Must-see attractions in Taiwan

  • Stairway at Dihua Street Market

    Dihua Street

    Taipei

    This former 'Centre Street' has long been known for its Chinese medicine shops, fabric market and lively Lunar New Year sundry market. It has attracted…

  • Chiang Kai-shek memorial hall

    Chiang Kai-shek Memorial Hall

    Taipei

    This grandiose monument to authoritarian leader Chiang Kai-shek is a popular attraction and rightly so. It is a sobering feeling to stand in the massive…

  • City street with green house with ivies under blue sky in daytime in Huashan Creative Park, Taipei, Taiwan, Asia.; Shutterstock ID 78818179; Your name (First / Last): Josh Vogel; GL account no.: 56530; Netsuite department name: Online Design; Full Product or Project name including edition: Digital Content/Sights

    Huashan 1914 Creative Park

    Taipei

    Borrowing from western urban-regeneration models, this early-20th-century wine factory has been restored as Taipei's most retro-chic venue. Remodelled…

  • Magnificent  "Baoan" temple in Taiwan; Shutterstock ID 28079899; Your name (First / Last): Josh Vogel; Project no. or GL code: 56530; Network activity no. or Cost Centre: Online-Design; Product or Project: 65050/7529/Josh Vogel/LP.com Destination Galleries

    Bao'an Temple

    Taipei

    Recipient of a Unesco Asia-Pacific Heritage Award for both its restoration and its revival of temple rites and festivities, Bao'an Temple (also called…

  • Taiwan, Kaohsiung, Cijin Island, the beach

    Cijin Island

    Kaohsiung

    This narrow island that acts as a buffer to the harbour and extends down the city coastline makes for a lovely day trip from the mainland. The main…

  • National Human Rights Museum

    Eastern Taiwan & Taroko National Park

    Green Island's windswept northeast corner was completely out of bounds for much of the 20th century, occupied by a large prison camp. Here, political…

  • Smoke of joss sticks.

    Grand Mazu Temple

    Tainan

    This lively temple once served as the palace of Ning Jin, the last king of the Ming dynasty. If you wish to confirm visually that a king's status is lower…

  • KAOHSIUNG TAIWAN - DECEMBER 13, 2016: Upside down house Pier 2 Art Center Pier 2 Art Center was originally an abandoned warehouse site converted to the art centre.; Shutterstock ID 590977709; Your name (First / Last): Megan Eaves; GL account no.: 65050; Netsuite department name: Online Editorial; Full Product or Project name including edition: Best in Travel - Kaohsiung destination page POI images

    Pier-2 Art Center

    Kaohsiung

    An attractive sprawl of old warehouses by the port is separated by tree-lined boulevards, and hosts shops, galleries and cafes. It's a wonderful place to…

  • Tianliao Stone Temple

    Kaohsiung

    Tianliao Stone Temple is a fantastical, Gaudi-esque interpretation of a Taoist temple by Southeast Asian migrant workers. The 500 men had been hired to…

  • Kaohsiung, Taiwan - February 2, 2014: Cijin Tianhou Temple. The Temple was Taiwan's first temple to Matsu and is also Kaohsiung's oldest temple; Shutterstock ID 479461489; Your name (First / Last): Megan / Eaves; GL account no.: 65050; Netsuite department name: Online Editorial; Full Product or Project name including edition: Destination image - North Asia

    Cijin Tianhou Temple

    Kaohsiung

    One of Kaohsiung's few temples that made the national protected relics list is also its oldest Mazu temple. Cijin Tianhou Temple was constructed in 1673…

  • Lin Family Mansion & Garden

    Northern Taiwan

    The family mansion of Lin Ying-yin boasts wood and stone carvings, traditional architectural motifs representing luck and fortune, and a beautiful…

  • sunset at gaomei wetlands

    Gaomei Wetlands

    Taichung

    Beautiful wetlands teeming with life rendered surreal by the sight of wind turbines on the horizon. It is especially photogenic at sunset and makes for a…

  • Gold Ecological Park

    Northern Taiwan

    Jinguashi's big draw is this Japanese-era mining-complex-turned-tourist-park, where hillside paths connect 1930s offices, workshops and dormitories, and…

  • Nantian Temple

    Western Taiwan

    In the southern foothills of Baguashan is this bizarre temple and haunted house where parents used to take their children to scare them into obedience. It…

  • National Human Rights Museum

    Taipei

    This former detention centre, court and jail was where political prisoners were incarcerated and tried during the White Terror period (1947–87). The…

  • Alien Art Centre

    Kaohsiung

    A remarkable museum in a unique location. From the '50s to the '70s this white building was a hostel for young men departing for compulsory military…

  • City God Temple

    Tainan

    When you enter the temple, look up for the two large abacuses used to calculate whether you have done more good than bad in life; check out the most…

  • Hobe Fort

    Taipei

    About 1km beyond Fort San Domingo on Zhongzheng Rd is the turn-off for Hobe Fort, built in 1886 when then governor Liu Ming-Chuan was attempting to shore…

  • City God Temple

    Northern Taiwan

    First built in 1748, and masterfully restored in 1924, this Hsinchu landmark has the highest rank of all the city god temples in Taiwan, and is a splendid…

  • Treasure Hill

    Taipei

    Head down to the river from the Museum of Drinking Water, turn left, and you'll soon come across this charming art village. It was founded in the late…

  • Museum 50

    Kaohsiung

    A true hidden gem, this private museum has a small but exceptional collection of sculpture and antiques by mid-19th- to 20th-century Japanese artists who…

  • Alishan Forest Recreation Area

    Western Taiwan

    Visiting Alishan may almost feel like a cliche, but do not lose heart. There may be equally beautiful and less-visited places in Taiwan, but Alishan, with…

  • Penghu Aquarium

    Penghu Islands

    This large, family-friendly experience is home to an engrossing collection of living sea life, from a rescued three-legged turtle and magical family of…

  • Jing Si Hall

    Hualien

    Built in 2000, this gigantic temple-cum-performance venue has a simple yet striking, white-and-grey exterior. At its tallest point, the building is…

  • Thousand Fields Seed Museum

    Tainan

    This horticultural Eden is a home with a fantastical garden overrun with plants, and seeds, seeds, seeds – some 500 species, most endemic to southern…

  • National Museum of Taiwan Literature

    Tainan

    This serious and excellent museum details the development of Taiwanese literature from the time of the pre-Han indigenous peoples to the modern era…

  • Quanhua Temple

    Northern Taiwan

    The only Taoist temple on the mountain, Quanhua Temple (c 1897) is dedicated to the Jade Emperor. The elaborate main hall is built into a recess in the…

  • National 2-28 Memorial Museum

    Taipei

    This graceful memorial to the victims of the 2-28 Incident is housed in a beautiful Japanese building dating back to 1931. The excellent permanent…

  • Oxford College

    Taipei

    Oxford College was the first western university in Taiwan and founded by Presbyterian missionary George Leslie Mackay. The original building, built in…

  • Guandu Temple

    Taipei

    Dating back to 1661, this gawdy, grand, massive multistorey temple (one of Taipei's oldest) is built right into the side of a mountain. In fact, a 100m…

  • Twin Hearts Stone Weir

    Penghu Islands

    Penghu's most photographed icon is a double hoop of stone walls linked to breakwaters in an ocean bay. Built with narrow openings, they were designed to…

  • Nanyao Temple

    Western Taiwan

    Located 2km south of Changhua Train Station, this remarkable temple is one of the stops on the Mazu Pilgrimage. The distinctive character of the complex…

  • Shennong Street

    Tainan

    Cafes, art galleries, fashion boutiques and B&Bs have flowered in the hub of Tainan's former Five Canals area, taking full advantage of the long, narrow,…

  • Neiwei Flea Market

    Kaohsiung

    This sprawling flea market in Neiwei may possibly offer one of the most authentic and fabulous experiences of Taiwan. You'll find everything under the sun…

  • Jibei Sand Tail

    Penghu Islands

    Those desert island paradise photos you probably saw on Penghu's promotion brochures and websites were most likely taken at Jibei Sand Tail, a dazzling…

  • Mazu Temple

    Western Taiwan

    This holy structure was renovated in 1936, a high period in Taiwan's temple arts. The woodcarvings are particularly fine in the front hall, and the high…

  • Ciji Temple Museum

    Tainan

    In focus here is Koji pottery that is used to embellish roof ridges and walls by sculptor Ye Wang (1826–87). The first such artist to be born in Taiwan …

  • Beitou Hot Spring Museum

    Taipei

    Built in 1913 as the Beitou Public Baths, this handsome building is a copy of the bathhouses in Shizuokaken Idouyama in Japan. It is also a good example…

  • National Museum of Natural Science

    Taichung

    A fantastic place for kids and botany fans, this massive museum has over 50 exhibit areas covering space, the environment, rainforests, gems and minerals,…

  • Thermal Valley

    Taipei

    Throughout the Japanese era this geothermal valley was considered one of Taiwan's great scenic wonders. The area has been much altered since, so it isn't…

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