Keelung Islet is the tall, rocky island off the coast of Keelung City, Taiwan that has recently been reopened to tourists. The island features a trail to the lighthouse at the highest peak that provides breathtaking views of the surrounding area. Just a short trip from Taipei, and then a 20-minute boat ride, it is one of the most accessible outer islands that you can visit in Taiwan.
🛥️ Planning your trip to Keelung Islet? 🏰
Here are some top travel tips for you:
- When to visit: March-November when it is warm and less rainy; the island is closed to visitors from December to February
- How to get to Keelung Islet: Book Ferry Tickets on Klook here or KKday here
- How to get to Keelung City: Taiwan Railway and Inter-City Bus
- Best places to stay: Just Live Inn – Keelung or Yung Feng Hotel
- Book tours and activities in Keelung on Klook
- Stay connected with a local SIM
- Rent a car to explore distant sights
Background:
Keelung Islet is a volcanic remnant dating back to the Pleistocene era about 1 million years ago and is part of the Ryukyu Volcanic Arc which is formed from the subduction of the Philippine Sea Plate under the Eurasian Plate. After the volcano was formed, it was slowly eroded away by wave action, creating a steep mountain peak with sides at about a 60-degree angle. The island is 182 meters tall (597 feet), 960 meters long (3139 feet), and 400 meters (1312 feet) wide.
Except for crabs, birds, lizards, and insects, the island remained uninhabited until the Japanese stationed troops here during the colonization of Taiwan.
After the ROC took control of Taiwan, the island continued to be a military base.
In 1980, the Keelung Islet Lighthouse was completed. It was the first lighthouse in Taiwan built in an octagonal shape, and the first powered by solar power and batteries.
The islet was opened to tourists in 2001, however, tourism to the island was stopped in 2014 after Typhoon Maria ravaged the island, and was closed for five years until 2019.
Currently, the island is open to tourists, but you cannot stay overnight there. The only people who live on the island are members of the Coast Guard who stay there on a rotational basis.
Tourist boats take off daily from Baodouzi Harbor from April until October, and the island is closed to tourists during the winter months due to strong northeasterly winds.
The island is popular, especially on weekends during the summer, but only 1200 people are allowed to visit each day, so you may have to book in advance.
Hours:
Boats to Keelung Islet leave at about 8 AM, with the last boats leaving at about 1 PM. Everyone has to be off the island before sundown. Each trip lasts about 3-5 hours depending on the itinerary. You can book boat tickets on Klook here or KKday here.
Boats to Keelung Islet are only available from April to October due to northeasterly winds in the winter.
Price:
Boat trip to the island and hike to the lighthouse: about 700 NT
Boat trip to the island, lighthouse, and other places such as elephant trunk rock: about 1200 NT
Again, you can book tickets on Klook here or KKday here; booking on these sites is usually cheaper than buying tickets in person.
When to go:
Boats to Keelung Islet are only available from April to October due to northeasterly winds in the winter.
If you visit from May – June you will be able to see white lily flowers, and August to September is golden spider lily season.
How to get there:
In order to get to Keelung Islet, you first need to make your way to Badouzi Harbor (see map below).
By Car/Scooter: Drive to Keelung, then from downtown take provincial highway 2 East about 10 KM until you reach the turnoff to Badouzi Harbor, and there is some paid parking in front of the harbor.
If you are looking for car rentals, you can also search Qeeq here, Klook here, or KKday here. You can also check out our car rental guide here.
Looking for scooter rental in northern Taiwan? You can search on Klook here or KKday here to search for options. You can also check out our scooter rental guide here.
By Train/Bus: Take the TRA to Badouzi (八斗子） station, then walk about 1 KM northwest until you reach the Badouzi Harbor. You can purchase a discount easy card to use on the MRT and buses from Klook here or KKday here. You can also book an MRT travel pass on Klook here.
By Ferry: Next, you have to take a boat to the island. There are multiple ferry boats running to Keelung daily from April to October. You can book tickets on Klook here or KKday here.
Where to Stay:
We recommend Just Live Inn-Keelung and Yung Feng Hotel, which are two great quality hotels for a reasonable price in Keelung’s City Center.
You can book Just Live Inn-Keelung on Booking.com here, Agoda here, Klook here, Hotels.com here, Trip.com here, or Kayak here.
You can book Yung Feng Hotel on Booking.com here, Agoda here, Hotels.com here, Trip.com here, Klook here, or Kayak here.
Map:
See above for a map of Keelung Islet’s location.
See above for the location of Baodouzi Harbor, the place you need to go to get on a boat to Keelung Islet
Drone Footage:
360 Degree Panorama
360 degree view from Keelung Islet, the tall, rocky island off the coast of Keelung that has recently been opened to tourists. The hike to the top was fun and the views were amazing! #基隆嶼 #基隆 #外島 #空拍 #台灣
Posted by Foreigners in Taiwan 外國人在台灣 on Monday, June 5, 2023
Or check out the 360-degree spherical panorama above or via this link.
Our Journey:
I have always wanted to go to Keelung Islet ever since it opened back up to tourists in 2019, and I finally got a chance to go in 2023. I have been to all the other major outer islands in Taiwan, including Turtle Island which is a very similar experience to Keelung Islet. Overall this island exceeded my expectations. It has one of the best hikes and some of the best views of any outer island in Taiwan. I highly recommend this trip.
Part of the reason I waited so long to take the trip was because I did not want to take the early morning ferry. Finally, Klook started to offer an afternoon ferry service, and the weather was looking nice, so I bought some tickets on Klook.
Just to let you know, if you book using the links to Klook or KKday above, we get some commission at no cost to you, and you can help support our blog. Also, booking on these sites is usually cheaper than buying tickets in person.
I should note that I took a three-year-old and a six-year-old on this two-hour hike up 182 meters on a hot summer day, and they made it! They did fine, and we had a great experience.
Our boat tour began at 1 PM.
Badouzi Harbor (1:16 PM)
Originally the ship was meant to be turned into a museum, but the plan fell through, The ship underwent partial demolition but was saved for further examination of its cultural worth. The ship is now in limbo and its future is uncertain.
Ferry Ride Around Keelung Island (2:13 PM)
The visibility was not the best at the start of the day but got better through the afternoon.
As you can see the salty air and cloudy weather made for some bad photos, but at least you can get a picture of what this trip was like.
Lesser Keelung Islet (2:40 PM)
Hike to Keelung Islet Lighthouse (2:57 PM)
Keelung Islet Lighthouse (3:50 PM)
Hike Back Down the Mountain (4:21 PM)
Beachside Path (4:58 PM)
The Ferry Ride Back (5:07 PM)
Baodouzi Weekend Night Market 
Again, you can book different tour options for Keelung Islet on Klook here or KKday here; booking on these sites is usually cheaper than buying tickets in person.
For more of Taiwan’s outer Islands, you can check out our full guides to Xiaoliuqiu here, Penghu here, Green Island here, Kinmen here, Matsu here, and Orchid Island here.
You can also check out our full guide to all of Taiwan’s outer islands here.
Check out our guide to Keelung here.
Check out our full guide to Taiwan’s Northern Coast here.
You can also check out our full travel guide to Taiwan here.
