Located right next to the beach is Kenting Street, a great night market for snacking and tourist oriented shopping. It is the main street in Kenting, and at night both sides come alive to become a tourist night market in Taiwan. It may be the most pure tourist night market in Taiwan, with most visitors coming from out of town to enjoy Kenting's warm weather and beautiful beaches.

Background:
Kenting was first settled by Chinese during theQing Dynasty. The word Kenting comes from twp words that mean cultivate (ken3 墾) and strong man (丁 ding1). During that time, a group of strong men (or Zhuang Ding 壯丁) came from Guangdong, who were basically Chinese pionners of the area to cultivate the land, hence the area was named Kenting for them.
The area was considered to be made into a park during the Japanese occupation due to it being the only tropical location in the Japanese Empire, but was never officially created.
During the Japanese era Nanwan was used as a whaling area and there were a few fishing villages here. 
Kenting National Park was established in 1984 as the first national park in Taiwan after WWII.
Kenting became a major vacation spot, becoming a center for hostels and hotels for travelers. 
Kenting is considered by many to have the best beaches in Taiwan. This is because of its fine white sand and year-round warm temperatures and sunshine (it is in the tropical part of Taiwan after all). 
Popular treats at Kenting Street Night Market include seafood, and there are many international restaurants on the street, as well as swimming gear. Because most customers are tourists from out of town, prices at this night market are a bit higher than other more localized markets in Taiwan. 

Hours:
6:30 PM - Midnight

Price: Free

When to go:
Summer! It's when the water is warmest and the sun is hottest. However there will be more people in summer, and there could be Typhoons. 
Spring and Fall are also good times to go, as there will be less visitors and cooler temperatures.
Winter is an okay time to go as well, it will be warmer than the rest of Taiwan and the water will still be warm enough to swim in. 

How to get there:
By Car/Scooter: Take provincial highway 1 south to the bottom of Taiwan until it becomes provincial highway 26. After that keep going past Hengchun into Kenting National Park. The night market will appear after you reach the Mcdonlads, and there is paid parking nearby. 
By Bus: Busses leave daily to Kenting from Zuoying HSR station, Kaohsiung Station, and Pingtung. Get off at the Kenting Bus stop. 
By Plane: There are direct shuttle busses to Kenting from Kaohsing's Xiaogang (KHH) Airport. 

Map: Please see below:

Dajianshan Waterfall (aka Dajianshan Falls) is a set of waterfalls in Xizhi District of New Taipei City, Taiwan. It is easily accessible via a short, steep hiking path that takes about 15 minutes to walk up, and includes a six main tiers of waterfall and amazing natural scenery. It's spectacular cascading falls and pools have made it a most popular destination in the area. 

Background:
Dajianshan Waterfall is roughly 200 meters high (650 feet) from the lowest falls to the highest falls, and is broken up by six sections of waterfalls. 
The rock formations that form the Waterfalls formed as sediment under the ocean millions of years ago and were then uplifted thanks to the collision of the Eurasian and Philippine plates. The rocks are mainly sedimentary and are part of the same formation that forms the special rock formations on the northern coast around Keelung.
The rocks here easily erode, making for odd shapes in the riverbed. 
Due to the difficult nature of the trail, it is usually free of people, even on weekends. 

Hours:
24/7

Price:
Free

When to go:
Go in the spring time when there is more rain. If you go during the dry season, the waterfall will be quite small. 
​
Difficulty:
Moderate, 200 meter elevation gain. Takes about an hour to complete. 

How to get there:
By Bus: From Xizhi TRA station, take bus F911 to Fuji Mountain Villa stop, then walk through the neighborhood, which will take you to a mountain road on the back side. The waterfall is about a 15 minute walk from Fuji Mountain Villa. 
By Car/Scooter: From provincial highway 5 in Xizhi, turn up the mountain after reaching the Xizhi Administrative Building (汐止行政中心). Then go up the mountain and turn into Xiufeng Road, aka Fuji Mountain Villa. After that, drive through the neighborhood, which will take you to a mountain road on the back side. The waterfall is about a 3 minute ride from Fuji Mountain Villa, on the switchback just before Qiedong Waterfall. 
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Map:
Please see below

Many people lately have been complaining about being cut off while riding a bike or dealing with pedestrians in bike lanes. But what are the laws currently for bicycles in Taipei? One can search, but most crucial info is in Chinese. Below we have provided a summary of our findings as well as an appendix of the full translated Taipei bicycle laws for you.

(The following information was found at the Taipei Police Bureau website; their English materials are limited).
http://td.police.taipei/ct.asp?xitem=1111580&CtNode=31514&mp=108191
 
The relevant articles for bicycles are contained in the Road Traffic Management and Penalty Act from articles 69-131. The Taipei Police Bureau only has English for articles 69-90, so I have painstakingly translated the relevant articles from article 90 to article 131. Because this is really long, I have put some of the most interesting parts first here below with commentary:

Summary of Findings:

When Should Bicycles Yield?

According to article 124, slow moving vehicles (bicycles) have to yield to everything on the road, including people and objects.  Also, they should also stay on the right side of the road.
 
Article 124:
Before driving, the driver should pay attention to whether there are obstacles, vehicles, pedestrians, and should yield to pedestrians and other vehicles.
When driving, drivers should follow the road traffic signs, markings, instructions, and be subject to traffic controller’s commands.
When driving on a road, drivers should follow the marked signs or provisions of the road; if there are no signs or markings, drivers should follow the provisions below:

1. Slow vehicle drivers should stay in the slow lane on the right side of the road; if the road has no slow lane, they should be on the right side of the road. But when the road authorities, urban road authorities or police authorities on the road, where there is a special requirement for a region, route or time, it shall be in accordance with its provisions.

Bicycle Path Rules:
 
According to article 124-1, bicycle paths in cities still give precedent to pedestrians. In other words, you must yield to pedestrians when travelling on bike paths. Sorry.
 
Article 124-1:
The competent authority of the road, the urban road authority or the police authority may, without blocking traffic or compromising safety, make a slow vehicle path on sidewalks and set the necessary signs or markings for slow travel. Slow vehicles should follow these lines on the path, and should give priority to pedestrians.

Pedestrians and Buses:

According to article 126, bikers should yield to pedestrians even when they J-walk. Also, much to my chagrin, bikes are always supposed to yield to buses, even to the point of stopping at an intersection for them.

Article 126:
When pedestrians are crossing the road, with or without traffic controllers,
Drivers should let pedestrians to pass first.
When traveling with buses or other mass transit vehicles, when approaching have turn signal sound or light, slow vehicles shall change lanes in accordance with regulations and give priority to these vehicles. Slow vehicles are prohibited from closely following or approaching, except where otherwise provided by the competent authority of the road.
 
Bicycle Parking:

According to article, 131 bikes can only be parked in designated parking spots with signs or painted lines. They can park in scooter parking. We will see if this changes, as with the onslaught of Obike Mayer Ke promised he would change these regulations. We will keep you updated with any developments.
2021 Update: Obikes and similar bicycle ride share programs are now a non-issue. In 2017 and 2018, Obike went out of business and most of the bikes were recycled or thrown away. If only their bikes didn't disintegrate into a pile of rust when exposed to the elements...
​
Article 131:
Slow moving vehicles cannot be parked unconditionally. Vehicles shall be parked in specified places or within the line markings, and park in an orderly line.
In places where bicycle parking facilities are not provided, bicycles may park in motorcycle parking, but may not park in parking designated for cars or heavy motorcycles.
 

Concluding Remarks:
       The rules for pedestrians and buses are reasonable, but I don't think anyone follows bicycle parking rules, and even less people get a ticket for it. I think that this law is so unenforced that it is laughable. I mean, you can't go up to every grandpa in the park and tell him he parked his bike in the wrong place. With Obike taking over thousands of scooter parking spots in the city (not to mention tons of bikes being thrown in bushes and rivers), the Taipei city government needs to act quickly to improve these regulations.

Please click "Read More" for the full translated version of Taipei bike laws. Otherwise please like and share below!

Tai'an Waterfall is a tall waterfall in Qidu District in Keelung City, Taiwan. It is easily accessible via a flat hiking path that takes about 10 minutes to complete, and includes amazing natural scenery. It's spectacular cascading falls are definitely worth a stop for anyone in Taiwan. 

Background:
Tai'an Waterfall is roughly 20 meters high and 2 meters wide (64 x 13 ft.). It is located on Cayan Mountain in Qidu. 
The rock formations that form the Waterfall formed as sediment under the ocean millions of years ago and were then uplifted thanks to the collision of the Eurasian and Phillipine plates. The rocks are mainly sedimentary and are part of the same formation that forms the special rock formations on the northern coast around Keelung.
The area also has some coal deposits, and there is an abandoned mine on the trail. 
The rocks here easily erode, making for odd shapes in the riverbed. 

Hours:
24/7

Price:
Free

When to go:
Go in the spring time when there is more rain. If you go during the dry season, the waterfall will be quite small. 
​
Difficulty:
​Easy

How to get there:
By Train: Take the TRA to Ruifang Station, and then switch to the Pingxi Railway line. Get off at Shifen Station, then walk along the main road south until you reach the Shifen Waterfall trail. It will be hard to miss; there are signs along the way. 
By Car/Scooter: Take provincial highway 2 east toward Pinglin, then get off the main highway once you reach Shifen. The waterfall is to the left of the main bridge across the valley, and parking is plentiful. Scooter parking is free at the entrance.  
​​​
Map:
Please see below

Chuhuo (Eternal Flame) is an area where natural gas escapes from the earth and is burned as never ending flames in Hengchun Township of Pingtung County. The area lies just outside  Kenting National Park. It is an interesting geological sight, what more reason do you need to visit than an endless fire? You should definitely stop by on your next trip to Kenting. 

Background:
Kenting was first settled by Chinese during the Qing Dynasty. The word Kenting comes from twp words that mean cultivate (ken3 墾) and strong man (ä¸ ding1). During that time, a group of strong men (or Zhuang Ding 壯ä¸) came from Guangdong, who were basically Chinese pionners of the area to cultivate the land, hence the area was named Kenting for them.
The area was considered to be made into a park during the Japanese occupation due to it being the only tropical location in the Japanese Empire, but was never officially created.
Kenting National Park was established in 1984 as the first national park in Taiwan after WWII.
Kenting became a major vacation spot, becoming a center for hostels and hotels for travelers. 

The fire at Chuohuo has been witnessed since before Han settlement in the area, by Paiwan indigenous people. The fire has moved slightly over the years, and sometimes the flames are brighter or dimmer. Chuhuo Natural gas is a product of the Kenting Shale formation in the area, which seeps up from cracks in the shale. Cooking or otherwise utilizing the natural gas to burn things is prohibited. 

Hours:
9 AM to 8 PM

Price: 
Free

When to go:
Summer! It's when the water is warmest and the sun is hottest. However there will be more people in summer, and there could be Typhoons. 
Spring and Fall are also good times to go, as there will be less visitors and cooler temperatures.
Winter is an okay time to go as well, it will be warmer than the rest of Taiwan and the water will still be warm enough to swim in. 

How to get there:
By Car/Scooter: Take provincial highway 1 south to the bottom of Taiwan until it becomes provincial highway 26. After that keep going past Hengchun into Kenting National Park and take Sheding Road to the Kenting National Forest Recreation Area parking lot.
By Bus: Busses leave daily to Kenting from Zuoying HSR station, Kaohsiung Station, and Pingtung.
By Plane: There are direct shuttle busses to Kenting from Kaohsing's Xiaogang (KHH) Airport. 

Map: Please see below:

Xiufeng Waterfall is a tall waterfall in Xizhi District in New Taipei, Taiwan. It is easily accessible via a flat hiking path that takes about 10 minutes to complete, and includes amazing views of Taipei along the way. It's spectacular cascading falls are definitely worth a stop for anyone in Taiwan. 

Background:
Xiufeng Waterfall is roughly 10 meters high and 2 meters wide (32 x 13 ft.). It is located on Dajianshan in Xizhi, and connects with other Dajianshan trails in the area. 
 The rocks here easily erode, making for odd shapes in the riverbed. 

Hours:
24/7

Price:
Free

When to go:
Go in the spring time when there is more rain. If you go during the dry season, the waterfall will be quite small. 
​
Difficulty:
​Easy

How to get there:
By Train: Take the TRA to Ruifang Station, and then switch to the Pingxi Railway line. Get off at Shifen Station, then walk along the main road south until you reach the Shifen Waterfall trail. It will be hard to miss; there are signs along the way. 
By Car/Scooter: Take provincial highway 2 east toward Pinglin, then get off the main highway once you reach Shifen. The waterfall is to the left of the main bridge across the valley, and parking is plentiful. Scooter parking is free at the entrance.  
​​
Map:
Please see below

The Swiss Mountain Village Castle was abandoned for over 20 years. Originally a meeting retreat for the Tai ji Men, a Taiwan religious group, it then came under possession of the government while its owner underwent tax investigation. In 2020, the charges on the man were dropped and the property was returned, but by that time it had been sitting in ruins for decades. I am not sure if the building will be renovated or torn down in the future. 

Background:
Taiji men was formed in 1966 and is a religion, but considers itself a school for physical and spiritual well being especially through the use of Tai Chi. For more info about the religion see here. 
The Swiss Mountain Village was one like any other in the area, a place where somewhat wealthy people in the Taipei area would build villas and retreats. Swiss Mountain Village in Xizhi is not the most ideal place to live now. Residents there have to deal with not having piped water from the city, for one. At the beginning, the neighborhood built a community center which is the castle we know now. Mr. Hong built the community center in 1996 to use as a meeting place for his religions events. 
What got Mr. Hong in trouble was a tax investigation to profits earned from some of his Tai Chi schools in Taipei. Originally the tax office thought that his schools should be taxed the same way as a cram school, but Hong contended that it was a non profit religious organization and should not be taxed. After over 20 years and 18 court battles Mr. Hong finally won the fight against the tax office, and the assets frozen during the legal fight were finally returned to him in 2020.
For more about the background on this castle, see here. 

Since the property is now in private hands, I do not recommend visiting so I will not share the map location. The building may be renovated, but will more likely be torn down due to maintenance costs. During the 20 years or so that the land was frozen by the government, Mr. Hong did not pay taxes or management fees, which he still owes. 

Nanwan Beach in Kenting (aka South Bay) is the premier beach destination on the Taiwan mainland, and attracts more visitors than any other beach on the island. It features beautiful white sand and long, flat beaches, as well as clear water that is relatively warm year round. In addition, the beach has sunshine for most of the year. Popular activities include jet skiing, water skiing, surfing, swimming, and sunbathing. Located right next to the beach is Kenting Street, a great night market for snacking and tourist oriented shopping.

Background:
Kenting was first settled by Chinese during theQing Dynasty. The word Kenting comes from twp words that mean cultivate (ken3 墾) and strong man (丁 ding1). During that time, a group of strong men (or Zhuang Ding 壯丁) came from Guangdong, who were basically Chinese pionners of the area to cultivate the land, hence the area was named Kenting for them.
The area was considered to be made into a park during the Japanese occupation due to it being the only tropical location in the Japanese Empire, but was never officially created.
During the Japanese era Nanwan was used as a whaling area and there were a few fishing villages here. 
Kenting National Park was established in 1984 as the first national park in Taiwan after WWII.
Kenting became a major vacation spot, becoming a center for hostels and hotels for travelers. 
Kenting is considered by many to have the best beaches in Taiwan. This is because of its fine white sand and year-round warm temperatures and sunshine (it is in the tropical part of Taiwan after all). 
The facilities at Nanwan include changing rooms, showers, toilets, rentals, and a parking lot.


Hours:
Nanwan Beach: 8:30 AM to 9 PM
Kenting Street Night Market: 6:30 PM - Midnight

Price: Free

When to go:
Summer! It's when the water is warmest and the sun is hottest. However there will be more people in summer, and there could be Typhoons. 
Spring and Fall are also good times to go, as there will be less visitors and cooler temperatures.
Winter is an okay time to go as well, it will be warmer than the rest of Taiwan and the water will still be warm enough to swim in. 

How to get there:
By Car/Scooter: Take provincial highway 1 south to the bottom of Taiwan until it becomes provincial highway 26. After that keep going past Hengchun into Kenting National Park. The beach will be on your right as you pass the a 7-11. There is a parking lot next to the beach.
By Bus: Busses leave daily to Kenting from Zuoying HSR station, Kaohsiung Station, and Pingtung. Get off at the Nanwan Beach stop （南灣）.
By Plane: There are direct shuttle busses to Kenting from Kaohsing's Xiaogang (KHH) Airport. 

Map: Please see below: