Year 2025

Let's explore Taiwan!
2025 Sept./Oct.East

Turtle, Ahoy!

If you’re looking for romantic symbols of Yilan County, there are none more potent than Turtle Island. Over the years, this volcanic isle has been the inspiration for geomythical tales,…
Travel in Taiwan
August 18, 2025

Feature Articles

2024 Mar./Apr.FeatureSouth

Flat as a Scallion Pancake

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2023 Nov./Dec.FeatureFood/Accommodation

Indigenous Restaurants in Taipei City

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2023 Nov./Dec.EastFeature

Green Island

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2023 Nov./Dec.EastFeature

Up the Hualien Coast!

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2023 Nov./Dec.EastFeature

Eastern Taiwan: Adventure Playground

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2023 Sept./Oct.FeatureFood/AccommodationNorth

Herbal Healing

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Random Picks

2022 Mar./Apr.

Old Tainan City Learns New Tricks

Local young folk in Tainan revel in giving new life, personality, and mission to the humbler old architectural jewels they’ve grown up with, creating a treasure map of small eateries,…
2021 Mar./Apr.

Valley or Coast? Or Both?

How to Do Scenery-Rich Eastern Taiwan on Two WheelsTEXT & PHOTOS / VISION Among the many popular areas for bicycling around Taiwan, the East Rift Valley and the East Coast…
2025 Mar./Apr.

Wrapped in a Rural Embrace

Miaoli is a quiet, primarily rural county. Home to storied trails, seasonal blossoms, fruit orchards, hot springs, and an interesting cultural mix, even at its most urban it feels a…
2022 Nov./Dec.
What’s Hot (and Cold) in Yilan County
2021 Jan./Feb.
Sleeping in Old TAINAN
2021 Nov./Dec.
Stone Gate Reservoir
2021 May/June
First-Class Beef Noodles
2022 Nov./Dec.
Eateries Serving Rice-Based Food
2022 Mar./Apr.
Bai Bai, Not Bye Bye
 

Digital Nomad Visa

Since January, Taiwan has been officially offering a Digital Nomad Visa for global digital professionals seeking stays up to six months. The island is seen as one of Asia’s top destinations for digital nomads, ranking high in a variety of polls, with the high-quality living environment, excellent food options, and exceptional tourist attractions often cited as key reasons.

Bureau of Consular Affairs
Talent Taiwan
 

New Tourist Train

Since April, there has been a new way to experience eastern Taiwan’s bucolic and mountainous landscape: the Shanlan Hao, or “Mountain Mist” train. This vibrant yellow-green service, a deliberate counterpart to the “Sea Breeze” train with baby-blue exterior that runs from Taipei’s Nangang Station to Yilan Station, offers a luxurious, immersive journey through the picturesque East Rift Valley (Hualien Station – Chishang Station). Onboard, passengers enjoy unparalleled views through large windows. The train’s interior features earthy tones, creating a serene ambiance. And with its curated selection of local culinary delights, the service provides a multi-sensory exploration of one of the island’s most scenic regions.

Lion Travel
 

Taichung Double-Decker Sightseeing Bus

Launched in April, Taichung’s new double-decker sightseeing bus service provides tourists with a fresh way to discover this city in central Taiwan. Its open-air upper deck offers panoramic views, complemented by free Wi-Fi and multi-language audio guides. The route conveniently connects major landmarks such as Taichung Railway Station, Taichung Park, the National Taichung Theater, and Fengjia Shopping District. Tickets are affordable, starting at NT$100.

Taichung Sightseeing Bus
 

Michelin Guide

The Michelin Guide, created in 1900, directs travelers and food lovers to outstanding places to eat, highlighting global cuisine and encouraging travel. Following the 2018 debut of an edition focused on Taipei, the Taiwan guide expanded to include Taichung (2020) and Tainan/Kaohsiung (2022). For the 2025 edition, New Taipei City, Hsinchu County, and Hsinchu City are covered as well, marking the third expansion of the Taiwan guide and bringing its total coverage to seven cities/counties.

Michelin Guide
 

New Tourism Info Center in Amsterdam

Earlier this year, the Taiwan Tourism Information Centre in Amsterdam was opened to significantly boost Taiwan’s profile as a tourism destination across European markets. Officials view this center as a strategic outpost, using the Netherlands as a key regional gateway for promotion. Regarding Amsterdam as a major European cultural and transport hub, the Tourism Administration hopes that the new center will help to elevate Taiwan’s tourism appeal throughout the continent. The center will also play a role in forging stronger ties with Dutch tourism partners and the media.

Taiwan Tourism Administration
 

New Tainan/Keelung-Ishigaki Ferry Connections

This month (September), a new ferry service will connect the city of Tainan in southern Taiwan with Ishigaki, an island in Japan’s Okinawa chain that is located close to Taiwan. The Yaima Maru ferry, capable of carrying 545 passengers and 70 vehicles, will operate on this route. Voyages are planned three times a month. A one-way ticket will cost about NT$3,000, with the journey likely to be scheduled overnight, lasting 8 to 12 hours. A similar service is planned between Ishigaki and the northern Taiwan port city of Keelung.

 

New Bikeway Section Added at Sun Moon Lake

Sun Moon Lake, located in central Taiwan’s Nantou County, has been one of the island’s top tourist draws for many decades. The lake is surrounded by high mountains of the Central Mountain Range and is enchantingly beautiful whichever season you decide to come for a visit. Apart from just lazily taking in the lake-and-mountain scenery – from the comfort of your room balcony if you stay in one of the lakeside hotels – there is also much active fun to enjoy, first and foremost going on a round-the-lake bicycle jaunt. Much of the roughly 30km route, often named as one of the prettiest in the world, consists of dedicated bikeway sections, often very close to – and sometimes even above – the water. The newest section, opened last September, is a 600m stretch at the village of Ita Thao on the east side of the lake, which now makes riding from the Ita Thao Wharf to the Sun Moon Lake Ropeway Station even more convenient.

Sun Moon Lake National Scenic Area
 

Keelung Buys Duck Boats

The city of Keelung, to the east of Taipei, is dominated by its port, and not surprisingly this is an asset worth promoting as a tourist attraction. Witnessing how port cities around the world, including Yokohama, Singapore, and Boston, have successfully employed amphibious vehicles (“duck boats”) for harbor cruises, the Keelung City Government has decided to purchase two such boats from Japan to put into service this year. The exact date when and the location where the boats will start operating has yet to be announced.

Keelung City Govt.
 

New Tainan City Museum

This year, Tainan City celebrates its 4th centennial. If you want to find out more about how the city developed over those 400 years, there might be no better place than the new Tainan City Museum (formerly the Koxinga Museum; reopened under a new name in December 2023 after nearly three years of renovations). The museum houses around 5,500 artifacts spanning from prehistoric to modern times. Also part of creating the Tainan City Museum has been the integration of three other cultural sites, the Tainan City Zuojhen Fossil Park in Zuozhen District, Tainan Shan-Shang Garden in Shanshang District, and Tapani Incident Memorial Park in Yujing District.

Tainan City Museum
 

Keelung Lighthouse

Earlier this year, the Keelung Lighthouse became the 22nd lighthouse in Taiwan to be opened for visitors. Taiwan has a total of 36 lighthouses, 19 on the main island and 17 on offshore islands. The Keelung Lighthouse, located west of the entrance to the Port of Keelung on Taiwan’s Northeast Coast, was built in 1962 and has a height of 11 meters. At the site, you’ll find bilingual information boards introducing you to the tower’s history, and you’ll enjoy great views over the port’s mouth, Keelung Islet to the northeast, and Baimiweng Fort to the west (the fort is easily reached from the lighthouse by a hiking trail via Baimiweng Peak). To get to the lighthouse, take Keelung bus No. 301 from Keelung Railway Station to the Taibai Village bus stop and walk uphill from there.

Keelung City Government
 

New AI Translation Service at Visitor Centers

Artificial Intelligence (AI) is being implemented in all facets of life these days, including tourism. The Taiwan Tourism Administration recently unveiled a new service for foreign tourists. First installed on a trial basis at visitor centers inside Taipei Songshan Airport and at the Yehliu Geopark on the North Coast, the system facilitates communication between tourists and info center staff. Both sides simply need to talk into a microphone using their own language and then see the translation in the respective other language appear on a screen. Initially available for English, Japanese, and Korean, translating into and from Chinese, the system is said to be comparable to a seasoned interpreter with three years of experience.

Taiwan Tourism Administration
 

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.

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