Nantou

Nantou County lies at the geographical heart of Taiwan and is the only county that does not border the coast.

If the central region is the heartland of Taiwan, Nantou is Taiwan's heart: it is the only landlocked county on the island!

Nantou County occupies an area of about 4,100 square kilometers. It is home to Taiwan's highest peak, Yushan (Mt. Jade), and 41 other 3,000-plus-meter mountains that form an unbroken and undulating expanse of green. Taiwan's longest river, the Zhuoshui River, winds through the county, and the island's most beautiful lake, Sun Moon Lake, completes the county's scenic tapestry.

Nantou is heavily dependent on farming. Rustic areas and an abundance of agricultural products are therefore among the county's major visitor draws. There are dozens of well-planned recreational farm areas that are perfect for a quiet and leisurely family trip to the countryside.

Accommodation choices range from world-class resort hotels to rural B&Bs. Whether you choose to stay at an exotic villa at Qingjing Farm or an elegant room at Puli Tao-Mi Eco-Village, you are never far from nature's scenic embrace.

Visitors can discover the beauty of Nantou along the seven main travel routes in the county. Enjoy a spring excursion to the outskirts, a cool summer escape, the starry nights of fall, or a winter hot spring soak and fun in the snow. Whenever and wherever you arrive, Nantou is there to welcome you on a relaxing, fun, and eye-opening journey.

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HOT SPOTS / EVENTS / FESTIVAL

World's Top 10 breathtaking cycling routes - Sun Moon Lake

World's Top 10 breathtaking cycling routes - Sun Moon Lake

Located in the heart of Taiwan, the Sun Moon Lake has long been charming curious foreigners and local visitors alike. The route around the largest lake in Taiwan is a three-hour ride, where visitors can enjoy lake scenery, experience Thao aboriginal culture and learn about the local ecology in the Nantou County.  If you arrive in early spring, you can even catch the cherry blossoms near this mirror-like lake.   

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Tea Farm in Sun Moon Lake

Tea Farm in Sun Moon Lake

An operating tea farm that's also a showcase for the reinstatement of tea shrubs to Sun Moon Lake. The speciality here is Assam black tea, introduced to the area from India by the Japanese. In its heyday, this factory had over 200 workers, but it was forced to close down in the early 2000s due to farmers' preference for cultivating the more lucrative betel nut. A handful of veteran workers persisted and began growing organic Assam; they also turned the factory into a tourist attraction.

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Hehuanshan National Forest Recreation Area

Hehuanshan National Forest Recreation Area

Taiwan's mountains are attracting the attention of hikers from all over the world for their height, which rivals the Alps and the Rocky Mountains, and their beautiful alpine scenery. While some of the highest peaks require considerable time and effort to reach, there is one place on the island that gives an instant overview of what Taiwan's mountains have to offer. Mt. Hehuan, despite its altitude of more than 3,000 meters, has a road that goes right across it, making access very convenient. It is the best place to see snow in the tropics, and escape from the summer heat. In as little as one day, you can travel the highest road in East Asia, and take the many hiking paths that lead off the main road. These are usually short and always safe. Mt. Hehuan, Taiwan's "tourist mountain," rivals the island's other high peaks in scenery and atmosphere, yet it is easily reachable by car or on foot. Accommodation is offered at Hohuan Cottage. At the same time, it is the starting point for one of Taiwan's most challenging and exciting treks, Chilai Ridge, a two-day "ultimate experience" that involves negotiating a knife-edge ridge with many dizzying pinnacles. Although the road scares away many of the birds and animals for which Taiwan is known, a short walk along the trails leading off the main road, particularly those in the direction of Chilai, will reveal their presence."

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Sun Moon Lake Swimming Carnival

Sun Moon Lake Swimming Carnival

Taiwan's largest lake, Sun Moon Lake is located in the mountains of Nantou at the geographic centre of Taiwan island. The name of the lake is inspired by the beauty of the area. The east side of the lake is round, like the sun, while the west side is long and narrow, like a crescent moon. Every year during the Mid Autumn Festival, a 3KM race named the Swimming Carnival of Sun Moon Lake is held, bringing tens of thousands of swimmers to participate in the event and festivities. This event is the only time swimmers are allowed in the lake.

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Xitou National Forest Recreation Area

Xitou National Forest Recreation Area

Xitou is located in the Phoenix hill of Lugu village, and is embraced by mountains from three sides. Its name is derived from the Chinese meaning: the origin of the river (Beishi River). Xitou has plenty of rains, and is cool and moist all the year round. Therefore, it is one of the most famous resort spots in summer and the most romantic place for new couples to spend their honeymoons. Xitou is part of the experimental forest belonging to the National Taiwan University, and here grows cedars, Chamaecyparis obtuse, red spruces, Phyllostachys edulis, and many other different kinds of trees. Except for a small well-preserved natural broad-leaves forest, most parts of this area have been developed and cultivated purposely. Generally speaking, the feature of the forest here is beautiful and tidy. Here you can visit the unique pure ginkgo forest, the rare plant of redwood, the divine tree 46 meter high and 16 meter broad and with an age approaching 3,000, Youth's Activity Center, birds observing footpath, hotels, restaurants, camping area and so on. The University Pond, one of the representative sightseeing spots in Xitou, with an area of 0.5 chings and a depth of 10 meters, has limpid water and is a good place for taking pictures. There are over 70 varies of birds available in Xitou, which makes this place a good one for birds observing. River Blacks, White-ears Thrush, Redhead Warblers, Shao-Yen Thrush are representatives of low and middle elevation in Taiwan. Buildings in Xitou are made of wood and have a smell of natural harmony.

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Qinging Farm

Qinging Farm

Qingjing Farm was established on February 20th, 1961. The farm is for agricultural development, it located in Nantou County, the place of Central Cross-Island Highway's center horizontal road first line #14 near the north end place of 08 kilometer. It is the place you will pass when you are heading to Hohuan Mountain, the center horizontal highroad's organized body branch. Nowadays the Qingjing Farm follow the herbage rebirth of the seasonal changes in March, the garden turns green, the procreation of the cows and sheep. You will feel the luxuriant of the peach blossom, the pear bloom, and the apple bloom during the spring season in Qingjing Farm. April is the month for picking the spring tea. The digitalis bloomy with purple bright-red flowers is in the bucolic area. May is the season for the chrysanthemum in the bucolic area and the rhododendron bloom in the Hehuan Mountain. Besides the different views in spring and summer, the scenery during autumn and winter has other kinds of view in Qingjing Farm. You can watch maple in October in Qingjing Farm. The sounds of the stepping on the fallen maples are romantic. Another part, the local agrarian afford different kinds of peach in different seasons, such as the 20-century pear, the California plum, the kiwi, and the high-temperature greenstuffs. The high-temperature greenstuffs mean the vegetable that grew in the higher sea level area with the adaptable temperature between 13~24 degrees Celsius and the bearable cold season greenstuffs for long distance, such as green cabbage, sweet chili, and the peas in local.

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