Year 2023

Let's explore Taiwan!

Feature Articles

2023 Sept./Oct.FeatureFood/AccommodationNorth

Herbal Healing

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2023 Sept./Oct.FeatureFood/AccommodationNorth

Maritime Morsels in the Metro

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2023 Sept./Oct.EventsFeatureIslands

Penghu Partying Year Round

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2023 Sept./Oct.FeatureIslands

A Day in Old Penghu Communities

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2023 Sept./Oct.FeatureIslands

To and Through the Sun-Drenched Penghu Islands

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2023 July/Aug.FeatureNorthUncategorized

Tongan Happiness

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Random Picks

2020 Nov./Dec.

BICYCLING Around Taiwan

Taiwan is a fantastic place for riding bicycles and exploring the land at a slower place. There are dedicated bikeways throughout the island.
2022 July/Aug.

Soy So Good!

The soybean is featured at local tables at almost every meal, presented in myriad forms. This tour of select Taipei eateries takes you on a “round the soy world” taste…
2021 Sept./Oct.

Taiwan, “Foodie Paradise”

Taiwan is a Foodie Paradise with myriad food options for every palate from 5-star cuisine to night market street food.
2022 Mar./Apr.
Island Getaway in Tainan City
2022 May/June
Old-Timey Lukang Town
2022 Sept./Oct.
First Impressions
2022 Jan./Feb.
Northern ALISHAN
2023 May/June
Breezy Days by DAPENG BAY
2021 Sept./Oct.
Along the Dahan River
 

Half-Price with E-Tickets

Good news for travelers relying on public transport while exploring Taiwan! Taking buses of the highly popular and convenient Taiwan Tourist Shuttle network, you can now enjoy half-price fares when paying with an e-ticket (EasyCard, iPASS, and iCASH). The network, which connects major transportation hubs such as conventional and high-speed railway stations with tourist attractions around Taiwan, has a total of 64 routes operated by 35 different bus companies.

Taiwan Tourist Shuttle Bus
 

Babbuza Dreamfactory

SHUTER Enterprise, a Taiwan manufacturer of office and industrial storage solutions, has recently built the Babbuza Dreamfactory, a truly remarkable tourist factory at the center of which is a 10-story-high (30.8m) tree structure with a spiraling walkway (386m long) around it. Located in an industrial area west of central Nantou City, the facility was constructed as a “box of light,” with transparent walls letting sunlight in during the daytime and artificial light out during nighttime. Visitors seeking a bit of a thrill can do a 30m bungee jump inside the “tree” or tackle a 20m climbing wall. The tourist factory also has shop, dining, and cultural-performance areas.

Babbuza Dreamfactory
 

New Hotels

Hyatt Place New Taipei City Xinzhuang (新北新莊凱悅嘉軒酒店) | located in New Taipei City’s Xinzhuang District; 278 guestrooms; grand opening September 2022

Hyatt Place New Taipei City Xinzhuang
 

New Hotels

Anna King Hotel (安娜與國王酒店) | located in central Chiayi City; 51 guestrooms; Thai-style interior design; grand opening in January 2023

Anna King Hotel
 

Breezy Blue Hall

Railway enthusiasts will certainly be interested in the Breezy Blue train experience, a nostalgia railway ride on the South-Link Line, connecting Fangliao Railway Station in Pingtung County with Taitung Railway Station in Taitung County. The train has a diesel-engine locomotive and decommissioned non-air-conditioned cars meticulously restored to their original state, now allowing travelers to experience what rail travel was like decades ago. To learn more about Breezy Blue, visit the Breezy Blue Hall by the Fangliao station. Originally a dormitory building for railway workers, the hall is a cultural space with an exhibition room, bar area, and service counter.

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New Zhongzhuang Suspension Bridge

The town of Daxi in Taoyuan City is best-known for it’s Old Street filled with heritage houses and shops selling dried tofu, but it’s also an excellent place from which to go on a bike ride. Rent a bike (there are two YouBike stations in Daxi) and head north, following either the west bank (Daxi Riverside Park) or the east bank (Yuemei Wetland Eco Park) of the Dahan River. Then cross the river on the brand-new 400m-long Zhongzhuang Suspension Bridge and return to Daxi to complete the loop. At the western end of the bridge is the Zhongzhuang Retention Basin, where you can take cool photos on a glass-bottom platform.

Taoyuan City Travel
 

Taitung from Above

Taitung County is one of the most beautiful areas of Taiwan, and deserves to be seen from all sorts of angles. Taking to the skies gives you a whole new perspective of the land and the ocean to its east. Apart from taking a hot-air balloon flight during the annual Taiwan International Balloon Festival, you can now also go on 30-min. small-aircraft flights that take in the East Rift Valley, the Pacific coast, and Green Island. The planes, operated by Apex Flight Academy, seat nine passengers and reach heights of up to 1,000 meters. You can choose from three different routes, focusing on the valley, the coast, and the island respectively. The experience sets you back NT$9,900 (NT$85,000 for chartering an entire plane); tours are available Thursday~Sunday.

More info
 

“Yong’an Sea Snail Cultural Experience Park”

About 20km west of downtown Taoyuan City is Yong’an Fishing Harbor. Like many fishing harbors, it’s known for seafood restaurants, but also attracts visitors with a scenic footbridge and the chance of catching eye-pleasing sunsets. One new reason to pay the harbor a visit is the recently opened “Yong’an Sea Snail Cultural Experience Park” on the opposite side of the harbor from the seafood restaurant area. Apart from its unique architectural design (the building was constructed to resemble a sea snail), this new sight also features fun AR and VR experiences for visitors, there is an observation deck with wind chimes, and inside you can sit down for a cup of coffee in the “Sea Snail Café.”

Taoyuan Travel
 

“North Eye Platform”

The best views of central Taipei City from high up (excluding manmade structures such as Taipei 101) are arguably from lookout platforms on Elephant Mountain (Xiangshan) in Xinyi District. For a different perspective, head to the opposite (north) side of the Taipei Basin and walk the trails of Mt. Jiantan (trails start behind the Grand Hotel Taipei). A great panoramic view is from the Old Place Observation Deck (encompassing airplanes landing at Taipei Songshan Airport). Another great lookout spot on the mountain is the recently built North Eye Platform, from where you can take in Shilin District, with MRT Jiantan Station and the iconic Taipei Performing Arts Center in full view.

 

NOKE SHOPPING MALL

Located across the street from Miramar Entertainment Park in Taipei City’s Zhongshan District, NOKE is a very stylish, upscale shopping mall with art exhibitions and recreational facilities. Designed by Germany-based Taiwanese architect Yu-han Michael Lin, the mall was named “NOKE” in reference to its location (“NOrth of the KEelung River”). The medium-sized mall is home to branches of such well-known lifestyle brands as Tsutaya Bookstore, Omnibus Coffee, and Sakimoto Bakery, as well as the fine-dining restaurant La Vie of Michelin-starred chef Thomas Bühner. Another highlight is the 12m-ceiling Aurora Ice Rink.

Noke Shopping Mall
 

New Penghu Ferry

The fastest way of getting to the islands of the Penghu archipelago from the Taiwan mainland is flying from Taipei, Taichung, Tainan, or Kaohsiung (less than an hour flight time for each route). A slower way is taking a ferry, either from the town of Budai in Chiayi County or from Kaohsiung Port (about four hours one way). If you opt for the latter route, starting this August you will enjoy the trip on a brand-new vessel, the Penghu Ferry. The new ferry has replaced the Taihua Ferry, which served on the route for more than 30 years.

Tickets
 

Guanwu Route in Hsinchu

Some of the most scenic natural areas of Taiwan can be inconvenient to reach by public transport, if at all. The Guanwu Forest Recreation Area used to be one of them, but thanks to the Taiwan Tourist Shuttle service, visiting without your own means of transportation has become much easier. The Guanwu Route of the service’s network, launched at the end of August, connects the Hsinchu high-speed rail station and Zhudong Railway Station with the Guanwu area, the bus making stops along the way, including at the hot-spring village of Qingquan and Sheipa Leisure Farm. One-way tickets are priced NT$300, and there are two services a day.

Taiwan Tourist Shuttle Bus
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