Kaohsiung
“Kaohsiung? More like how...fun?”
Posted by: Josh, 16 January 2026
Sorry.
But Kaohsiung really is great fun. If you only have a week in Taiwan, it’s well worth thinking about whether Kaohsiung might be a better base for you than Taipei. Here’s why.
Contents
What to do in Kaohsiung
See some monkeys
Shoushan, or Monkey Mountain, is said to be one of the best places to see macaques in Taiwan. Certainly, there’s no shortage of monkeys… but too much interaction by humans (some of whom we still saw feeding the animals) has caused conflict between visitors and the macaques who call the mountain home.
It is an undeniably beautiful area though. The main boardwalks and paths are very easy to walk – mildly strenuous in the heat but mostly shaded and very well signposted. Get off the boardwalks and you can do a more challenging hike, where you’ll go through thicker forest and likely need to make a little bit of use of the ropes dotted along the trail to get up the steeper slopes.
There’s an abundance of wildlife here: interesting birds, red-bellied squirrels, and countless butterfly species were our highlights. Even the one curious macaque who climbed up Liz’s leg while her back was turned couldn’t spoil our day. If this happens to you, do as Liz did – stay calm, let it see you’ve nothing it wants, and allow it to move on with its monkey day.
See some things that aren’t monkeys
Kaohsiung Harbour Area is a cool place to stroll around, with its mix of old wharf buildings housing independent shops sitting close to modern buildings, including the Khaosiung Music Centre – with its blessedly cold air conditioning and a couple of spots to eat and drink. Immaculately clean public toilets are on the second floor.
Just across from the harbour area is Cijin beach. A short but uphill walk to the lighthouse will reward you with nice coastal views, and an overlook of the city itself. Ferries are regular and only take 10 minutes. You can’t swim here – it’s just a place to relax and perhaps enjoy a drink at one of the bars nearby.
Zuoying Lotus Pond is a beautiful and serene site on the outskirts of the city, and I’m sure would be even more lovely when the lotus flowers are in bloom. Explore the pagodas and shrines around the lake or simply take a leisurely stroll around its edge if you’re in need of a calm way to spend a day. More advice on how to enjoy the Lotus Pond is in the ‘Useful tips’ below, if you’re on a time budget.
If you can’t make it to Green Island, or even Orchid Island, then there are some dive centres and snorkelling opportunities around Kaohsiung. Having visited Green Island earlier in the trip and knowing that the waters don’t have quite the same reputation here, we didn’t take this opportunity up on our trip.
Fo Guang Shan Buddha Museum
If you’re in the mood for a day trip, then Fo Guang Shan Buddha Museum is probably the place for you.
This vast and modern temple site was a highlight of our visit, despite the main shrine being closed for renovations during our visit in November 2025.
Should you wish to, you can join a prayer service – though, be warned, it won’t be for every non-Mandarin speaker as the service lasts at least 30 minutes and none of it is in English. You can learn a huge amount about Buddhism here: its teachings, stories, history, and modern-day rejection of the trappings of wealth and capitalism – all of which you can ponder over coffee at the large Starbucks that greets you in the Front Hall of the complex.
Discordant large Starbucks/no-ethical-consumption thoughts aside, we loved our visit. Where it really shone was after most people had gone home and the sun began to set; slightly lost looking for a place to admire the views, we were guided to a quiet spot at the top of the temple complex by one of the monks. Watching the Sun go down over the river and bridge heading towards the township of Jiuru was a special experience, as was the golden sheen the temples and pagodas took on in the last of the light.
Getting there is simple enough: direct buses are available from Zuoying HSR station and a few other spots around Kaohsiung throughout the day, and the last direct buses back are at around 6.30pm.
Island hopping
This really depends on the season you travel. In peak season, get a ferry to the Penghu Islands, which many a seasoned Taiwan traveller will tell you has the best beaches in the country.
Outside of peak season (which runs from April to September), you’ll probably find it’s not worth trying to visit either the Penghu Islands or Orchid Island. We visited in November, when the winds are too strong to make a trip to either location worthwhile - if any ferries are even able to make the journey. If you’re visiting in summer and do fancy a bit of tropical island time, we’ve provided some links to guides with more information on these places.
If you’re feeling up for a journey that takes a day, rather than just a simple day trip, you could even take a long ferry up to Okinawa and explore the Southern end of Japan. Ferries take 16 to 19 hours. It's worth considering for Western tourists visiting Taiwan as part of a larger wander around East Asia, or if you just fancy one very different layover before flying home. Check the main page for Liz's notes on her Okinawa travels, coming soonish.
What we didn't do
And where to read about it
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Nick Kembel picked a sensible time of year to visit the Penghu Islands. This is his guide.
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Read more about Orchid Island on Taiwan Tourism's website, including a little information on the local Yami (Tao) cukture.
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Some guides to Taiwan recommend the Dragon and Tiger pagodas at Zuoying Lotus Pond as worthy of a day out in their own right. Check out the pictures on Girl on a Zebra if you want to see a bit more of them before travelling.
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Travelling in November, we had hoped to be able to pay a visit to Maolin National Scenic Area to take in the Purple Crow Butterfly Migration – when 1 million butterflies descend on the area. Sadly, if you’re only able to use public transport, it’s likely to prove too challenging to get there. If you can drive or take a scooter and you have the chance to visit, we’d love to see your pictures and hear whether it's worth the visit.
Where to eat and drink
Read our tips on food and drink in Taiwan on our What to Know Before you Go post
Coffees and cakes
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Canelé specialty store (search 陪伴甜點 • 咖啡｜可麗露專賣 in Google Maps) would be good for anyone who prefers a more fruity flavour to their coffee. The dessert offerings are a little more creative than the typical (but usually delicious) fare in most cafes we visited; we opted for a gently tea-flavoured cheesecake and a light honeycomb sponge cake, plus two caramel macchiatos, setting us back 630 ND. The café is set over two floors, with a bright and airy décor.
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Liegois in the Harbour area is a convenient place to stop for a waffle, ice cream, or just a refreshing drink of iced fruit tea. The outdoor seating area is full of misting sprays, which was a blessing even as late as November when we visited – with temperatures still over 30 degrees Celsius.
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Home Coffee, connected to a church, served us one of the top handful of coffees we had in Taiwan. Lizzie’s hazelnut latte, I’m assured, tasted of hazelnuts rather than vaguely nutty syrup, while my caramel macchiato sated my sweet tooth for a moment. Their Basque cheesecake and friendly service made this place a real hit, even before we were presented with some amber candy – a slightly floral sugar sweet – on the house.
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Shoreline Roastery was the last spot we visited in Kaohsiung. Situated on the shore of the lake close to Zuoying station, it serves good coffee with even better views out towards the pagodas on the other side of the lake.
Lunch and dinner options
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Visiting Fo Guang Shan Buddhist Museum? The restaurant in the Front Hall serves a fantastic vegetarian lunch, so you can comfortably spend your full day here before heading back to Kaohsiung.
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Princess Miaoshan Vegetarian Heart-Nourishing Hot Pot (妙善公主素食養心鍋 in Google) was an excellent find for vegetarian food, around 15 minutes from the Kaohsiung Music Centre end of the harbour area. Despite the name, you don’t have to have hotpot; we took the owner’s recommendation of a set menu and enjoyed five small plates including a sweet and sour tofu, a spicy beansprout salad, and perfectly cooked and seasoned pak choi.
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For those not on a budget, you have a choice of four Michelin starred restaurants to choose from here. Let me know in the comments how they were, if you’re lucky enough to visit any.
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For those very much on a budget, there are a good number of night markets in Kaohsiung. By this point in the trip we’d largely had our fill of grilled corn and scallion pancakes, but we got a decent budget meal at the only vegetarian stand we could find at Liuhe Night Market – warm sesame noodles and various flavours and textures of tofu set us back a mere 210NT$ (just under £5). Try the emerald roll if, like me, you’re a vegetarian who still longs for savoury, meaty flavours.
Does it Ding Go?
No. Though Kaohsiung is beautiful, it is a flawed beauty, pockmarked as it is by the absence of the beloved bubble tea chain known as Ding Go.
Getting there
Read more about public transport in Taiwan on our What to Know Before you Go post
Kaohsiung is a major city, with an airport serving international routes.
Fast express train routes or slower local trains will get you to Kaohsiung from most other major cities.
For those on a tour of Taiwan starting in the North and venturing down the East coast, like us, the 9189 bus from Kenting takes between 2hrs 15 minutes and 2hrs 45 minutes depending on which stop you hop on at and the time of day you travel.
Mikan
If you visit Khaosiung and are passing through Ciaotou Sugar Refinery metro station, you might be lucky enough to meet Mikan the cat!
Mikan is a famed station master and influencer, seen here in conversation with Taiwan's then-President in 2021 - and his face is **everywhere** on Kaohsiung's public transport. There's a Mikan shop in Kaohsiung Metro station if you're in need of a souvenir to remember his little orange face by.
Useful tips
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Uber is available in this part of Taiwan, so there’s no need for a Taiwanese phone number if you need a taxi.
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We try to avoid telling you what you should do on your trip… but if you’re on a tight schedule and don’t have time to walk around Zuoying Lotus Pond, you can still make a quick detour there to get a bite to eat and a drink while soaking in the views from Shoreline Roastery (mentioned earlier). When you arrive at Zuoying High Speed Rail station, drop your suitcase in one of the lockers, then – depending on how the bus times work out for you – either take a bus from outside the station or jump in an Uber, costing around 150NT$ (just over £3.50), to the lake. Repeat the trick on the way back.
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That reminds me – don’t panic if you need to leave a suitcase in a locker and you see that none are available on the Zuoying HSR’s live station information. It’s certainly possible, if not guaranteed, that you’ll arrive and find that more lockers are available than stated on the website.
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Again, follow the advice on how to behave around animals at Monkey Mountain. Don’t feed the animals, don’t draw attention to any food and drink inside your backpack, and don’t panic if a monkey does try to climb on you – stay calm and it’ll lose interest.
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Some guides claim stray dogs are an issue on the trails at Monkey Mountain. In our experience, stray dogs are almost never an issue if you calmly walk away (half-domesticated ‘guard dogs’ we’ve encountered in rural areas in other countries… well, that’s a different issue). There have been no documented cases of rabies in dogs in Taiwan since the early 1960s.
Final thoughts on Kaohsiung
Liz's final thoughts
I’m not usually much of a city girl, but I really enjoyed Khaosiung. It feels green and spacious, and I loved the easy access to hiking and the beach. It was much less rainy than Taipei, more relaxed than Taipei, and seemed to have an equally high amount of things to do when compared to Taipei. Plus, it’s a great jumping off point for exploring the south coast or the mountainous heart of Taiwan.
Josh's final thoughts
If I were to only spend one week in Taiwan, I'd consider flying to Kaohsiung and perhaps visiting one or two more places from here for my holiday - though it's worth checking out all our other guides to see which city or region suits your tastes best.
If you think you're like me and Kaohsiung sounds like the best starting point for you, those extra two or three days could be spent in the Penghu Islands, Kending, or further north in Taichung.
I'm the kind of person - you probably know one or two of them - who needs paid work to be able to afford the goods and services that allow me to live. This sucks, and it put the brakes on my plans to join Liz on her Okinawa travels. When I get chance to put that right, I'll be sure to take the long ferry journey down to Kaohsiung before heading home again.
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