come here to feel the four seasons of Taiwan clearly visible on the water.

Read more: Sun Moon Lake itinerary — Exploring Sun Moon Lake & Cingjing Farm for 1 day trip.

Penghu Islands

Located between Taiwan Strait and Mainland China, this small archipelago is characterized by its distinctive geological features, with numerous sedimentary rock formations and hundreds of large and small islands. Along with that, the mountain landscape blends with sandy beaches and blue waters. Especially in the spring and summer, you also have the opportunity to enjoy seasonal festivals and beautiful fireworks. In addition, you can not ignore the delicious seafood dishes, including fish and other kinds of fresh snails in the area.

Taiwan blog: What to eat in Taiwan?

The small, beautiful island contains a vast, rich culinary world. It is no exaggeration to say that Taiwan is a paradise for devotees. There are many signature dishes in Taiwan you can try such as: beef noodles, dim sum, oyster omelette, stinky tofu, danzi noodle, bubble tea, pineapple cake, daifuku (Mochi Taiwan), iron eggs, …To read more about must eat in Taiwan, read the following articles:

• Taiwan food blog: Taiwan must eat — Top 9 best foods you have to try in Taiwan. 
• Taiwan street food blog — Top 10 Taiwan street foods you must-eat.
• Taiwan food trip — 24 hour culinary experience in Taiwan.

Taiwan blog: What to buy in Taiwan?

Taiwan is not only known as a beautiful island, but is also home to a myriad of shopping centers, markets and alleyways. When traveling to Taiwan, travelers can choose to purchase the goods as a gift after a trip. We have listed the most complete list of gifts to buy when traveling to Taiwan. Let’s check it out here: Must buy souvenir in Taiwan — Top 17 most famous, cheap & best things to buy in Taiwan.

Taiwan travel blog: Some useful notes when traveling Taiwan

• Take note of the elevators in Taiwan: When you take the elevator, remember to stand on the right hand side, so that anyone who wants to walk up or down, they go left.
• When traveling should wear warm and lightweight clothing, hats, low heels or shoes to avoid feet pain, you should not use new shoes.
• Dress politely when visiting temples, pagodas, palaces … and note lined up when waiting.
• No smoking in public areas, air-conditioned, in elevators; Do not throw the garbage in public (if the violation will be fined heavy).
• Shopping: 1kg of China = 0.5kg international; Goods valued at over US $ 300 will be subject to current tax; In some places, when you buy something you should bargain; …
• Always be aware of your location or people traveling through the Diduli app to ensure your safety as well as your planned and itinerary.

Some best day tours, trips, activities and transfer services, tickets in, to and from Taipei you can refer to

• Taoyuan Airport Private Transfers (TPE) for Taipei
• Sedan Taoyuan Airport Transfers (TPE) for Taipei
• [SALE] Taoyuan Airport MRT Ticket & Exclusive Shopping Coupon
• Luxury Taoyuan Airport Transfers (TPE) for Taipei
• Explore Taipei City
• Taipei Free Walking Tour Historic Route
• Taipei Double Decker Bus Tour
• Taipei Popular Sightseeing Private Car Charter : Jiufen, Pingxi, and North Coast (Chinese/English/Korean)
• Northeast Coast Scenic Day Tour
• Jiufen Shuttle Bus from Ximen
• Yehliu, Shifen, and Jiufen Day Tour with Korean and English Speaking Guides
• Taipei: Yehliu Geopark, Jiufen, Shifen, and Golden Waterfall Day Tour
• EasyCard (TPE Airport Pick Up)
• Klook Pass Taipei (For international travelers)
• Taipei 101 Observatory Ticket
• Maokong Gondola Ticket
• Yeliou, Jinguashih, Juifen and Shihfen Join Day Tour
• Taipei Unlimited Fun Pass
• Taipei: Beitou and Yangmingshan One-Day Tour
• [10% Off + 1 Extra Free Day] 4G SIM Card (TW Airport Pick Up) for Taiwan from Chunghwa Telecom
• 4G SIM Card (TPE Airport Pick Up) for Taiwan from Far EasTone Telecom
• 4G WiFi (TW Airport Pick Up) for Taiwan
• 4G Portable WiFi for Taiwan from Uroaming (Unlimited Data)
• 4G Portable WiFi for Taiwan from WiFiBB (Unlimited Data)
• 4G LTE WiFi (TW Airport Pick Up) for Japan
• [Sale – Taiwan Food Promo] Taiwan High Speed Rail (THSR) Discounted Ticket from Taipei
• Taiwan High Speed Rail (THSR) Consecutive Unlimited Pass (2 or 3 Days)
• Taiwan High Speed Rail (THSR) Discounted Ticket from Taoyuan
• THSR Exclusive Discount One Way Ticket from Taoyuan (Two Tickets for the Price of One)

Are you finding more top things to do in Taipei: Tours, activities, attractions and other things? Read more: Taipei travel blog — The fullest Taipei city guide for a wonderful trip to Taipei for the first-timers.