Last Updated on 29 November 2025 by Cycloscope
A great and flexible itinerary to explore Taiwan, backpacking, or cycling. Hikes, hot springs, and amazing scenery of Taiwan’s north and east coast. A blog post about everything you need to know to plan your trip to Taiwan
Although not big, there’s a lot to see on this island; a 14-day Taiwan itinerary should be enough to have a good panoramic view. Taiwan is an increasingly popular tourist destination; every year, more than 10 million foreigners travel to Taiwan, including backpackers, cyclists, hot-spring addicts, and all kinds of tourists.
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Backpacking in Taiwan is a great way to explore this island, where many travelers come seeking a Chinese atmosphere away from the hassle and difficulties of mainland China.
There are certainly some great highlights in Taiwan, but we think the best lies in its roads. That’s why a road trip to Taiwan, made with your independent means of transport, is undoubtedly the way to go.
We indeed rode this itinerary by bicycle, and it took us 14 days to cycle about 600km (we took it really easy). Taiwan is meant to be cycled, and the Taiwanese know it; indeed, you’ll see dozens of locals traveling the east coast of Taiwan by bike.
If cycling isn’t your thing, you can still rent a scooter at a low price. An international driving license is required, though we heard there are rental services that don’t really care about this rule.
Check also
Never been on a bike trip before?
Where to go in Taiwan
Being an oblong island shaped like a seed, Taiwan has basically two coasts: the east and west coasts. The northern coast is very short but worth being included in your itinerary. There’s no southern coast, just a cape.
Besides the lush and mountainous interiors, there’s no doubt that the best of Taiwan is to be found along the east coast. Its northern part is made up of steep mountains that drop dramatically into the sea, covered in grass, which looks like anything else we saw in Asia, reminding us a bit of western Ireland.
Going south, crossing the Tropic of Cancer, the landscape changes completely, becoming covered in thick tropical jungle. There are still mountains, but they get further away from the coast. The southernmost area is fantastic and really a must.
The west coast is pretty horrible to cycle, one seamless urban area from north to south, not really worth cycling that part of Taiwa,n in my opinion. But it could still be interesting to travel around Taiwan by train; although we won’t cover it in this itinerary, there are some interesting Taiwanese cities to visit.
When to go to Taiwan: weather and climate
Taiwan is crossed by the Tropic of Cancer, which roughly divides it in half; the northern part lies in the subtropical climate zone, while the southern part is appropriately tropical.
Winters are warm, and summers are hot and wet, with typhoons and thunderstorms; anyway, there’s a lot of rainfall throughout the year. We got considerably wet during our bike tour of Taiwan.
The best time to cycle is from October to April, when temperatures are milder. We went in February and experienced quite cold weather in the north, but it was a peculiar year. When we reached the southern part, the weather was very warm, and we could even take a couple of swims in the sea and relax on some of Taiwan’s beautiful beaches.
Food and Water when Backpacking in Taiwan
Tap water is not drinkable everywhere in Taiwan; the government advises boiling it first. Ask your hostel or guesthouse, or just some locals. Buying bottled water is never a problem, but it’s not super cheap.
Taiwan is another convenience store country (like South Korea and Japan), and 7-Eleven and Family Mart are in every town, by definition. Here you can find the usual choice of junk food, drinks, and canned black coffee. Some have toilets and ATMs, all have microwaves and boiled water, and WiFi is available upon registration. Check here for the best 7-Eleven food in Taiwan.
Taiwan is famous for street food, and the notorious Taiwanese night markets are pretty cool, you can find more than one in each city and sometimes even in small towns, Google Maps knows all of them. The night market in Hualien is excellent, but the best of the best is in Keelung, where we finally found out why Taiwanese food is so famous!
What you’ll mostly find are noodle soup restaurants whose quality honestly pales in comparison to Chinese soups, sorry, guys. In the deep south, where Taiwan really gets tropical, and the aboriginal natives are a majority, food stalls are more frequent, but the variety is not great.
Map of Taiwan Itinerary
Taiwan itinerary in pills
- 1 or 2 days in Taipei
- 1 day in the Beitou Hot Spring area, climbing the Yangmingshan in the morning, and soaking in hot sulfuric water in the evening
- 1 day on the north coast, visiting Shimen, Jinshan, and Yehliu Geopark
- 1 or 2 days in Keelung
- 1 or 2 days in Jiufeng, exploring the area using the old railway
- 1 day around the northwest area road trip, spending the night in Toucheng Township or Yilan
- 1-day hiking in Taroko, getting back to Hualien to sleep
- 1 day visiting Shitiping, Sanxiantai, and Xiaoyeliu
- 1 day visiting Jiupeng Desert and Nanren Shore
- 1 day getting lost in the Manzhou Aboriginal area
- 2 days in Kenting or Hengchun: Fengchuisha, Longpan Park, Kenting beaches, and White Sand Bay
Planning your Taiwan Backpacking or Cycling itinerary
If you decided to explore Taiwan by bike, congratulations, you made the right choice! We did indeed mention Taiwan as one of the best destinations for beginner cycle tourists.
If you plan to stick to the coast, there’s pretty much one road to follow, with occasional detours. The scenery is stunning almost everywhere along the East Coast.
You’ll only have to make a choice south of Hualien when the road splits into three. Remember that Highway 9 is the main route, with heavier traffic, so we advise choosing Road 193 or sticking to the coast (Highway 11). This is not the most spectacular section of the East Coast, but it’s still nice, and the traffic is light enough.
South of Taitung, where those three roads converge, is the ugliest stretch of road, the scenery is still cool from time to time but you won’t enjoy much of it, you’ll be busy watching yourself from the many trucks and tour buses.
Leaving Highway 9 to get to the southernmost province of Taiwan, everything gets nice again, very, very nice. Don’t miss this area, a bit hilly but totally worth it.
Winds mostly blow north to south, so this is the best direction to take for a bike trip in Taiwan. There’s an official pamphlet about cycling around Taiwan, made by the Official Tourism Board, but honestly, it’s pretty useless.
Learn everything you need to know about cycling in Taiwan!
1. Start your Taiwan itinerary in Taipei
Unless you are coming by ferry from China, you’ll probably fly in and out of Taipei. Taipei is a big, crowded city, with a population of 8.5 million in its extended metro area. Taipei feels a bit like a Japanese city more than a Chinese one, with this 90s atmosphere you can also find in Tokyo. Indeed, Taiwan has a strong relationship with Japan, which may serve as a way to resist Chinese influence. Have a look here for a list of things to know for your first visit to Taipei.Â
Maybe because we saw so many cities in Asia, we didn’t particularly like Taipei; its urban area seems interesting to us to live in, but not especially cool for travelers. But if you’ve never been to Japan or China, you might completely disagree with this statement.
The most interesting thing in central Taipei, besides the Taipei 101 (a skyscraper that used to be the tallest building in the world), is its bustling nightlife. The best night market to visit in Taipei is in the Shilin district. Check out these 10 free things to do in Taipei as well.
Where to stay in Taipei
Taipei accommodations often have few vacancies, so booking in advance might be a good idea. We liked a lot the Rose Boutique Hotel, but we have a strong taste for kitsch.
We advise spending one night in Taipei’s center; make it two if you particularly enjoy the nightlife.
2. Beitou Hot Spring Area and Yangmingshan National Park
Feeling like a foothill countryside town, despite still being in Taipei city, with the great advantage of being reachable by subway, Beitou must be included in your Taiwan itinerary.
It is here that all the hot springs in the Taipei area are, mainly inside the hotels, but with one public bath really worth visiting (nice local lifestyle insight and terrific sulfuric water).
Beitou is a great base to hike the Yangmingshan National Park, from here you can catch bus S9 which will bring you all the way up to where the main trail to hike the Yangmingshan volcano starts.
Hiking in Yangmingshan is very scenic and not too hard; it takes around 120/180 minutes to get to the other side, where another public hot spring is located. From there, you can catch R5, S15, or S17, which will bring you back to the Taipei subway system.
Check our full article about
Hiking and Hot Springs in Yangmingshan National Park
We advise spending one night in Beitou, climbing Yangmingshan in the morning, and soaking in hot, sulfur-rich water in the evening.
3. Itinerary of Taiwan North Coast: Shimen, Jinshan, Yehliu Geopark
With the Yangmingshan mountain on one side and the sea on the other, this stretch of coast is pretty wild and interesting. Things get especially gorgeous from Shinmen towards the east. In Shinmen, there is a nice short hike among the lava reefs, a beautiful wild beach, and the northernmost lighthouse in Taiwan.
Jinshan is another hot spring town, with no open-air public baths, though, so you’ll have to book a hot spring hotel or get into the small, rundown public bath, where rooms with just a bathtub are charged a small fee per hour. If you have time, take a walk to the so-called “Mysterious Coast”, which is pretty mysterious indeed.
Yehliu Geopark is one of Taiwan’s most famous attractions and should be included in your backpacking itinerary. Dreamlike rock formations dot the coast. The area seems small, but you should plan at least one hour for the visit, two if you like taking pictures.
We advise spending one night in the area, staying near Yehliu or in Jinshan.
4. Keelung City
Keelung is really the food capital of Taiwan; we overlooked it at first, but then decided to stay 2 nights. The city is very cozy, with the harbor at its center and surrounded by mountains, but the real attraction is its night market, where you can try foods hard to find elsewhere.
The night market in Keelung is indeed bustling on weekends, with hordes of Taiwanese coming from Taipei. In the middle of the market, there’s an interesting Taoist temple, where we were lucky enough to see a traditional puppet performance.
We advise spending one night in Keelung, two or more if you are a real foodie
5. Jiufen Riufang and cozy local trains
Jiufen (also spelled Jiufeng, Jioufen, Chiufen…) is a magical town, all stairs, narrow alleys, and red lanterns, so magical that it inspired Hayao Miyazaki, whose famous movie Spirited Away is set in what we could call “a parallel universe version” of Jiufeng.
Jiufeng is set on a hill some 30km east of Keelung; from here, you can catch a charming mountain train, an old railway that will bring you around a handful of cozy mountain villages, among which are Riufang and Huotong Cat Village.
In the vicinity, there’s also the scenic Shifen Waterfall, certainly worth a look.
We advise spending at least one night exploring Jiufen, two if you want to explore around using the old railway
6. Northwest area road trip
There is not a single highlight worth mentioning in this area; it’s a whole highlight itself! Steep, spectacular cliffs drop into the sea, waves smash on the reefs, winding roads, fishermen’s harbors, and so on.
To properly visit this area, though, you’ll need your own means of transport, whether a bicycle (recommended), a motorbike, or a car. I don’t know if any buses are running in this area, but a bus ride won’t do justice to this mesmerizing landscape.
We advise spending one day on the road in this area, sleeping in Toucheng Township or Yilan
7. Taroko Gorge and Hualien
Taroko Gorge should be included in any Taiwan itinerary, no matter what. When we first researched this famous Taiwan point of interest online, we weren’t impressed by the pictures and almost decided to skip it; we couldn’t have been more wrong.
The truth is, it’s challenging to capture the magnificence of Taroko Gorge in a picture; the cliffs are so tall that they will not fit even in the widest lens.
There are several hiking opportunities in Taroko, some short ones, and a couple of very spectacular long trails that require a special permit in advance; be warned.
Exploring Taroko entirely by bus, stopping only at the so-called highlights, is possible but not a great idea. If you have your own means of transport, that would be best.
What we did was take the bus from Hualien to the last stop, then walk down, following a few hiking paths and mostly the main road. The scenery was constantly astounding, and we are glad we didn’t miss an inch of it.
Hualien is an incredible city and a great stopover for those backpacking in Taiwan. It has the cheapest accommodations in the whole country (yes, we’ll call it a country) and one of the best night markets.
Hualien has a large aboriginal population, and you’ll have the chance to taste some of their traditional food at this market, along with opulent fusion cuisine. The further you go south along the east coast, the more Aboriginal people you’ll meet. It’s exciting to learn about the island’s original inhabitants.
We advise spending one day hiking in Taroko and getting back to Hualien to sleep. If you want to do the longer hikes, add one more day.
8. Shitiping, Sanxiantai, and Xiaoyeliu
Shipping is a small coastal area about halfway between Hualien and Taitung. It is not essential to include in a backpacking itinerary, but it’s certainly an excellent stopover if you’re cycling in Taiwan. There is an official campsite and a few more gazebos where you can pitch your tent with a spectacular view, if you prefer to be on your own.
There are also a few overpriced hotels, the best choice being the secret one just before the north entrance of the scenic area, ask the shop, they have rooms upstairs.
The peculiarity of Shitiping is again its weird rock formations; it’s really worth spending an hour taking pictures and admiring the alien landscape.
Sanxiantai is an islet connected to the mainland by a beautiful pedestrian bridge, made into a series of arches that remind of a dragon, the islet’s landscape is also pretty cool. Nearby, a few km north, is a small aboriginal village famous for goat breeding, a funny place to spend a night.
Xiaoyeliu is another rock formation area, surrounded by a sort of botanical garden full of rare and beautiful plants. Also, there’s an official campground here.
You can stop to visit Shitiping on your way south to Sanxiantai and Xiaoyeliu; all of these places make a pleasant and relaxing 1-night stopover if you have time, especially if you’re traveling by bicycle.Â
9. Jiupeng desert and Nanren shore
Jiupeng Desert is a unique piece of landscape in this part of Asia. It’s basically a big beach, about 2km long, surrounded by very tall dunes. It looks like being teleported straight from another planet, a desert cut out from a lush green landscape.
It’s possible to go on quad-bike or 4-wheel-drive guided tours at relatively high prices; do it only if you don’t care about destroying a beautiful, unique place. Otherwise, take a walk and admire it respectfully; if the weather is good, it’s also an excellent place for a dip in the ocean.
Nanren Shore is a short stretch of underdeveloped coastal road featuring spectacular beaches, perfect for surfing, special vegetation, and, again, a campground. Remote and beautiful, keep in mind that you’ll have to backtrack. Although Google shows a small road following the coast after Nanren Fishing Harbor, this doesn’t exist.
We advise spending one day exploring the area, half a day if you’re in a rush
10. Manzhou Township and the Aboriginal villages area
The cute little town of Manzhou is at the center of a hilly area where many aboriginal villages are located. It’s a forested area really worth exploring, with plenty of excellent narrow roads where to ride your bike or scooter while getting in touch with the native Taiwanese people.
We advise spending one day getting lost in this beautiful area
11. Fengchuisha and Longpan Park
There are many reasons to make it all the way down to this southernmost province of Taiwan during your itinerary, but the biggest reason is to visit Longpan Park.
This section of the coast is really alien, with sweet grassland abruptly interrupted by spectacular cliffs that lead down to a shore where mesmerizing trees and absurd potholes form an unbelievable sight.
Fengchuisha is basically a viewpoint overlooking a large dune, with a wide beach below. Absolutely worth a stop and a few pictures. Avoid losing your time to get to the southernmost tip; just an ugly concrete monument waits for you there.
You don’t need to sleep here, you’re just a stone’s throw from Kenting and Hengchun.
12. Kenting, Hengchun, and White Sand Bay
Kenting is the Taiwan backpacking mecca;Â you’ll see plenty of foreigners here, so the local businesses have adapted to the average backpacker’s market.
Accommodation everywhere, pancake restaurants, and so on. If you like the backpackers’ vibe, this is definitely the place to stay. There are three very nice beaches near the Kenting central area, with pristine water and some noisy watersport activities.
Hengchung is the central town nearby, and we personally liked it more there than in Kenting. There’s a more local atmosphere, with a nice town center which is closed to vehicular traffic in the evenings.
Southwest of Hengchung is a small peninsula, a rural area worth exploring by bike or scooter. On its western shores is the beautiful White Sand Bay, featured as a film location in Ang Lee’s The Life of Pi.
Check also
Everything you need to know about cycling in Taiwan
Hiking and hot spring in Yangmingshan National Park
How to rent a bicycle in Taiwan
Never been on a bike trip before?
Have a look at our beginner’s guide to bike touring
Is Taiwan cheap?
Taiwan is a relatively cheap country. It’s more expensive than most Southeast Asian countries (e.g., Thailand or Cambodia), but more affordable than Japan or South Korea. You can travel around Taiwan with a budget of 10 to 50 USD per Day. Food can be very cheap, a nice meal could cost you 3/4USD at the night market.
Is Taiwan safe?
Taiwan is a very safe country. Criminal rates are very low, and Taiwan ranks 6th among the safest countries in Asia. Beware of car traffic though, cause it can get heavy.
Is Taiwan boring?
Not at all! Who told you that?! Taiwan is a very modern country with loads of things to do, bustling city nightlife, and many outdoor activities. The food is excellent and very diverse. It is hard to get bored in Taiwan.
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