Taiwan with Kids

Arrive in Taipei, the capital city of Taiwan, and meet your private guide at the airport. Check in to your hotel and freshen up. Begin your family’s exploration of Taiwan by beginning with Maokong, a quaint village located at the top of a mountain, well known for its high-quality tea. Visit a local tea garden to learn about tea cultivation and enjoy a tasting of locally grown teas. After a long flight, unwind at one of the many teahouses with a cup of hot tea while taking in the mountain air and breathtaking views of Taipei city. Stretch your legs and let the kids expend energy as you stroll the little lanes lined with shops and walking trails, old routes used by farmers to take their tea and rice harvests to town for sale. Hop aboard a gondola to descend the mountain and enjoy a leisurely ride over rolling green hills with sweeping views of the city. The daring can opt to take one of the crystal gondolas with glass floors. Return to the hotel and relax for the evening. For an optional dinner activity, you may visit an indoor shrimp fishing restaurant, where you can catch and cook your own food.

Start the morning with a hands-on cooking class where you will learn to make traditional Taiwanese pineapple cakes and prepare your own bubble tea. Kids will enjoy making these popular local treats and tasting their creations. Head to the very top of Taipei 101, the landmark skyscraper, for soaring views over the city. See the world’s largest damper sphere weighing 660 tonnes, a lesson to the kids about how tall buildings deal with strong gusts. For lunch, head downstairs to Din Tai Fung and try the kid-friendly, famed soup dumplings so good it was awarded a Michelin star. Stop at Longshan Temple, originally built in 1738 by Fujian settlers, for a glimpse of religion and history. Stroll Ximending, a vibrant pedestrian entertainment area likened to Tokyo’s Harajuku. Popular with the city’s youth, the streets are packed with shopping, restaurants, street performances all brightly lit with fluorescent lights and signs. In the evening, visit Ningxia Night Market to enjoy one of Taiwan’s favorite local activities, sampling a variety of traditional street foods. Parents and older kids can try adventurous eats such as oyster noodles, pork feet noodles, and the infamous stinky tofu, while young ones will be happy with treats like shaved ice with pudding and BBQ pork buns.

Today, leave the city for a day trip to nearby sites in northern Taiwan. Begin with a stop at Yehliu Geopark, located on a cape along the northern coast, where you'll discover a landscape of unusual rock formations shaped by centuries of wind and sea erosion. Have fun identifying the shapes for which the rocks are named, such as the Queen’s Head and Fairy’s Shoe. Next, head to the scenic town of Jiufen, a maze of narrow lanes and alleyways rich with history and culture. Once a prosperous gold-mining town, Jiufen is now a bustling destination filled with traditional teahouses, retro-style cafés, souvenir shops, and local snacks. Continue to Shifen, beginning with a visit to Shifen Waterfall before exploring the nearby Old Street, a former coal-mining settlement built along an active railway line. Stroll past shops and eateries lining the tracks and watch for trains passing through the village. Kids will especially enjoy the local tradition of writing wishes on a sky lantern and releasing it into the sky along the railway tracks.

Depart Taipei this morning to Taichung, a short 40-minute journey away by high-speed train. Upon arrival, visit the quirky and colorful Rainbow Village, a veteran village saved from demolition by a resident who taught himself to paint and covered the entire village in his whimsical paintings which drew widespread attention. At Miyahara, snack on refreshing ice cream while exploring the restored ophthalmic hospital founded during the Japanese occupation. The whole family will enjoy a visit to the National Museum of Natural Science which houses a massive Palaeoloxodon elephant skeleton, a preserved Giant Squid, a tropical rainforest greenhouse with live huge Arapaimas and Giant Piranhas, an IMAX Space Theatre, and much more.

Start the morning with a visit to Guangxing Paper Mill, a traditional papermaking facility established in 1965. Watch skilled artisans demonstrate the traditional papermaking process, from preparing the pulp to forming and drying sheets of paper. Learn about this centuries-old craft before trying your hand at making your own paper through an interactive workshop. Continue with a scenic drive to Sun Moon Lake, a beautiful, picturesque mountain lake in the center of Taiwan. Take a scenic cruise across the lake, enjoying views of the surrounding mountains and lakeside scenery. The lake derives its name from its shape; whereas the east of the lake is rounded like a sun, the west resembles a long, crescent moon, separated in the middle by a tiny island called Lalu. Make your way to Shuanglong Waterfall, passing terraced fields and plum trees before crossing the Shuiyuan Suspension Bridge. Hinged on a steep cliff, the waterfall’s upper and lower fall look like two dragons in the sky, hence the name.

Begin the day exploring the cultural heritage of Sun Moon Lake, home to the indigenous Thao people. The area is known for its local handicrafts, Aboriginal cuisine, and Assam tea, introduced to Taiwan during the Japanese colonial period. Start with a visit to Hugosum Tea Farm to learn about the cultivation and production of Sun Moon Lake's renowned black tea, followed by a tasting of locally produced varieties. Continue to Formosan Aboriginal Culture Village, an outdoor entertainment and educational area with aboriginal dance shows, 3-D theatre, artistic fountain, cultural square, and joy rides. Enjoy fantastic views of the lake from above while riding the ropeway. Afterwards, visit Ita Thao, a village of the Thao people where you will find an abundance of street food, souvenir shops and restaurants.

Today travel back to Taichung and catch the high-speed train down to coastal Kaohsiung, the second largest city in the nation. Begin with a visit to Fo Guang Shan Buddha Museum, one of Taiwan's most prominent Buddhist centers, known for its impressive architecture, Buddhist statues, and expansive grounds. Continue to Lotus Lake, a famous scenic area noted for its numerous temples, rich with Buddhist and Confucian culture and religious sculptures. Kids will particularly like the Dragon and Tiger Pagodas where entrance is through a large dragon’s mouth and exit out through the tiger’s mouth, said to turn bad luck into good fortune. In the evening, enjoy a boat ride along the Love River, passing beneath colorful bridges and admiring the illuminated cityscape and lively riverbanks.

Begin the day with an introduction to Taiwan's Hakka culture at Meinong Folk Village. Stop at a local establishment where kids will enjoy pounding Hakka tea while dressed in traditional costume. Next door, learn about the history and art of handmade oil-paper umbrellas, a traditional Hakka craft. See how the parasols are made, then paint your own design on a paper umbrella to take home. For a stunning light show, head to Formosa Boulevard MRT Station to behold one of the world's largest public glass art installations, called the Dome of Light. Designed by Italian artist Narcissus Quagliata, the impressive stained-glass ceiling is made of 4,500 panels and is sure to mesmerize viewers of all ages. Head out to a local fruit farm to learn about the cultivation of seasonal fruits and sample fresh local produce. Take the last opportunity to eat local snacks and spend the evening at Liuhe Night Market.

After breakfast, head to the train station and take a high-speed train to Taoyuan, where you will transfer to Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport to connect to your flight home.