Taiwan

Reasons to go:

1. Taipei

Beitou District:

  • Moonstar 360★ - a revolving restaurant on the chimney of the working Beitou waste incinerator. Food and drink quality is bad, but the experience is totally worth the travel. Visit between meal times to avoid paying for a (bad and overpriced) meal; for example 14:30 for a coffee is good. It takes just over an hour to experience the full 360 rotation.
  • Guandu Temple has a unique feature - two statue-filled tunnels, one of which leads to a viewpoint.

Shilin District:

  • National Palace Museum★(not free) - one day is not enough to see everything, so buy tickets online, arrive early and start with Gallery 106 “A Garland of Treasures” which gets the most crowded.
  • Studio94 - an exciting art studio, as described in this post. The World Press Photo exhibition was on when I visited.
  • Taipei Performing Arts Center - is a daring piece of architecture. Take a free guided tour of PUBLIC LOOOOOOP to see how reality compares to the original vision for the building.
  • Spend the evening exploring Shilin night market (one of the biggest) and Shilin Cixian Temple.
  • Hiking Jiantan Mountain is still on my wishlist.

Datong District:

  • Dihua Street - Taiwan’s oldest street, narrow and lined with traditional shops. A perfect place to buy herbal teas (Taiwanese Chrysanthemum tea was my favourite) and nuts and dried fruits for your hikes. Don’t miss the Shophouse No. 127 (25.057574, 121.509837) - a restored historic building with 3 floors to explore.
  • Ri Xing Type Foundry - old-school foundry of Chinese lead type characters.
  • Dalongdong Baoan Temple and Taipei Confucius Temple.
  • FaChuKung temple that floats above a street, allowing cars to drive under it.
  • Ningxia Night Market and Dadaocheng Wharf Container Market. I visited Yanping Riverside Park at 19:30 on a Monday and it was filled with numerous karaoke parties, not sure if it was a rare occasion or it is that lively every day.
  • Lovely neighbourhood cafes - 菸花Op.118.2 and Nearby Cafe.
  • Still on my wishlist - cocktails at Bitter Burro and Isotope.

Zhongshan District:

  • Taipei Collectible Botanical Garden - indoor botanical garden, it doesn’t look like much from the outside (I even thought it was closed), but inside it’s big and exciting. Next to it is the Lin An Tai Historical House and Taipei Rose Garden. This area is in the flight path of the nearby Taipei Songshan Airport, low flying aircrafts make it extra exciting.
  • Temples: Xingtian Temple - one of the first major places of worship in Taiwan to ban the practice of burning paper or incense within the temple, and hence an interesting place to observe new spiritual practices. Jingfu Temple - magnificent ceiling carvings on upper floors. Of all the temples with magnificent dragons on the roof, this one (25.064889, 121.5271) is the smallest one I found in Taiwan. And this temple (25.05865, 121.53413) has a painting of dragon-horses on the ceiling.
  • Linji Huguo Temple - doesn’t look like much from the outside, but I knew I had to enter because it is very special on the inside…and still I managed to miss the Japanese wooden shrine dating back to the Japanese colonial period, possibly the oldest remaining wooden structure from that period in Taiwan. Don’t be like me - find it.
  • Taipei Fine Arts Museum - most galleries were closed when I visited and Fine Arts Park in front of it was a construction site. I’m excited to see what this will look like after the upgrade.
  • Feng Wei Ting Delicious Vegetarian Food House - one of my favourite restaurants in Taipei, second only to Serenity. Authentic flavours from around Asia (Taiwanese, Singaporean, Malaysian, etc.). Try BarDoor Coffee 八豆咖啡 nearby for geek-level coffee.

Songshan District:

  • A great neighbourhood for enjoying a relaxing stroll. For example, a walk between Nanjing Fuxing Station and Fuming Ecological Park is lovely - start by meeting the Leaning Postboxes (25.052709, 121.540404) and then aim for Cafe,honestly - a nice cafe surrounded by charming narrow streets.
  • Songshan Cultural and Creative Park is a wonderful place to hang out on the weekend; it includes Taiwan Design Museum.
  • Songshan Ciyou Temple - great views of the rooftop sculptures from the top floor.
  • Raohe Night Market.
  • Guanshan Riverside Park for views of the river and Rainbow Bridge. Access via Raohe Evacuation Gate or the staircase at (25.061862, 121.569071).
  • Serenity Vegetarian Restaurant - one of the two locations of my favourite restaurant in Taipei. Across many meals I’ve tried 20 different dishes and they were all excellent.

Xinyi District:

  • Taipei 101 Observatory★ - buy tickets online to avoid queues and disappointment of sold out tickets, obtain paper tickets on arrival before queueing for the elevator up to 89th floor. The cheapest (Main Deck) ticket includes access to 89th floor (360 indoor observation deck, and the view of the tuned mass damper), 91st floor (west-facing outdoor observation deck, open in good weather) and 88th floor (up-close view of the tuned mass damper). You must arrive on time (based on the ticket you buy), but there is no limit on how long you can stay. Top Deck ticket includes all of that and access to 101st floor (small and quiet 360 indoor observation deck) for 1 hour.
  • Elephant Mountain - a short hike for the great view of the city from (25.027383, 121.57627), not the Instagram spot at (25.026678, 121.575501). Start from Xiangshan metro station or from a temple at (25.032257, 121.576168).

Da’an District:

  • Shida neighbourhood (between Dongmen and Gongguan stations) - a great neighbourhood for enjoying a relaxing stroll. Wenzhou street is lined with book shop cafes and coffee shops.
  • Treasure Hill Artist Village - many artist studios, including Robot DIY K John, on a hill; fun to explore.
  • Daan Park is lovely.
  • Chao - an awesome vegan restaurant, their homemade sour plum juice is to die for; Beam Coast Coffee next door is nice. Chocoholic is a place for geek-level hot chocolate. Still on my wishlist - Russian Castle Restaurant.
  • Da’an District is the cocktail destination in Taiwan - Cog &J (my favourite one, they specialise in tea-infused drinks and local/homemade ingredients), Sidebar (gin-centric cocktails, gin library and their homemade gins), and still on my wishlist are Ounce Taipei, Lab, Bar Mood Taipei, Tei by Obond, Room by Le Kief, MOD Public Bar, The Public House and Indulge Experimental Bistro.

Zhongzheng District:

  • Huashan 1914 Creative Par, Central Art Park and Taipei Artist Village - a wonderful place to hang out on the weekend. CHLIV Huashan store - a charcoal-themed cafe.
  • Taipei Botanical Garden with a big Lotus Pond.
  • Serenity Zhongzheng - one of the two locations of my favourite restaurant in Taipei. Across many meals I’ve tried 20 different dishes and they were all excellent.
  • For all your outdoor clothing and equipment needs, head to Section 1 Zhongshan N Rd.

Wanhua District:

  • Bangka Longshan Temple and Bopiliao Historical Block.
  • Ximending Night Market is at it’s best between 19:00 and 21:00. Stroll through the large area of Ximending Walking District (shopping area), don’t miss Taipei Tianhou Temple, The Red House and the street art area around Taipei Cinema Park.

Sanxia District:

  • Chiang Kai-shek Statue Park★ - so many statues of the same person. Some of the statues are sitting at the picnic tables, so you can have lunch with Chiang Kai-shek.
  • Manyueyuan National Forest Recreation Area - a wonderful hiking area, tickets at (24.83065, 121.44459) and free parking nearby. A loop via Self-guided Trail and visiting both waterfalls and back to the carpark is about 8km.
  • Yirou Kitchen is an amazing vegetarian restaurant.
  • Still on my wishlist - Sanxia Qingshui Zushi Temple.

Still on my wishlist:

  • Visit Jianguo Holiday Flower Market and Jianguo Jade Market; and Taipei Flower Market in Neihu District.
  • Tasting menus at Monsoon, Yu Shan Ge and Curious Table.
  • Wuliaojian hiking/climbing trail from (24.883949, 121.377216).
  • Huangdidian hiking trail, from the parking at (24.992764, 121.664059). And/or Bijiashan trail.
  • Neidong National Forest Recreation Area (內洞國家森林遊樂區).
  • Yangmingshan National Park, including Bamboo Lake. And a meal in Yangming Spring restaurant nearby.
  • Tamsui District - Tamkang University Maritime Museum, Wuji Tianyuan Temple.

Notes:

  • Aim to see 3 types of temples - famous ones (they are huge and exciting, but full of tourists), local ones (where you are more likely to see locals throwing moon blocks) and tiny hyper-local ones. Dog statues often have a ball in their mouth - it is really fun to reach into their mouth and play with it, when nobody is looking. Temples look extra magical when lit up at night, luckily most night markets have at least one - so you won’t miss that. See Nick’s guide to temples in Taipei for more information.
  • Best place to stay - next to a metro station (MRT). Around Taipei Main Station is super convenient for the first visit.
  • Grocery shopping - try Mia C’bon for things you can’t find in Carrefour.
  • Uber taxi app works well.

2. Taroko Gorge, Taroko National Park★

Exciting things, in order from the gate (24.155505, 121.621629) into the gorge:

  • Shakadang Trail (flat) into Shakadang River Gorge. Park at (24.161275, 121.61303), start at (24.162193, 121.613598). From the same start point Xiaozhuilu Trail leads in the opposite direction to the viewpoint (24.161953, 121.61585) of the Liwu River mouth.
  • Eternal Spring Shrine Trail to Changchun Shrine. Park at (24.162509, 121.60458).
  • Buluowan Cable Suspension Bridge - the best view of the Taroko Gorge from the top. Park at (24.170737, 121.57436) to cross the bridge on foot. Don’t miss the viewpoint of the bridge itself at (24.172505, 121.57427).
  • Zhuilu Old Road Trail is a longer hike, and supposedly a great one. You must buy a permit to hike it about 30 days in advance, then on the hiking day register at the starting point (24.172915, 121.56645) before 10:00. I didn’t have a chance to do it.
  • Swallow Grotto Trail (Yanzikou Trail) - a walk parallel to the paved road, but it has the best up close views of the gorge. Very limited parking at (24.173144, 121.55588) from there walk to (24.172915, 121.56645). Half of the people were wearing rented helmets, as advised due to frequency of rock falls.
  • A great viewpoint with very limited parking at (24.173455, 121.545084).
  • Tunnel of Nine Turns Trail - very limited illegal, but safe, parking available at (24.171526, 121.529131) from there walk to (24.168567, 121.534485).
  • Baiyang Trail - park at (24.18712, 121.490377), start through a long dark tunnel at (24.18568, 121.489761).
  • Viewpoint at (24.202808, 121.48948) is accessible from one-car parking spot at (24.200575, 121.49141). This is the start of Lushui Wenshan Trail (not to be confused with Lushui Trail) - it requires a permit and I don’t know anything about it.
  • The buses can’t drive past this point, so there is a chance to continue for good views without the crowds. But the gorge is the most gorge-like around the Swallow Grotto Trail. Road closures before you reach Dayuling are likely. Try this website for information or ask in Tienhsiang village.

Notes:

  • Official map of the national park and information about trail closures which are very likely due to geological conditions.
  • There are a lot of tunnels and waterfalls, so best carry headlamp and raincoat at all times.
  • Parking is severely limited. Buses operate between hiking starting points, but I’ve not tried them. Either way, try to visit on a workday and/or stay in Tienhsiang (the only village in the gorge). Tienhsiang Youth Activity Center is a great accommodation option.
  • Best food option is 素食義賣 vegetarian restaurant by the Xiangde Temple at (24.180318, 121.496268). It is open 7:30 until 16:00, if there is nobody there to serve you, ask in the adjacent souvenir shop.

Exciting things driving between here and Luodong:

  • Magnificent views of the Qingshui Cliffs. The best viewpoint is at (24.20502, 121.67083), 0.5km walk from the parking at (24.206623, 121.666603). There are several other viewpoints at (24.229247, 121.70677), (24.217681, 121.69169), (24.219117, 121.689167), (24.191871, 121.66134), etc. - without the walk and without the crowds, but extremely limited parking. My favourite place was Chongde Beach (24.167475, 121.65796) - great views, geologically interesting pebbles and opportunities to observe fishing activities linked to the seafood wholesaler. I believe there is access to Qingshui Beach from parking at (24.219234, 121.68912), but I’ve not tried it.
  • Road 9T between (24.218498, 121.688771) and Luodong (24.576943, 121.865745) is a beautiful drive, and most people take faster Road 9 which makes 9T even better. Along the way, Taiwan Cement Corporation Branch Peace (24.300831, 121.75209) is still on my to-visit list. Suhua Highway Monument - a viewpoint of the coast at (24.53141, 121.865486). Nanfangao Lookout - the view of the Nanfang’ao Fishing Harbor and Beifang’ao Military Base at (24.576501, 121.866642).

3. Kaohsiung

  • Pier-2 Art District (the area between Love Pier Station and Hamasen Station) - warehouses renovated into galleries and public art scattered everywhere, a perfect area for hanging out. Climb the Pier-2 Tower for a good view (coin-operated entrance accepts only 10 NTD coins). The Pier2 Art Center might have something interesting going on. Railway Art District and Takao Railway Museum inside the old rail station. Hamasen Railway Cultural Park - when I visited on Saturday afternoon locals were flying kites and people were welding new metal sculptures around (22.621146, 120.277456). After dark, see Kaohsiung Music Center light up and there is the Yanchengpu (Pier-2) Night Market on Saturdays. Dmore Coffee and Piefee coffee shop are great, and there is Pooja’s Indian Restaurant if needed.
  • Lotus pond - area for temple-hopping. Dragon and Tiger Pagodas, Chiji Temple, Wuliting, Zuoying Chiming Temple, Zuoying Yuandi Temple, Zuoying Tianfu Palace, Chingshui Temple (beautiful wooden interior and chandeliers, good views from the top floor), 左營新庄仔青雲宮 (22.668239, 120.308362) with its entrance plaza above the city, and many more. OWNLIFE Coffeeis great.
  • Cijin Shell Museum★ (not free) - a mind-blowing collection of sea shells from all over the world. It is on the second floor and might be a bit hard to find, but don’t give up. To get to Cijin Island, take a 5min ferry from Gushan Ferry Pier Station (works with EASYCARD) and walk along black sand Cijin Beach. Once you are on the island, you can also explore the historic area - Kaohsiung Lighthouse, Cihou Fort, Cijin Tunnel.
  • Guomao Community★ (22.670244, 120.28793) - architecturally unique place, very slightly reminiscent of Kowloon Walled City.
  • Kaohsiung Museum of Fine Arts (not-free) and Neiwei Arts Center (free) - contemporary art. Both are located in a delightful park with sculptures.
  • Golden Lion Lake Butterfly Garden - two pavilions with butterflies. Use the mosquito spray provided at the entrance.
  • Shoushan National Natural Park - hike the Monkey Mountain (about 8km, many route options). It is indeed full of monkeys. If in doubt, aim for (22.652751, 120.25981).
  • Sanfeng Temple - famous for the lanterns lighting it up at night.
  • Food: 萩豆乳拉麵 (vegan ramen restaurant) and 時蒔 vegan 蔬食 麵館 (vegan noodle restaurant) - my two favourites in Kaohsiung. 前金素食 (22.627638, 120.29516) - the best vegetarian buffet I found. Delicatesse - bakery inside InterContinental hotel (open to the public) offers exotic things like French baguettes and French cheeses. L’atelier de pain - Western style bakery with baguettes, cinnamon rolls, etc.

Just outside the city:

  • Tianliao Moon World Park - a nice walk through interesting geology. Parking at (22.886043, 120.390548). And I think there is a mud volcano at (22.883286, 120.393486), but I missed it.
  • Mud volcanoes - drive to (22.80233, 120.40765), from that junction there are mud volcanoes in two directions - New Yangnyu Mud Pond at (22.802647, 120.409236) and Wushanding Mud Volcano at (22.795993, 120.40596). Free, gates close after 16:00. The drive here from Moon World Park is through tiny wiggly roads peppered with incredible temples.
  • Fo Guang Shan Buddha Museum - a giant Buddha statue and a huge area to explore (so arrive well before closing time at 17:00), but the shopping mall with Starbucks kind of kills the mood. Nearby 台灣天壇 temple (a round one) is still on my to-visit list. Not-so-nearby Shanghai Vegetarian Restaurant in Pingtung City is good.

Still on my wishlist:

4. Area around Keelung City

  • An old super cute trainline from Ruifang station to Jingtong station. In particular, Shifen station★ is an experience, don’t look it up and just go. And there is a huge Shifen Waterfall as a bonus. There are hiking opportunities from many stations, for example Xiaozishan Trail (Pingxi crags) from Pingxi station. I did the Sandiaoling trail from Sandiaoling station (starting at (25.059032, 121.82057)) - 3 waterfalls and wildlife encounters; but then I continued on to hike to Shifen station, which was a mistake as I got stuck at (25.058551, 121.79617) and had to walk around and along the road which wasn’t enjoyable. Around Sandiaoling station there is 寬哥那裡 - an Italian restaurant with barely any vegetarian options, but the Pizza Margherita is great; and 文瓊小築（素食、密境草仔粿）- serving fresh vegetarian caozi kueh (local speciality) from the morning until they sell out (so don’t rely on them in the afternoon).
  • Teapot Mountain Trail - staircase hike from the carpark at (25.111969, 121.85978) to the viewpoint at (25.106839, 121.86539), from there it’s an interesting climb to the top of the teapot…if you dare. Nearby there is 水湳洞選煉廠遺址 (13 levels★; Ruins of Shuinandong Refinery) - former smelter and mining facility with multiple tiers running along the hillside. At night, I parked at (25.118594, 121.86456) and was surprised to see lit up sculptures by Joyce Ho inside the abandoned building. This place is definitely worth a visit during the day, as there are a lot of things to explore. Nearby Jiufen village is very cute and advertised in Lonely Planet, so don’t expect to find parking anywhere nearby (hence I didn’t visit).
  • Yehliu Geopark - interesting rock formations, it is crowded but still worth it. Nearby 和雅齋 is a great vegetarian restaurant, they offer half-portions of savoury dishes (not hot pots) which allows you to try many things.
  • Ju Ming Museum - a huge outdoor sculpture park with some indoor exhibitions too. From there continue to Chin Pao San Cemetery★ - a private cemetery run by ChinPaoSan Group. I found it deeply creepy, but a wonderful place to explore with extensive luxury graves and many sculptures.
  • Sandiaojiao Lighthouse - nice views and a tiny lighthouse museum, with carpark at (25.007886, 122.00093).
  • Bitou Cape Park - staircase hike from the temple (25.124675, 121.9163) to a viewpoint (25.126756, 121.919201).
  • Food in Keelung: 群賢閣蔬食餐廳 - a great vegetarian restaurant (tell them your licence plate number to avoid paying for the parking); and don’t miss the Big Buddha Temple nearby - quite a sight, especially at night. Still on my wishlist: Keelung Night Market and cocktails at 艾克猴.The Alcohol Bar.威士忌酒吧 and 人參民謠小屋 Bar GinsengCafe.

Still on my wishlist:

5. Tainan

  • Chimei Museum (not free) - a great collection of musical instruments, arms and armour, and Western art. Don’t miss the orchestra that plays on the hour. The museum is surrounded by beautiful garden and the building is wonderfully lit up after sunset. Ten Drum Cultural Village nearby is still on my wishlist.
  • Old Tainan - roughly the area from Shennong Street to Nanmen Park. For me the highlights were Shennong Street (historic street), 臺南南勢街西羅殿 (temple), 水仙宮市場-台南郭家豬腳 (traditional market), Tainan Shuixian Temple, 台南關帝港開基武廟 小關帝廟 (temple), Tainan Grand Mazu Temple, Tainan Sacrificial Rites Martial Temple, Snail Alley, 鄭成功祖廟 (temple), impressive architecture of Land Bank of Taiwan (22.992177, 120.203105) and Hayashi Department Store across the road. There are signs of many old building being torn down, but the juxtaposition of old and new is exciting. Best time to visit is on Sunday morning (around 10:00-12:00) when a lot of temple related activities and religious parades take place.
  • An evening walk through Tainan. The stretch of Hai’an Road Section 2 from (22.99327, 120.196062) to (22.998223, 120.197772) seems to be THE hangout place for locals on a Saturday night. Also see the brightly lit up Khao Sai Ke Presbyterian Church and visit 182artspace (cool gallery across 3 levels, open until very late).
  • The Spring - a lovely urban park.
  • Food: 日月禪食養生蔬食館 (vegetarian restaurant), 芳珍蔬食-台南金華店 (a fast-food place with nice gioza), 時之幸福輕手工蛋捲 (an awesome ice cream place where you can choose both the flavours of the ice cream and the flavour of your cone; two locations), Reading Bar (awesome cocktails).

Still on my wishlist:

  • A boat tour of the Taijiang National Park - to Sicao Green Tunnel and beyond. And Anping Old Street - the historic area.
  • Yanshui Fireworks Festival in January.
  • Wild Solid Sourdough Bakery, Gan Dan Cafe, cocktails at Find Gin Bar (on the first floor and hard to find; pre-booking required as it is very small and very popular), cocktails at Hērá and Bar TCRC.

6. Yushan National Park and around

  • If you don’t have time for the whole Walami trail, park at (23.329281, 121.236172) to do just the first 2km of the walk as it goes through two dramatic suspension bridges at (23.326123, 121.228592) and (23.329396, 121.225191).
  • Shitiping has nice rocks, parking at (23.483441, 121.511647).
  • Chishang is a very classy town. My favourites were 池上【巧本味蔬食人文料理】(vegetarian restaurant), 池上鄉農會：池上直銷驛站(農民直銷站) (local produce shop) and 池上星球 sculpture at (23.124445, 121.218212). Road 197 between Taitung and Chishang is pretty, including the viewpoint of Little Huangshan at (22.827934, 121.15237).
  • 富里花海景觀區 (23.20609, 121.272532) - there were huge straw sculptures here when I was passing through, I believe they were related to Rice Straw Art Festival.
  • Still on my wishlist: Sixty Stone Mountain (23.221378, 121.316174) covered in orange day lilies in August-September.

7. Kenting National Park

  • Kenting National Forest Recreation Area (not free) - Fairy Cave and Silver Dragon Cave are impressive, and don’t miss the outdoor observation deck above 6th floor restaurant in the Viewing Tower.
  • Beaches: Kenting Baishawan is a nice one frequented by locals; South Bay (Nanwan beach) is a bigger one, but you can see the road from the beach and there is a nuclear power station nearby.
  • If you don’t have time to visit Eluanbi Park, you can see Eluanbi Lighthouse from (21.901757, 120.85346) just before the entrance to the paid parking.
  • Still on my wishlist: Longkeng Ecological Reserve (a permit is required).

8. Luodong and Yilan

This is the weirdest place I’ve seen in Taiwan; more exploration is definitely warranted. I just wanted to stop at 看見初食蔬食廚房（純素) (vegetarian restaurant, and it was excellent), here is what I found by accident:

  • Lucky Art Crayon Factory - with a big monument to crayons outside.
  • Dongshan Mr. Brown Avenue and other roads going through rice paddies.
  • Wushierjia Wetlands - I didn’t have time to explore, but looks like there are arboretums, birdwatching opportunities, etc.
  • Jane Castle - an interestingly looking hotel.
  • Zhuangbin Road is lined with huge incredible temples. I’ve counted 9 huge ones between (24.733482, 121.818211) and (24.836088, 121.823791) - prime place for temple hopping. And there is Yongzhen Seaside Park beach along the way.
  • Lanyang Museum - an architecturally exciting building.
  • Little White House/Arab Palace at (24.886556, 121.848595).
  • Honeymoon Bay - a secret surfing beach with an easy-to-miss carpark at (24.933146, 121.8855).
  • Still on my wishlist: Guishan Island and Beiguan tidal park.

9. Other things

Still on my wishlist:

  • National Highway 7 - the scenic drive between Daxi Tea Factory (24.830777, 121.328186) and (24.599923, 121.511744); Lalashan Forest Reserve (giant ancient red hinoki cypress trees); Taipingshan National Forest Recreation Area.
  • Lukang old town; Daxueshan National Forest Recreation Area; Chung Tai Chan Monastery; Alishan National Forest Recreation Area.
  • Guqifeng Gallery in Putian Temple in Hsinchu; Guanwu National Forest Recreation Area; Smangus Giant Trees.

Notes:

  • Basic info: US plugs, cash-dominated, no specific dress-code for visiting temples, free clean toilets are abundant, both cold and hot drinking water refills are everywhere.
  • Based on the GSMA network coverage map, I picked Far EasTone simcard, which I bought in Taipei airport (even before passport control, paying with a bank card). Passport required, registration process fast. It worked immediately once inserted into the phone, and worked as a hotspot too.
  • Most of public transport is with EASYCARD (one per person, ID not needed to purchase). It can only be purchased with cash, apart from the tourist stall in front of the train station in Taipei airport, there you can buy it with a bank card. Top up with cash in the machines at train stations or in 7-Elevens. EASYCARD top-up machines accept coins of all denominations, so I used them to get rid of too many small coins.
  • Taiwan High Speed Rail is the fastest way to travel between Taipei and Kaohsiung (Zuoying station). To avoid paper tickets, install 台灣高鐵 T Express行動購票服務 app.
  • All National Parks are free and 24/7 (they don’t have gates that could be closed). National Forest Recreation Areas are not free and have opening times. Most urban areas have an Old Street, which is usually interesting to explore.
  • Don’t miss the stone paths for foot massage that are present in most parks.
  • Republic of China calendar is 1911 years behind the Gregorian calendar, don’t be confused when you see year 100-something on posters/websites.
  • ATMs usually don’t charge for withdrawals, at least Taiwan Cooperative Bank and First Bank didn’t charge me.
  • For information about road closures and road conditions see this website.

Food and drink:

  • Vegan restaurants are everywhere and they serve authentic local cuisine.
  • Many good restaurants are open for two narrow time windows only - often 11am until 2pm and then 5pm until 8pm. And they mean it, you have to have left by the closing time.
  • Ordering stinky tofu was a mistake, as the main volatile organic compounds that contributes to its unique smell and taste is indole, which has an intense sewage smell.
  • I enjoyed tea-flavoured everything, including alcohols infused with tea and espresso mixed with a cup of tea.