Taiwan Discovered

Your first day of sightseeing in the Taiwanese capital begins with a visit to the 18th century Longshan Temple, a fine example of Classical Chinese architecture housing hundreds of Buddhist, Taoist and Confucian deities.

Next you’ll take in the old-town market along Dihu Street, a cornucopia of medicinal herbs, spices, dried foot, bamboo crafts and colourful bolts of cloth. Most of the afternoon will be given over to the National Palace Museum’s collection of Chinese art treasures.

Energy and time permitting, you could travel downtown afterwards to ascend to the 91st floor Observation Deck of Taipei 101, once the world’s tallest building, for a magnificent 360-degrees view over the city.

On the far northeastern side of the island, the Yehliu Promontory is a giant layer cake of sedimentary rocks which have been eroded into a phantasmagoria of weird shapes. Outcrops resembling mushrooms, ginger roots and candles form arresting spectacles.

Nestled at the foot of a green sugar-loaf mountain, nearby Jiufen is a former mining town that has in recent years reinvented itself as a trendy place to drink tea and relax amid a cluster of buildings dating from the Qing-era and Japanese occupation.

Drive across to the east coast today to visit the National Centre for Traditional Arts before continuing on to the Taroko National Park region in Hualien (about 3 hours drive in total).

A deep trench between snow-capped mountains, the Taroko Gorge will come as a big surprise to anyone who comes to Taiwan expecting wall-to-wall skyscrapers. You can drive up it via a route carved along the foot of the mighty marble crags by the Japanese army at the end of World War II, but to make the most of the abundant local wildlife, trekking along one of the many waymarked trails in the area is the way to go.

Dense vegetation and clumps of hanging forest tumble down the cliffs, which shelter an estimated half of all the species of animals, birds, insects and plants present in Taiwan.

One of the most fabulous drives in coastal Asia lies in store on the seventh day of your tour, as you follow Highway 11 along the Pacific shoreline to Taitung, via the East Coast National Scenic Area (4 hours drive).

After breakfast, drive with your guide to Taitung to see the fascinating National Museum of Prehistory and nearby archaeological site of Beinan, then continue to the windswept Hengchun Peninsula on the island’s southern tip (3 hours journey).

After breakfast, visit the Kenting-Eluanbi Park, on the southernmost tip of Taiwan, facing the Bashee Channel and Philippine Islands. The park’s USPs are its coral rock formations and a splendid 19th century lighthouse from where the views over the straits are magnificient.

Today you’ll swing north to the city of Kaohsiung (2 hours 30 mins journey) for a short tour of the area and river.

A short drive on the west coast to Fo Guang Shan and onward to Tainan used to be the island’s capital in the time of the Qing Dynasty and holds a number of fascinating monuments and an eccentric but entertaining museum (2 hours journey) followed by a tour of the city.

After breakfast, you’ll begin the drive deep into the island’s interior to visit the Alishan National Scenic Area, home of some of the island’s most beautiful scenery (under 3 hours drive) and later explore the area & hills.

Visit the tea farm with stunning view and sample the famous high mountain oolong tea. enter into Alishan National Forest Recreation Area, hike through the verdant forests of Alishan and enjoy the mountainous scenery.

Rise early for the train ride up the mountain to the summit of Chushan in time for sun rise. Later, drive to Sun Moon Lake , where you can spend the rest of the day relaxing and enjoying the fresh mountain air and views (under 3 hours journey).

Cruises on Sun Moon Lake generally include stops at a number of interesting monuments, including the Wenwu Temple, situated at a particularly fine viewpoint, and at Tehua village, for visitors to learn about the lake’s aboriginal custodians, the Tsao people.

You’ll also call at the Syuentzang Temple dedicated to Xuanzang, a Tang Dynasty monk who brought back over 650 Buddhist scriptures from India in the 6th century. The Assam Tea Factory near Sun Moon Lake makes another worthwhile excursion.

Guided tours walk you through the production process, which is carried on out antique machinery in a building that has seen few alterations in over half a century. The surrounding terraces and views are worth the trip alone.

The final leg of your tour involves a leisurely drive back to Taipei via the island’s west coast. The journey will be broken into manageable pieces, with stops at a temple and folk arts museum, and a visit to the thermal resort of Beitou, in the hills just north of the capital (3 hours 30 mins).