17 Best Things to Do in Chiayi Taiwan for Solo Travellers

Chiayi is a small city in southwestern Taiwan and it is known for its railway, lumber and sugar production. The town flourished when the Japanese built the railway system and Alishan Forest Railway in the early 1900s.

While you may or may not have heard of Chiayi, you must have heard of Alishan, one of the top tourist attractions in Taiwan. And Chiayi is the gateway to Alishan. Most visitors travel to Chiayi, as a jumping-off point for seeing the majestic forest in Alishan, but many skip the quaint city and miss all the tourist spots.

However, I’m here to convince you to at least stay one day in the city so you can see some of the best things to do in Chiayi. Plus you can sample delicious local cuisine that the city is famous for. So keep reading and find out all the things you see and do in Chiayi as a solo traveller.

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Chiayi Travel Guide: what you need to know

Before you visit Chiayi City in Taiwan, take a look at my post on learning all my best tips for travelling to Taiwan. I included a lot of information, including getting a Taiwan prepaid SIM card, transportation around the country and more.

Here aer additional travel tips that you may find helpful for travelling solo to Chiayi City:

• Chiayi is a safe city for solo female travellers. I’ve been to the city twice on my own and wandered around day and night and had no issues.
• You can see all the attractions in Chiayi in 2 days or less.
• Plan your visit to Chiayi with the following festivals and events:
  • Lunar New Year (mid January to early February) – every town in Taiwan has new year celebrations for two weeks or so

How to get to Chiayi City, Taiwan

Plane

The closest airport to Chiayi is Taichung International Airport (RMQ) in Taichung, which has mostly domestic flights and a few international flights within Asia. The airport is over 100km away. Take Bus 302 or a metered taxi to Taichung Station first, then take the fast or local train to Chiayi.

If you fly from overseas, you will most likely arrive at Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport (TPE) near Taipei. Take the Metro from Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport to Taipei Main Train Station. Then, take a fast local train to Chiayi.

Train

It is possible to take the Taiwan High-Speed Railway (HSR) to Chiayi. But Chiayi HSR Station is 15km west of the city centre. Once you arrive at Chiayi HSR Station, take the free HSR shuttle bus 7211 or 7212 to Chiayi Station, which is right in the heart of the city. Just show your HSR ticket.

Alternatively, take the Taiwan Railways Administration (TRA) regular train from anywhere in Taiwan to Chiayi. This is a more economical option but slower but it will take you right to the centre of the city.

How to get around Chiayi City on your own

You can access most of the Chiayi attractions by walking. Everything is in the city centre but make sure you wear comfortable shoes.

However, a few attractions are on the city’s east end, which is best visited by Taiwan Shuttle Bus Route 66 (or other local buses depending on where you are going from). The tourist bus takes the scenic route, the Guanginwojia Route, around the city and stops at Chiayi Park and Lantan Scenic Area, the last stop.

Tap your EasyCard or iPass when you board the bus and alight. The bus fare is NT$12.

17 Best Things to Do in Chiayi City for Solo Travellers

Most travellers skip Chiayi and go straight to Alishan. But I think Chiayi is worth staying for at least one night so you can see some of the tourist attractions in the city and try some of the most unique local food.

So, in no particular order, here is my list of the best things to do in Chiayi for independent solo travellers.

Chiayi Tourist Attractions for First Time Visitors

1. Hinoki Village

Hinoki Village used to be dormitories for the Forest Department Taiwan during the Japanese Colonial Era. Then, they became the dormitories for the Kano baseball players, a baseball team established in the 1930s.

This Chiayi tourist spot is Taiwan’s first forest cultural and creative park. It has various businesses operating in 29 traditional Japanese-style houses built entirely from Taiwanese cypress. These historical buildings were transformed into tea houses, retail boutiques selling arts and crafts, souvenirs, and food, and coffee shops and restaurants.

You can even rent a yukata (a traditional Japanese garment like a kimono but for summer) for a few hours and take photographs around the traditional Japanese gardens.

2. Alishan Forest Railway Garage Park

As one of the world’s most famous mountain railways, the Alishan Forest Railway begins in Chiayi, where the train zigzags uphill to Alishan.

And located near Chiayi Station, many old retired trains are “parked” at the Alishan Forest Railway Garage Park. The park was the former headquarters repair garage and it has a railway turntable installed in 1978 and an impressive outdoor collection of old steam trains, diesel locomotives, and various railway equipment.

If you are a train enthusiast, you must visit the park. Plus, there is no entrance fee.

3. Song of the Forest

Designed by Wang Wen-Zhi, an artist from Chiayi, the Song of the Forest is a large-scale installation made with local materials like wood, rattan, rocks and discarded railway tracks.

Since Chiayi is the gateway to Alishan, the artist wanted to create a landmark that best represents Chiayi. The egg-shaped dome symbolizes the trees in the forest of Alishan, and the walking paths symbolize the railway from Chiayi to Alishan.

However, you can’t walk through this human-size art installation. It is currently closed (2025). But you can still see this geometric outdoor artwork from afar.

4. Old Prison in Chiayi

Wander around the former prison in Chiayi and see old Japanese colonial building that has been preserved. You can see the classic-style of the Warden’s Office and the three cell blocks designed in a fan-shaped radial architecture.

Next to the main jail cell, there are other ancillary buildings and one of them have many miniature model of other prisons around the Taiwan.

The prison opens 9:30am-12pm & 1:30-4pm and closed on Mondays. If you speak Taiwanese, you can join one of the free guided tours around the prison. Gather at the gate at 10am or 2pm to join one of the free tours.

Cultural and Creative Things to See in Chiayi

5. See one of several Chiayi temples

Every Taiwanese city has many religious temples. And in Chiayi, there are two that you should see:

• Jiuhua Mountain Temple – the 7-storey crimson temple that has an excellent view from the top. But I think the giant Buddha cross the parking lot is the highlight.
• Cheng Huang Temple – the oldest surviving county-level temple from the Qing Dynasty. As a national historic site, the temple has over 700 historical artifacts spanning over three centuries. The temple is always busy with worshippers as many people give offerings and pray to the city god and his wife, Mazu and Guanyin.
• Chiayi Confucius Temple – unlike other Confucius Temples around Taiwan, the one in Chiayi is rebuilt. It is located in Chiayi Park.

6. Visit unique museums in Chiayi

There are several museums in Chiayi and a few of them are worth seeing. I really enjoyed Chiayi Municipal Museum because I learned a lot about the city from their permanent displays. And I always enjoy Taiwanese tiles – they are so pretty!

• Chiayi Municipal Museum (9am-5pm; closed Mondays; NT$50) – the museum is a wonderful introduction to everything you need to know about Chiayi. There is also the Koji Pottery Museum on the third floor, as the city has been known as “home of Koji Pottery”.
• Museum of Old Taiwan Tiles (10am-5:30pm; NT$100) – visit a whimsical museum full of colourful tiles. Not only will you see a large collection of hand-painted decorative tiles, but you’ll also tour the historic timber building. You can use your ticket as a NT$50 voucher for something cute at the museum.

Chiayi Attractions in the Outdoors

7. Chiayi Park

Chiayi Park is a large and peaceful park established in 1910 by the Japanese. There are two sections: a botanical garden and a landscaped area with a few attractions.

The south landscaped area of the park has a 62m tall tower shaped like the giant trees of Alishan. It is called the Sun-Shooting Tower. In the tower’s core is a bronze sculpture originated from the aboriginal people’s “sun shooting myth.” And from the ground, you can see the giant Bauhinia, the flower of Chiayi, on the slanted roof of the tower.

Nearby is the Chiayi City Historical Relic Museum. You can learn about Chiayi’s history and urban development through the exhibitions inside the old WWII military hospital then a Shinto Shrine.

On the park premise, there is also the Chiayi Confucius Temple. But this is the rebuilt version.

8. Chiayi Botanical Garden

The Chiayi Botanical Garden is located north of Chiayi Park and is part of the Taiwan Forestry Research Institute’s Jhongpu Research Centre, where they conduct biodiversity research and focus on providing teaching materials. They also preserve plant resources and provide recreational opportunities whenever necessary.

Take a leisurely stroll through the botanical garden and see the dense forest with many tall trees. There are 140 species of trees including Chinese firs, Brazil rubber, mahogany trees. and Para Rubber Trees, which produce high-quality rubber that are used for making tires and other rubber products.

9. Lantan (Orchid Lake) Scenic Area

Take the Taiwan Shuttle Bus Route 66 or other local buses to Lantan Scenic Area, a recreational area popular located on the east end of the city.

The area includes Lantan Lake (or Orchid Lake), which has been a major reservoir for the city. The lake is shaped like a yun bao (an old Chinese metallic currency), and it is over two square kilometres and has a volume of over 9.25 million cubic meters.

Other highlights of the scenic area include the Sanxin Pavilion, the colourful fountain with musical performances and the Rippling Moonlit Talk, a stainless steel sculpture that resembles the Song of the Forest and is also designed by the same artist, Wang Wen-Chih.

Chiayi: Things to Do and Eat for Foodies

10. Try at least one bowl of Turkey Rice

Chiayi has a few signature dishes that you must try. Even if you are not a foodie, you should at a minimum try Chiayi’s turkey rice.

When the US military was based in Taiwan, turkey was introduced to the country. Over time, locals have adopted this new protein and made it their own.

Essentially, a bowl of turkey rice has white rice and is topped with shredded turkey meat, fried shallots, radish and a homemade sauce. It is a dish that has a mixed of Taiwanese, US and Japanese food culture which reflect’s Chiayi’s history.

There are way too many restaurants in Chiayi serving this specialty dish. So head over to one of these and try one; I’ve been to these ones and can recommend them.

• Liu Li Zhang Turkey Rice 劉里長雞肉飯 (7:30am-2:30pm; 4-7pm; closed Mondays) – was featured on Netflix’s Street Food show
• Ah Hong Shi Turkey Rice 阿宏師火雞肉飯 (10:30am-8pm)
• Taocheng Sanhe Turkey Rice 桃城三禾火雞肉飯 (10am-7pm; closed Thursdays)
• Delicious Turkey Rice 可口火雞肉飯 (10:30am-7:30pm; closed Wednesdays)
• Chiayi Dongmen Turkey Rice 東門雞肉飯 (5am-8:30pm)

11. Try other unique local food in Chiayi

Besides trying turkey rice, there are a few other food specialties in Chiayi. Even if you are only in the city for a day or two, it is possible to try them all.

• Stewed Fish Head Soup – the famous fish stew is made with deep-fried carp, pork, cabbage, tofu skin, tofu, dried shrimp, garlic, chilli and shacha sauce. Smartfish 林聰明沙鍋魚頭 is known for this dish and was featured on Netflix’s Street Food show.
• Meat or Vegetable side dish platter – the meat platter has sausages, pig’s blood, three-colour eggs, etc. The vegetable platter has seasonable veggies that were previously cooked then cooled and is served with homemade sauce, minced garlic, and mayonnaise.
• Cold Noodles – white flat noodles topped with sesame sauce and mayonnaise. I tried one at 黃記涼麵涼圓.
• Grass Carp Soup – grass carp sourced from ponds in the Chiayi-Yunlin area is excellent for soups and congees. Try either soup or congee at 阿貓魚粥.
• Grapefruit Tea – hand-shaken drink made with tea and fresh grapefruit. The popular 源興御香屋 has two locations in Chiayi.
• Tofu pudding sweet soup – in Chiayi, this typical Taiwanese dessert is eaten with soy milk instead of the sweet broth. And some places offer dough sticks for dipping. The tofu pudding at 阿娥豆漿豆花 was also featured on Netflix’s Street Food show.

12. Chiayi City East Public Retail Market

Chiayi City East Public Retail Market is the oldest market in Chiayi and is known as the “Chinese herbal medicine village” due to the various Chinese herbal medicine stores there.

But besides buying traditional herbs for Chinese medicine, you can buy fresh produce and eat the most authentic Taiwanese food inside the food area. The market is extremely popular with locals. They even drive through the market with their scooters!

East Market opens at 5:30am but many of them close early. However, you can still see some vendors open until about 6pm or so.

13. Wenhua Night Market

Taiwan is all about food and night markets! There is always at least one night market in each city. And in Chiayi, Wenhua Night Market is right in the middle of all the action.

Many food vendors line both sides of Wenhua Street between the Central Fountain and Wenhua Park. There are many vendors, so bring your empty stomach.

While you are there, try some must-eat Taiwanese food, including fried chicken, stinky tofu and scallion pancake. And if you are feeling adventurous, look for a food stall that sells soy-braised duck parts. It is a very popular Taiwanese food in Chiayi where different duck parts are braised in soy sauce.

14. Other night markets around Chiayi

Besides the main night market in Chiayi, there are three other night markets just outside of the city centre. But if you do decide to go, check the hours of operation before you on. They don’t open every night like Wenhua Night Market.

• Chia-Le-Fu Night Market (6pm-12am; closed Mondays, Tuesdays & Wednesdays) – a busy night market on the west end of the city. They have a few more sit-down types of restaurants rather than rows and rows of food stalls. And many of those restaurants offer hotpot meals.
• Mituo Night Market (5-11pm on Wednesdays & Fridays) – a smaller night market located 4km southeast of Chiayi City centre.
• Humei Night Market (5pm-12am on Wednesdays, Fridays & Saturdays) – it is located 4.5km southwest of the city centre.

Day Trip and Excursions from Chiayi

15. Beigang Old Street

Beigang is an ancient city in Yunlin County and worshippers visit the quaint town to visit Beigang Chaotian Temple, a Matsu temple that has been around since the Qing Dynasty.

However, most visitors go to Beigang to see Beigang Old Street, a 300-year-old street filled with ancient houses with ornate face and a bustle market scene where vendors sell local treats.

When you take a day trip to Beigang, you can see the many red lanterns and traditional shops on the old street selling local treats like ox tongue cookies, sesame oil, dried fruit, nuts, etc. There are places to eat too. 福安鴨肉飯 serves duck rice and seems to be the most popular.

You could also walk towards the river and see the red Beigang Tourist Bridge and visit the Beigang Water Cultural Park and see an old water pump station built by the Japanese.

How to get to Beigang Old Street: take bus 7201, 7202 or 7325 from Chiayi to Beigang. The bus ride is about 40 minutes or so.

16. Fenqihu Scenic Area

If you have time in your itinerary, you can spend a few hours or stay a couple of days at Fenqihu before moving onto Alishan.

The area has many excellent hikes like Ruitai Historic Trail, where you can see the bamboo forest. Other great walks include Mist Trail, Sunset Trail, Tea Trail, Cloud Trail and Sakura Trail.

There are hotels, guesthouses on tea farms in the area. Also see the tea farms which grow Alishan high mountain oolong tea, Taiwan’s most famous tea. And make sure to get the famous lunchboxes at Fenqihu Hotel.

How to get to Fenqihu Scenic Area: take the Taiwan Tourist Shuttle Bus 7322 from Chiayi Station to Fenqihu or Alishan Railway Express to Fenquihu.

17. Alishan Forest Recreation Area

With all this talk about Chiayi being the entryway to Alishan, it only makes sense to visit one of the best Taiwan tourist attractions, Alishan Forest Recreation Area.

Alishan has over 1,400 hectares of cypress trees, and at least 36 are over 1,000 years old. The park area has many hiking trails that meander through the dense forest. Moreover, the sunrise at Zhushan is one of the best spots to watch the famous Alishan sunrise.

Even if you are not a strong hiker, you can still easily see the lush forest and the famous sunrise.

How to get to Alishan Forest Recreation Area: the easiest route is taking a public bus from Chiayi to Alishan. In my post, I included all the details about the routes, costs, and schedules. Then follow my 2-day Alishan itinerary and hike solo in the national park.

Where to stay in Chiayi Taiwan as a solo traveller

Almost 90% of the accommodations in Chiayi are located southeast of Chiayi Railway Station, which is the city centre, which is where you should stay. Generally, the quality of homestays, hostels and hotels are just okay. They are not as exciting as the ones in Taipei or Taichung. But it is just for one night or two.

I have included two mid-range hotels I stayed while in Chiayi: one in city centre and on the other side of Chiayi Station. I like them both for different reasons.

• Lan Kwai Fong Garden Hotel – located next to Wenhua Night Market, the 4-star hotel has nice and comfortable guest rooms. The hotel offers a good breakfast as well. If you stay here, you can be in walking distance to most attractions in the city. Check prices & reviews: Agoda and Booking
• Holiday Inn Express Chiayi – the new hotel is located north of Chiayi Station. I like the spacious and clean room and the complimentary breakfast. But you have to walk through Chiayi Station to get to the city centre. You can do that by getting a numbered ticket at the ticket gate, walking up and across the bridge, and returning the ticket when you exit. Check prices & reviews: Agoda and Booking

Is Chiayi worth visiting as a solo traveller

I think so! Most people may not know what this little city is about. But if you are keen to take a solo hike to Alishan, make sure to stay at least one night in Chiayi so you can see some of the attractions in the city and try a bowl of turkey rice or other local favourites.

Let me know in the comments what you think about Chiayi City or if I have missed any tourist attractions that should be part of the list.

Ready to plan your trip to Chiayi? Here are some of my go-to travel planning resources:
* Book your flight: find flight deals on Skyscanner 
* Book accommodation: find the best Chiayi accommodations on Agoda or Booking
* Buy insurance: Safetywing is my go-to provider for travel insurance, as it covers many things. I will never travel without the Nomad Insurance Package because it protects me against unforeseen events. Get a quote today.
* Order a SIM card: order a SIM card in advance, collect it upon arrival, and set up your mobile phone before arriving at your destination. Or find out how and where to get a SIM Card in Taiwan.
* Join tours: check Klook for the best tours in Chiayi.

Thank you for reading my solo Chiayi travel guide

I have many posts on Taiwan, and you might also like these other posts on solo travel in Taiwan:

Introduction to Taiwan

• Things to know before visiting Taiwan 
• How and where to buy a Taiwan prepaid SIM card
• How to spend 3 weeks in Taiwan 
• 22 must-eat food in Taiwan 
• Top 10 must-try Taiwan 7-11 Food

Southern Taiwan posts

• How to travel from Chiayi to Alishan
• Alishan 2-day solo itinerary 
• Things to do in Tainan as a solo traveller 
• Where to stay in Tainan: Best Areas & Hotel Reviews
• Tainan Food Guide: What & Where to Eat
• 6 Best night markets in Tainan
• Things to do alone in Kaohsiung 
• Where to stay in Kaohsiung: Best Areas & Hotel Reviews
• Kaohsiung Food Guide: What and Where to Eat
• 5 Best night markets in Kaohsiung
• Qishan Old Street in Kaohsiung City
• Kenting Travel Guide: things to do

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queenie mak

Hi, my name is Queenie, and I’ve been a solo traveller for 20+ years and currently based in Hong Kong. Follow me on my adventures through Instagram and my blog!