If you only have a few days in Taiwan and you want to go somewhere outside of Taipei, you should definitely go to Taroko Gorge. On an island full of mountains, rain forests, beaches, and abounding natural beauty, Taroko Gorge might just take the top spot as the most beautiful scenic area in Taiwan.  Taroko National Park is well known for its amazing marble cliffs and canyons carved out by the Liwu River. It is also a popular spot for hiking, rafting, and river tracing. If you have the time, come to the East Coast and see it. If you don’t have time, then make some time!

⛰️ Planning your trip to Hualien? 🌊

Here are some top travel tips for you:

​History and Background:

Taroko National Park is well known for its  marble cliffs and canyons, and is also known as “The Marble Gorge.” Millions of years ago, the rock we see today was sediment at the bottom of the Pacific Ocean, but oceanic and tectonic pressure turned it into limestone, and later into marble. Later the Eurasian plate was uplifted where Taiwan is today, and a gorge was cut out of the limestone thanks to the Liwu River. 
Taroko means “human being,” from the Truku tribal language. Originally the Tupido Tribe settled in the area of what is now Tianxiang Taiti mesa. They built the Tupido Tribe Trail which was only 30 cm wide, and resided there until they were massacred by the Japanese in 1914. In 1917, the Japanese expanded the original trail made by the Tupido Tribe to 1.5 M and forced aboriginal tribesmen to carry goods along the trail to the east coast. This is now the Zhuilu Old Trail. Currently, only 3km of the trail is open to the public. The Japanese created a national park in the Area in 1937, which was disestablished by the ROC in 1945, and then reinstated as a national park in 1986.

When to visit?

Hualien is great year round, but it can get a little hot in the summer, and Typhoon season and heavy rain season lasts from about May to October. If you are afraid of the heat and rain then you can visit during winter when the temperatures are mild and the climate is usually dryer. 
Currently the park is closed due to damage from the April 3rd, 2024 earthquake. However you can check out a list of other things you can do and see in Hualien besides Taroko Gorge here. 

Where to Stay?

The best hostel I’ve ever stayed at is “When Happiness Knock Your Door” “幸福來敲門” in Hualien. The hostess will go out of her way to make you comfortable and her rooms are kept extremely nice. Also, it was one of the few hostels I’ve ever been to that had an elevator. Her price is well below the quality you will enjoy. She has almost a perfect rating on Booking.com and Agoda.
You can book When Happiness Knock Your Door on Agoda here or Booking.com here.
We have also stayed at and recommend Dream Taiwan Homestay (Agoda / Booking.com), a high-quality hostel for the money in downtown Hualien, Farglory Hotel (Agoda / Booking.com), right next to Farglory Ocean Park with amazing views of Hualien, and Goldenflower B&B (Agoda / Booking.com) in Yuli right next to Sixty Stone Mountain.
You can find out where to stay in our Taiwan hotels guide or search for the best hotel deals in Taiwan here.

How to get there?

By Car: From Taipei, Take National Highway 5 to Yilan and then drive on the Suhua Highway 9 to Hualien. A few miles before Hualien City, the gorge will be on your right.
By Train: Take the train to Hualien station, and from there you can rent a scooter or car, or take a tour bus to the gorge.
​For more travel information see here.
You can book tickets to travel to Hualien via inter-city bus on Klook here 
Book tickets via the normal train (TRA) on Klook here.

How to get around in Taroko Gorge:

As always, we recommend renting a scooter as the best way to see Taiwan. However, you can also a great deal of Tainan by taking the traininter-city bus, local bus, biking, or just walking. Getting around in a car is also a convenient option as there is plenty of parking pretty much everywhere in this less crowded county. 
By Bus: You can book a shuttle bus to Taroko Gorge from Hualien on Klook here.
Scooter Rental: Looking for scooter rental in Hualien? You can search KKday here or Klook here to look for options.
You can also check out our scooter rental guide here
Car Rental: If you are looking for car rentals in Hualien, you can also search Klook here or KKDay here
You can also check out our car rental guide here.
Please note that Taroko Gorge is currently closed unless you have your own vehicle.  

Tours: 

You can find more tours and activities in Hualien such as SurfingParaglidingSUP / Paddle BoardingKayakingCanoeingRiver TracingRiver RaftingWhale WatchingSnorkelingDivingATV / 4-wheelingPaintballingFarm Dream Estates ZooWater BikingOyster HarvestingShrimp HarvestingIndigenous ExperienceGlampingCyclingZiplining and much more on Klook here or KKday here

Hours:

Hours: 8:30AM-5PM (Zhuilu old trail is open from 7AM to 10PM).
Currently the park and Zhuilu trail are closed due to damage from the April 3rd, 2024 earthquake. However you can check out a list of other things you can do and see in Hualien besides Taroko Gorge here. 

Flying a Drone? 

​Apply for a drone permit here.

Price:

Free! (Except Zhuilu old trail, which is 200 NT per adult. See below for more info.)

Map:

Please see below:

 

​Our Journey:

We have visited Taroko six times, once in 2014, 2018, 2020, 2022, 2023, and 2024. Five times we have taken our own car, once on a scooter, and two times the weather was crappy, so you probably can’t tell which pictures are from when.

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Near the entrance to the park, you can see a reservoir that is super muddy if it is raining.
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Further down the road, the cliffs start getting higher and steeper, until it is hard to capture their sheer steepness and height in one photo.

Swallow Grotto 燕子口

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There are many tunnels on the road up to the gorge, but one section called the Swallow Grotto is especially breathtaking, and is a popular spot for tourists. Helmets can be rented at the beginning of the tunnels.
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The beautiful marble canyon can be seen below. If you go river tracing, be careful because sudden rains can cause very strong currents.
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Most people who walk along this path wear helmets for fear of falling rocks. Sadly a number of tourists have died from falling rocks over the years.
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View of the steep marble cliffs from inside the tunnels.
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Yes, they allow tour buses up this road, and it can get pretty crazy!
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A tour bus magically travels through a tunnel smaller than itself.
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It’s mind-boggling how these buses get up this road. Be prepared to drive slowly and get out of their way.

Lanting Pavilion 蘭亭

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Past the nine-turn tunnel, you will come to the Lanting pavilion next to Cimu Bridge (慈母橋). Here are some great views of the Marble Canyon and Liwu River.
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The Liwu River cuts through some very fine white marble.
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A small stream above full of marble boulders.
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Construction on this road is ongoing, and rockfalls are commonplace. It is also common for the park to close during heavy rain or Typhoons. However, in the past few years more bridges and tunnels have been built to alleviate rockfall danger.

Zhuilu (Jhuilu) Old Trail 錐麓古道

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Pictured above is the entry for Zhuilu Trail. As explained above, the Tupido Tribe built the original Trail in the 17-1800s which was only 30 cm wide, and resided there until they were massacred by the Japanese in 1914. In 1917, the Japanese expanded the original trail made by the Tupido Tribe to 1.5 M and forced aboriginal tribesmen to carry goods along the trail to the east coast. This is now the Zhuilu Old Trail.

Currently, the trail is closed to the public due to a recent earthquake.

This trail is only open from 7am to 10pm. There are also venomous snakes and insects along the way. You can apply for a permit for the trail hereFees for entry are 200 NT for adults and 100 NT for children.

You can book a tour of Zhuilu Old Trail on Klook here or KKday here

For our full blog on Zhuilu Old Trail, click here.

Eternal Spring (Changchun) Shrine Trail 長春祠步道

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The Eternal Spring Shrine is a Buddhist shrine built on the eternal spring shooting out of the mountain near the entrance of the park. The shrine was originally built to reverence those that died building the cross-island highway. There is a trail tunneled through the mountain to the shrine and an additional trail up the the bell tower. As of 2018, the trail to the bell tower was closed off.
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A view of the bell tower above.
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A Buddhist shrine in the tunnel along the path to the spring.
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“Bridges and Roads in the Gorge”
“The Liwu River has formed a narrow gorge mouth here. Before it flows into the ocean, this is crossed by the Central Cross-Island Highway Changchun Bridge. In the Japanese era, there was a steel cable suspension bridge, Xianhuan Bridge, below where Changchun Bridge now stands. The bridge was part of the “aborigine pacification road” built by the Japanese in 1915.
The “Aborigine Pacification Road” also brought the beauty of the Taroko Gorge scenery to the attention of the world. To give access to tourists, in 1935, with the “Aborigine Pacification Road” as the base, the road was improved and became “Cross Hehuan Mountain Road” with leisure faculties and hotels built along the way. The terrace at the western end of Xianhuan Bridge was the site of the “Taroko Tea House” where weary travelers could rest and drink tea.
To allow the alluvial gold in the river to be exploited and to use the Liwu River to generate hydroelectricity, the road from Taroko to Sipan was later made into a four-meter-wide road for vehicles.
10 years after the Japanese were defeated and left Taiwan. In 1956 the government began to build the Central Cross-Island Highway for national defense and economic reasons. Pacification of the aborigines, tourism, gold extraction, power generation, economic development in different eras, different people have built different roads in the gorge for different reasons.”
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The Eternal Spring runs through a pavilion at the main shrine, and a perfect spot for a photo!
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View from the shrine towards the parking lot.
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The trail up to the bell tower, is now un-kept and closed down.
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​Luckily we had already visited the tower in 2014. Here is a view from the top.
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View to the east looking at Changchun Bridge down below. The first photo in this blog is clearer.
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Changguang Temple down below.
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If you can make it to the bell tower, feel free to ring the bell!

Tianxiang 天祥

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Further up the road is another photogenic scenic area called Tianxiang. The sign says:
“This spot is a river terrace beside Dasha Creek, and also where the river once flowed. You are now standing on an ancient river bed!
Tianxiang has four sections of river terraces, this is the lowest, offering views of Xiangde Temple in the distance; if you turn around and look in the direction of the car park, you can easily see flat river terraces on the edge of the mountain; the lower and the closer to the river terrace is, the younger it is. The higher up and further away, the earlier the terrace was formed. Fuyuan, Xiangde Temple, Tianxiang parking lot, Wen Tianxiang Park, and the old site of a tribal village higher up are all river terraces formed at different times. The Tacjili River and Dasha River were mainly responsible for creating the multi-level river terraces at Tianxiang. With the rivers continually cutting down and the Earth’s surface continuing to rise up, plus the accumulation of river sand, over a long period of time the multi-level river terraces were formed. Looking down onto the Dashsha River bed you might see that the sand has already accumulated and formed small river terraces on both sides of the river.”
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A visitors center including 7-11 at Tianxiang.
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Pudu Bridge (普渡橋) and Tianfeng Pagoda (天峯塔) in the distance.
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“The Xiangde Temple, on the mountain on the other side of the river, can be called a Tianxiang landmark. The temple pagoda is built on the river terrace on the opposite bank of the Tacijili River. Clouds often float across the mountain summit, creating an old-world air.
The temple was built because of the construction of the Central Cross-Island Highway. The chairman of the Veterans Affairs Commission at the time, Mr. Chiang Ching-kuo, advocated the building of a temple here and it came into being as a result of the efforts of then director of the provincial highway bureau Lin Ze-bin and influential Hualien locals. The main hall was completed in 1968 with the Tianfeng Pagoda, White-robed- Guanyin statue, and Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva statue and added later.
In Tianxiang, the Xiangde Temple is a place of tranquility amidst the hustle and bustle. Walk up the steps after crossing Pudu bridge, climb up Tianfeng Pagoda, and look out over the multi-level river terrace of Tianxiang, the river, and the mountains beyond.”

This time we did not go all the way to Xiangde temple, but we would highly recommend it.

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Converging the Tacjili River and Dasha River, one looking like black soymilk and the other like milk tea. The Silks Palace Taroko Hotel is in the distance.
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“Confluence”
“Look down and you will see two rivers meeting below. The one further away is the Tacijili River, and the one just below is the Dasha River; they meet and become the Liwu River. The river flows east from here, and after cutting through the thick marble strata over tens of thousands of years, has formed Taroko Gorge. The mainstream of the Liwu River, the Tacijili River, flows down from Qilai Mountain and Hehuan Mountain, while the biggest tributary, the Dasha River, flows down from Nanhu Mountain. From its 3,440 meters source on the northwest of Qilai North Pea, the mainstream rushes east 58 km to the sea, falling such a height in a relatively short distance it isn’t hard to imagine just how fast the water flows. 
Two-thirds of Taroko National Park is in the Liwu River catchment area. The river is alive, it has cut through mountains to form gorges, made river terraces, watered the forest, and nurtures a myriad of creatures and humans; the forest also conserves water. The Liwu River is the river of life in Taroko.”
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Pudu Bridge. For our full blog on Tianxiang, click here.

Baiyang Falls 白楊瀑布

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Baiyang Falls is a beautiful set of waterfalls in Taroko National Park. The trail is only 2 KM long and is flat and paved with no steps. It is an easy and relaxing way to enjoy some of the best scenery in the park. ​For our full blog on Baiyang Waterfall, click here.
 

Shanyue Suspension Bridge 山月吊橋

Shanyue Suspension Bridge (aka Buluowan Suspension Bridge) in Taroko National Park was completed in May 2022 and is 153 meters tall, making it the highest pedestrian suspension bridge in Taiwan and in East Asia.

Tunnel of Nine Turns 九曲洞 

The tunnel of nine turns is one of the most breathtaking parts of the Gorge. Here you can find a trail along an old section of the cross-island highway with amazing views of the gorge right next to you.

Shakadang Trail (砂卡噹步道)

The Shakadang Trail is also an amazing and beautiful stretch inside the Gorge, with awe-inspiring views of clear water and mountain scenery. It is also a flat, east hike.

Things we missed in Taroko Gorge

Chinheng Kungyuan, Park (靳珩公園)
Lioufang Chiao Bridge (流芳橋)
Hill of Tayuling the Great (大禹嶺)
Puloh Wan (布洛灣)
Changuang Temple (禪光寺)​
Surfing
Paragliding
SUP / Paddle Boarding
Kayaking
Canoeing
River Tracing
River Rafting
Whale Watching
Snorkeling 
Diving
ATV / 4-wheeling
Paintballing
Farm Dream Estates Zoo
Water Biking
Oyster Harvesting
Shrimp Harvesting
Indigenous Experience
Glamping
Cycling
Ziplining
And much much more for you to explore. 
You can find more tours and activities in Hualien on Klook here or KKday here

Please like, follow and share! We will be share more of our adventures on the East Coast of Taiwan soon!
Currently Taroko Gorge is closed. But you can check out a list of other things you can do and see in Hualien besides Taroko Gorge here. 


You can also check out our full guide to Hualien here, our full guide to Taroko Gorge here, and our full guide to Taroko National Park here.
You can also check out our full travel guide to Taiwan here. ​

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