Looking for a destination that has great food, culture, history with a dash of adventure? With this 7-day adventure itinerary you will find the best places to see in Taiwan.
While not a commonly talked about destination to visit, there are plenty of places to visit in Taiwan. Traveling within the country is quite cheap and you will find some of the best food in the many night markets of Taipei, and outdoor activities from Taroko National Park to Sun Moon Lake. Taiwan is a beautiful country that has sweeping vistas whether you’re standing on a mountain in Taroko National Park or on top of Taipei 101 in Taiwan’s capital city.
Travel to Taiwan
When traveling to Taiwan you will fly into the capital city, Taipei to the Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport. You will most likely have a connecting flight to Taipei from the major American airlines. EVA Air is a Taiwanese airline that has a direct flight from Houston, TX.
EVA Air has the famous Hello Kitty everything airplane for the lucky (or unlucky depending on how you see it) few that get that specific plan! EVA Air is actually a very reasonable airline when traveling to Asia from the US but you will always have a connection in Taipei and then jump off from there to other destinations in Asia.
Travelling Around Taiwan
In order to get around Taiwan, taxis and ubers are safe, available and relatively cheap for getting around the cities. One thing to have prepared is the address for your hotel/AirBnb, and any sightseeing destination or restaurant in Mandarin. Many of the drivers don’t know or can’t read the English spelling of the Chinese names; so be sure to have all of the addresses or names in the Mandarin characters in order to get around the country.
Taipei also has an amazing subway system andvmakes it easy to get around the city quickly. Taiwan also has train lines that go all the way around the island. There are high speed train options in between cities and regular train lines around the country.
Below are what I think are the top things to see and do in Taiwan.
Day 1: Taipei City
Since you are likely flying into Taipei City, make the most of the sights from this jumping off point on the island.
Morning
One of the first stops on your tour of the capital of Taipei should be the National Chiang Kai-Shek Memorial Hall. Opened in 1980 it is part of a national park and gathering hall. Below the hall is a museum documenting Chiang’s life and career, as well as exhibits about Taiwan’s history, pan-Chinese culture and history, and the ROC’s development after moving to Taiwan. The memorial is within a park that you walk around and enjoy the gardens and many people watching.
Afternoon
Walk around the shops and restaurants to grab some lunch on your way to Lungshan Temple (30 minute walk from the memorial), a tourist hot spot. Lungshan Temple is a Chinese folk religious temple in Wanhua District, Taipei, Taiwan. The temple was built in Taipei in 1738 by settlers from Fujian during Qing rule in honor of Guanyin.
The temple is a quick historic item to see. After that, take the subway to the Taipei National Palace Museum to see the permanent collection of nearly 700,000 pieces of ancient Chinese imperial artifacts and artworks, making it one of the largest of its type in the world. The collection encompasses 8,000 years of history of Chinese art from the Neolithic age to the modern. Most of the collection are high quality pieces collected by China’s emperors.
Dinner
After your busy day, enjoy a night out at one of the many Taipei night markets. Night markets in Taiwan have become famous for their xiaochi, an important category of Chinese food which literally translates to “small eats”. Served in portions similar to Spanish tapas, these dishes are often served as carry-out items, but many sellers provide small folding tables and stools for customers who would like to sit while they eat.
These dishes are offered at low prices and make it easy to sample from many stalls! Shilin Night Market is one of the most famous and largest night markets in Taiwan, located in Taipei. The night market first opened in 1899, and it is now famous for its various eateries selling authentic Taiwanese snacks.
The Shilin Night Market is near the Palace Museum and one of the biggest in Taipei.
Day 2: Yangmingshan National Park and the North Coast
Morning
Hop in a taxi and spend the day at Yangmingshan National Park. The national park is known for its cherry blossoms, hot springs, sulfur deposits, fumaroles, venomous snakes, and hiking trails, including Taiwan’s tallest dormant volcano, Qixing (Seven Star) Mountain (1,120 m).
Afternoon
Head to the Bitou Cape Area just Northwest of Taipei city. It is about a 40 minute taxi ride to the area. You can hike the Bitou Cape Trail and see the lighthouse and other unique rock formations in the area. Learn more about what to do in this area.
Dinner
Head to another one of Taipei’s night markets
Day 3: Taipei 101 and travel to Hualien
Morning
Head to Taipei 101 Observatory for the best views of all of Taipei. This building was officially classified as the world’s tallest from its opening in 2004 until the 2009 completion of the Burj Khalifa in Dubai, UAE. Its elevators, capable of traveling 60.6 km/h (37.7 mph) and used to transport passengers from the 5th to the 89th floor in 37 seconds, set new records upon completion.
Monday-Friday it opens at 11am and Saturday-Sunday it opens at 10am. The line can be very long so if you get there when it opens you hopefully don’t have to wait long.
At the bottom of the building is the famous Din Tai Fung. It specializes mainly in Taiwanese soup filled dumplings known as xiao long bao. There are a number of locations throughout the world and within Taipei.
You have to buy tickets to Taipei 101 so depending on your ticket entry time you can either have lunch here first or after! The lines for lunch can also be long at Din Tai Fung- so make sure you can do what works with your schedule that day.
Afternoon
Take the Puyuma Express from Taipei to Hualien (https://tip.railway.gov.tw/tra-tip-web/tip). The express train takes about 2 hours while the non-express options take around 3-4 hours. Hualien is a little coastal city on the Eastern side of Taiwan that is seen as a weekend get-away destination for the citizens of Taiwan.
Dinner
The Dongdamen Night Market in Hualien is open everyday from 6pm-12am. Check into your AirBnB or hotel and then head to the night market by walking or taxi!
Day 4: Taroko National Park
Taroko National Park is one of the nine national parks in Taiwan and a MUST see place in Taiwan. The park is home to unique geological and natural resources, including twenty seven peaks over 3,000 metres (9,843 ft).
Taiwan was created through the collision of plates 4 million years ago and the Central Mountain Range that runs north-south through much of Taiwan. Even today the shift in tectonic plates continues and this area continues to rise a few millimeters every year.
Full Day Tour
You can buy tickets to one of the many tour buses that bring tourists here daily or hire a private taxi for the day to drive you through the park and hit all the main stops.
Sights include:
- Tunnel of Nine Turns (九曲洞 Jiuqudong)
- Eternal Spring Shrine (pictured below)
- Yenzikou, Swallow Grotto Trail (燕子口)
- Jinheng Park (靳珩公園)
- Cimu Bridge, Motherly Devotion Bridge (慈母橋)
- Tianxiang
- Zhuilu Cliff (錐麓斷崖)
- Liufang Bridge (流芳橋)
- Dayuling (大禹嶺)
- Buluowan (布洛灣)
- Qingshui Cliffs (清水斷崖)
- Shakadang Trail
- Changuang Temple (禪光寺)
- Baiyang Trail (白楊步道)
Day 5: Drive the Central Cross Island Highway to Sun Moon Lake
A truly unique experience in Taiwan and a must do for all adventure seekers! This road links the East coast of Taiwan to the West and is the only road that cuts across the center of Taiwan.
Construction began in 1956 and was open to the public in 1960. 225 men lost their lives building this road. Driving this road is one of the best things you can do in Taiwan, and one of the most frightening!
The views along the road are INCREDIBLE and only get better and better as you drive up to 3,500 meters. The road is not large and has plenty of tight curves and switchbacks as you travel up and down the mountains. It is often very tight as you pass cars traveling the other direction.
Along the road you will pass the Bilu Giant Tree. Right next to the tree is a cafe where you can sip some peach tea in the cloud forest.
You will pass by the Hehuanshan National Forest Recreation Area (合歡山森林遊樂區). There are plenty of areas to pull off and park and hike some easy trails around the peaks of the mountains here.
It is amazing to watch the landscape change from sea level as you climb up to the highest point at 3,500 meters and then back down again.
How to get there
- You can rent a car and make the drive yourself.
- You can hire a taxi for the day.
- Or you can book a ticket on a medium size tour bus.
Day 6: Sun Moon Lake
Sun Moon Lake is the largest body of water in Taiwan. The area around the lake is home to the Thao tribe, one of aboriginal tribes of Taiwan. The east side of the lake resembles a sun while the west side resembles a moon, hence the name.
The lake is considered sacred and so no one swims in it. While swimming in Sun Moon Lake is usually not permitted, there is an annual 3-km race called the Swimming Carnival of Sun Moon Lake held around the Mid-Autumn Festival each year.
Full Day Bike Tour
For your adventure activity today, head to Ida Thao on the south side of Sun Moon Lake and rent a bike for the day. You can follow the lake side trail all the way around the lake and visit the many scenic stops and temples around the lake.
Must stop: The Sun Moon Lake Ropeway- cable car offering panoramic views of Sun Moon Lake & surrounding forested peaks.
Must Stop: Wen Wu Temple- The temple consists of three halls. The first hall, located on the second floor of the front hall, is a shrine devoted to the First Ancestor Kaiji and the God of Literature. The central hall is devoted to Guan Gong, the God of War, and the warrior-God Yue Fei. The rear hall is dedicated to Confucius.
Other temples of note around the lake include Jianjing Temple, Syuentzang Temple and Syuanguang Temple.
Depending on your physical fitness and how often you stop, the bike ride around the lake can be an all day event. Of course you don’t have to go all the way around the lake and can choose to rent bikes for only a couple hours to ride around certain parts of the lake.
Dinner
Head to Ida Thao to eat at one of the delicious restaurants in town
Day 7: Double Dragon Waterfall and Hiking around Sun Moon Lake/Amusement Park
Morning
Today you are hiking up to the Double Dragon Waterfalls. Make the drive (if you rented a car) or take a taxi to the waterfalls and Shuanglong Colorful Suspension Bridge https://nantou.welcometw.com/tour/N9Q6
This is a hiking trail up to the double waterfall. The Colorful Suspension Bridge was opened for tourists in June of 2020, the service suspension bridge (right next to it) carries water from the waterfalls down to the village below.
You do have to buy tickets to cross the Colorful Suspension Bridge and there is a shuttle bus to help take you to the top before taking the trail down to the waterfall and bridge.
Afternoon
You can choose some additional hiking trails around Sun Moon Lake, such as, the Shuishe Great Mountain Nature Trail, Neihu Mountain Trail or the Maolan Mountain Trail.
Or you can choose to hang out at The Formosan Aboriginal Culture Village (https://www.nine.com.tw/en/index.aspx ) is an amusement park where people can observe Taiwanese traditional tribal lifestyle and observe an abundance of aboriginal traditions. It is distinctive for its Formosan aboriginal culture theme.
Day 8: Travel Day
After your adventure packed week in Taiwan, it’s time to head back.
Travel back to Taipei from Sun Moon Lake (about a 3 hour car ride) or take the bus or taxi from Sun Moon Lake to Taichung to catch the high speed rail back to Taipei and then Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport.
