9 Days Taiwan Food Tour

Arrive at Taipei Taoyuan airport where you’ll be greeted by your local guide. Escorted by your driver, you’ll be transported directly to your hotel, on the way taking the opportunity to learn a little about this vibrant city. After check-in, you’re free to rest, relax, or explore the local surroundings. Be sure to check with your guide for insider local dining options.  

Meals included: None  

Step out after breakfast ready to take on Taipei. The day’s adventure commences with a visit to the city’s famous Nanmen Market, perhaps the most traditional of Taipei’s food markets. You’ll join a two-hour cooking class at Cook Inn during which you’ll be paced through the steps of favorite local Taiwanese savory and sweet culinary classics. 

After imbibing the fruits of your labor, you’ll enjoy a change of pace by visiting the National Palace Museum. Here you’ll discover the museum’s remarkable collection of 700,000 plus artifacts, treasures, and antiquities that transport you through Chinese history. Spend the afternoon enthralled by the bird’s-eye panoramic view of Taipei city and well beyond by taking the lift 89 storeys to enjoy the Taipei 101 Observatory.  

Come back down to earth and make your way to dinner at Din Tai Fung Restaurant. There are almost too many Taiwanese dishes to count, but the one you simply can’t go past is Xiao Long Bao. Yes, they taste as good as they look, so be prepared to eat at least a handful of these stuffed steamed buns (or dumplings) loaded with different fillings. And if that wasn’t quite enough, under the helpful eye of your trusty guide, dive into the feast of tasty street food and snacks at the perennially popular Ningxia Night Market. While a walk may be in order, you’ll be transferred back to the hotel by car to rest up before the next day’s travel. 

Meals included: Breakfast  

Note: Due to the closure of the National Palace Museum each Monday, your tour guide may adjust your itinerary. 

In the morning, drive to the small Hakka town in Beipu, a rural town in Hsinchu County that has many claims to fame. Apart from the architecture reflected in the traditional houses and streets, Beipu is renowned for its history and tea. You’ll be hosted at a local favorite Beipu Shitang – also known as Beipu Canteen – where you’ll have the opportunity to savor local specialties.  

Drive from Beipu to Alishan, an area famed for its forest mountain environment. Your guide will lead you on a forest walk following a trail densely populated with ancient cypresses that rise up around you like a green ‘cloak’, pointing out sights like Sisters’ Pond and Plum Garden. Reflect on Alishan’s natural beauty as you relax for the evening at your hotel, enjoying either a hotel meal or venturing out to try some of the local specialties. 

Meals included: Breakfast 

Rise early for what is arguably Taiwan’s best view*, visible only by taking the old Alishan train to Chushan (and if weather permits). Return to the hotel for breakfast, then check out and depart for Sun Moon Lake driving by Yushan National Park on the way. Enjoy the best of local specialties by eating lunch at a local Sun Moon Lake restaurant, then climb aboard a private motorboat for an hour of cruising on the lake itself. Shift gears and get back on the road for a drive around the lake with stops at Wenwu Temple, Ida Thao Indigenous Village, and Cien Pagoda, each offering a unique panoramic view of the lake and the opportunity to capture beautiful photographic memories. Your guide will check you in at the hotel for an evening of relaxation and reflection.  

Meals included: Breakfast 

*Alishan sunrise view is optional for tour guests. 

Start your day with either a morning walk or a short scenic bike ride along Sun Moon Lake before leaving late morning for Puli, located about 40 minutes away by car. After a delicious lunch at the locally much-loved Yazhuo Hakka Restaurant, with its authentic Hakka cuisine, drive through the mountains to Wujie Indigenous Village, affectionately referred to as ‘home of the clouds’ or the ‘Shangri-La of Taiwan’. Located 760 meters above sea level, Wujie offers much in the way of idyllic natural beauty and fascinating indigenous culture, with fine examples of nature’s best and man-made history evident in and around the village. Under the care and hospitality of your local guide, enjoy a short offroad 4WD adventure to Zhuoshui River where the famous Fish Head Rock can be seen. Wade into the middle of the stream and turn your vision skyward for a view that’s poetically described as ‘a thread of sky’; which is in fact, the thin line of the sky that is visible as the gorge appears to almost close overhead. Following this spectacle of nature, you will be driven to a local Wujie Village homestay to overnight and sample local indigenous food specialties.  

Meals included: Breakfast 

Rise early for a scenic drive to a tea farm located at the mountain’s peak. Here can you not only appreciate the challenges facing tea growers but also savor the sunrise view, which appears magically amidst a sea of clouds (weather permitting). After breakfast, the adventure continues with a hike that follows the river to Momonar Waterfalls along the Wujie Dam and old trails used by villagers and Japanese settlers. Return to the homestay for a traditional lunch of local indigenous dishes before driving to Central Mountains for a stop at Wuling, some 3,275 meters above sea level. The day’s driving continues along the Central Cross Island Highway to Tianxiang, where your guide will check you into the hotel located in Taroko National Park. 

Meals included: Breakfast  

Prepare yourself for a full day of exploring after breakfast when you drive to Taroko Gorge for a tour that showcases the very best of the Taroko National Park. Delight in scenic spots along the way: Taroko Gorge Gateway, Shakadang Trails, Eternal Spring Shrine, Swallow Grotto, Tunnel of Nine Turns, and more. With the help of your guide, enjoy a typical indigenous-themed lunch at the renowned Dageeli Indigenous House.  

Drive to Luodong (Yilan) via the scenic Suhua Highway, making stops at Qingshui Cliff and Fenniaolin Fishing Port on the way. Both are remarkable and perfect spots to capture beautiful travel memories that showcase the very best of Taiwan’s ocean and mountain landscapes. 

Travel on to Suao, a fishing port and traditional seafood market, where you can observe the fishermen, market workers, and customers buying and selling the fare that keeps them afloat and fed. For dinner, you will be hosted for an authentic traditional Yilan meal at the Golden Gate Restaurant, followed by a casual hour or two wandering the bustling Luodong Night Market before check-in at your hotel for the evening. 

Meals included: Breakfast 

After breakfast, make your way to Sanxing where you’ll find a well-known scallion farm with an eco-friendly philosophy to agriculture. Join the farm’s guide who will offer a full farm-to-table experience, instructing on the local traditional method for preparing scallion pancakes, starting your experience by harvesting the scallions yourself.   

Once you’ve enjoyed your fill of scallion pancakes, your trip recommences as you head north to Jiufen. Enjoy a faithful recreation of the traditional mine worker’s lunch, similar to those eaten by miners last century, then wander along Jiufen Old Street, once the central hub of a busy gold mining village that even today retains much of its historical old world charm.  

Carry those memories with you on the relaxing return drive to Taipei. Dinner awaits at the fabulous Shi-Yang Restaurant, after which you can enjoy your final evening on tour. 

Meals included: Breakfast 

Today you will be met by your guide and transferred to Taoyuan International Airport for your departure flight, concluding your tour of Taiwan. 

Meals included: Breakfast