Out in the foothills of former Kaohsiung County are tropical badlands, hills of easily eroding material that make the landscape look so unique that you must think that it’s on the moon. In the summer of 2014 the Foreigners in Taiwan team took a journey to this park in Tianliao which showcases these hills with trails and beautiful scenic views, and 4 years later here is the blog. It’s definitely a strange landscape, especially for Taiwan, and is worth a visit especially if you want to get some unique photos. You can also see some nearby mud hot springs.
🏖️ Planning your trip to Kaohsiung? 🐒
Here are some top travel tips for you:
- Best time to visit: Winter when temperatures are cooler and there is less rain
- How to get there: Taiwan High Speed Railway and Inter-City Bus
- Best places to stay: Mingli Hotel or IHI Sandup Hotel which are great value choices located downtown.
- Book tours and activities in Kaohsiung on Klook
- Stay connected with a local SIM
- Rent a car to explore distant sights
Historical Background:
Moon World is part of a stretch of badlands that cover a large swath of southern Taiwan near the central mountain range. Typical badlands are found in dryer climates, are composed of sedimentary rocks, typically have very little vegetation, and have deep valleys or ravines. The badlands in Taiwan are unique in that they are in a tropical rain forest. How is this possible?
The rocks at Moon World are composed of mudstone, sandstone, shale, and chalk. Because of high alkaline levels due to chalk in the soil, trees and grass cannot grow, and basically the only plant that can grow in the soil is spiny bamboo. The lack of vegetation as well as high rainfall gives way to quick eroding hills, or badlands. The Caoshan River and the Ganglin Rovers also helped to carve out the landscape and bare hills.
Because of the white greyish color, the hills seem to glow when in moonlight,hence the name “Moon World.” However to the casual observer, the landscape looks like the surface of the moon as well.
Price:
Free
Hours:
24/7
Where to stay:
We have stayed at and recommend Chao She Hotel (you can book on Agoda here or Booking.com here) IHI Sanduo Travel Hotel (you can book on Agoda here or Booking.com here), and Mingli Hotel (you can book on Agoda here or Klook here) which are three inexpensive and high-quality choices in downtown Kaohsiung.
I also have stayed at and recommend Kaohsiung Meinong Rabbit Paul Homestay B&B (you can book on Agoda here, Booking.com here, or Trip.com here), a quiet B&B in rural Meinong, Chengching Lakeside Resort (you can book on Agoda here, Booking.com or Trip.com here), and the Grand Hotel Kaohsiung (you can book on Agoda here or Booking.com here) which both offer breakfast buffet and free entrance into Chenqing Lake Park. I have also stayed at the 85 Sky Tower which offers great views of the city; you can search for rooms in the 85 Sky Tower on Agoda here, or Booking.com here).
Find out more about where to stay in our Taiwan hotels guide or search for the best hotel deals in Taiwan here. We recommend booking through Agoda here, which provides the best quality selection of accommodation on the island.
Tours:
You can find more tours and activities in Kaohsiung such as Pier 2, Meinong Hakka Museum, Hamasen Railway Museum, Suzuka Circuit Park, i-Ride Kaohsiung Visual 5D Flying Theater, National Science and Technology Museum , Senya Village Restaruant, Austin Land, Ski School Indoor Ski Slope, and many more on Klook here or KKday here.
How to Get There:
By Bus: You can either take the Kaohsiung City bus Red 70B from the Gangshan MRT station, or Kbus 8042 from Tainan HSR station.
You can book tickets to travel to Kaohsiung via inter-city bus on Klook here.
You can book tickets to Kaohsiung via high speed rail (HSR) on Klook here or KKDay here.
Book tickets via the normal train (TRA) on Klook here.
You can also book a Kaohsiung Travel pass here.
By Car/Scooter:
Take the Tianliao Exit on National Highway 3 and take provincial highway 28 to Tianliao.
Looking for scooter rental in Kaohsiung? You can check out Klook here or KKday here to search for options. You can check also out our scooter rental guide here.
If you are looking for car rentals, you can search KKday here or Klook here. You can also check out our car rental guide here.
Map:
Please refer to the map below:
Our Journey:
I have been to Tianliao Moon world three times and I can tell you it is the best place to see the badlands in Taiwan. I highly recommend visiting this unique sandy landscape in the middle of a subtropical jungle.
Welcome to Tianliao Moon World, as seen in 360 degree spherical panorama for your viewing pleasure. This is one of the…
Posted by Foreigners in Taiwan 外國人在台灣 on Wednesday, December 2, 2020
It was a weekday, and we were the only three people on the bus that entire three hours.
When we finally got there it had just stopped raining, and we had the entire park to ourselves (despite this, there was still an amah or two waiting to sell us sugar cane juice at the entrance).
We made our way first to the main trail with the best view.
Just so you know, after we were done with our hike of Moon World we looked around for something to eat. First of all, there is nothing to eat except chicken quick fry. On a weekday, all the chicken quick fry restaurants are totally empty. We waited around for like an hour for the cook to wake up from his nap and make us some overpriced fried noodles and fried rice. So be prepared to have limited food options if you decide to come for the whole day on a weekday.
After visiting the Moon World in 2020, it was clear that the moon world had changed quite a bit. For one, they built a brand new visitor’s center next to the parking lot (with bathrooms), as seen in the slideshow below:
Please feel free to like, comment, and share, to help more people learn about this beautiful natural wonder!
You can find more tours and activities in Kaohsiung such as wake boarding, water skiing, SUP paddle boarding, Pier 2, i-Ride Kaohsiung Visual 5D Flying Theater, Ski School Indoor Ski Slope, and more on Klook here or KKday here.
You can check out our full travel guide to Kaohsiung here.
You can also check out our full travel guide to Taiwan here.
