Kaohsiung Travel Guide: All You Need to Know for a Perfect Visit
Kaohsiung City or simply just Kaohsiung is Taiwan’s third most populated city. Accessible by both plane and high speed rail, Kaohsiung is the perfect city to explore for a day or two. Whether you are a foodie looking for traditional Taiwanese Night Markets or into history and want to explore temples and museums, Kaohsiung definitely has something for everyone. My Kaohsiung travel guide covers all of the must-see attractions, popular night markets, and so much more!
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Kaohsiung is Taiwan’s third largest city, behind Taichung and of course Taipei with a population over 2.7 million.
Kaohsiung is known as Taiwan’s Harbor Capital because it has the largest port in Taiwan. Because of this, there is a lot of industrial areas to the city. But don’t let that scare you away from visiting Kaohsiung.
Kaohsiung has an abundance of things to do, modern architecture, and beautiful parks.
Kaohsiung is located in southern Taiwan, just south of the city of Tainan. Kaohsiung has its own international airport and is well connected to Taiwan’s high speed rail.
Flying to Kaohsiung City and Public Transportation
Kaohsiung International Airport is where the majority of visitors will fly into. There are international flights to and from Kaohsiung from several cities throughout Asia.
Kaohsiung International Airport is easy to navigate, customs is stress free, and baggage claim is reliable. Exiting the airport is easy and the MRT is within walking distance.
Kaohsiung International Airport is on the MRT Red Line, so you can take the subway directly to any station along the Red Line or connecting Orange Line.
I found public transportation in Kaohsiung to be incredibly easy and efficient.
The Kaohsiung Metro or MRT has two lines, a Red Line that runs north and south from Gangshan Station to Siaogang Station, just past the airport.
The Orange Line basically runs east to west from Daliao Station to Hamasen Station.
There is also a convenient light rail circular line, the Light Green Line. The light rail is convenient for accessing places like Shoushan National Nature Park or the Love Pier.
In my opinion, the MRT is very clean, safe, and affordable. I recommend getting a reloadable EasyCard. This is Taiwan’s transit cards where you can load money on them and use them throughout the country to access buses, trains, subways, and even bikes.
Mikan, Kaohsiung's Adorable yet Busy Stationmaster
If you happen to stop at one of the MRT stations in Kaohsiung City, you’ll most likely notice an adorable mascot plastered all over. From having its own store in the HSR Zuoying Station to being seen on signs in just about every station.
The famous mascot is Mikan, an orange cat who is the “Station Master” of Kaohsiung’s metro stations.
According to the station, Mikan is a stray cat that was eventually adopted by the Kaohsiung Metro. Born April 4th of 2020. In Japanese, Mikan is a mandarin orange. When the kitty was found, he was curled up in a ball, people thought he looked like a cute orange, hence the name, Mikan.
In order to become Station Master, Mikan passed his interview and completed all his necessary trainings. He mostly works at the Ciaotou Sugar Refinery Station.
Where to Stay in Kaohsiung City
Kaohsiung has a wide variety of places to stay and many affordable options. I generally don’t seek out luxurious accommodations. When booking hotels, I generally pay attention to location, price, and accommodations.
Now a days, I book most of my hotels through Agoda. Agoda allows for flexibility and many hotels give guests options to pay now or later.
Based on accommodation, breakfast, price, and easy access to Formosa Boulevard Station, we decided to stay at Kung Shang Design Hotel.
For starters, Kung Shand Design Hotel had massive rooms. By far the largest I’ve seen in a hotel anywhere in Asia. The room designs were unique and comfortable. This hotel was less then a ten minute walk from Formosa Boulevard Station. The breakfast was fantastic as well, it had a nice mix of Taiwanese and Western dishes.
When staying in Kaohsiung, I highly recommend booking or at least looking into the Kung Shang Design Hotel.
Best Things to do in Kaohsiung City
This Kaohsiung travel guide is built around a two day Kaohsiung itinerary. There is just to much to see and many things to do where I feel two days is a good amount of time to see the main attractions within Kaohsiung and even take a half day trip outside the city. The attractions below, in no particular order are my recommended things to see and do in Kaohsiung City.
Visit Fo Guang Shan Buddha Museum
Located about 30km from the Kaohsiung City is the impressive temple complex of Fo Guang Shan.
Fo Guang Shan is an easy bus ride from Kaohsiung City, I have outlined getting here in my post: How to Visit Fo Guang Shan from Kaohsiung City.
You can easily spend a day here, but I recommend spending a half day here just to maximize your time in Kaohsiung.
When visiting Fo Guang Shan, don’t miss out on the Pagodas, Fo Guang Shan Buddha Museum, Big Buddha, Main Shrine, and Buddha Land.
Walk the Lotus Pond and See the Pagodas
Any Kaohsiung travel guide will recommend paying a visit to the Lotus Pond area. There is an abundance of things to do here.
We walked to the Lotus Pond from HSR Zuoying Station. Some of the sites we saw include the Zuying Yuandi Temple, Spring and Autumn Pavilions, and the Dragon and Tiger Pagodas.
There is a trail that goes around Lotus Pond and there are multiple parks throughout the area.
Eat at the Night Markets
One of my favorite things to do in Taiwan is to visit the night markets. It all started with night markets in Taipei, now when visiting, that is all I do for dinner.
Night markets in Kaohsiung is a cheap way to try a nice variety of both Taiwanese and international dishes.
While in Kaohsiung, I visited Ruifeng Night Market and Liouhe Tourist Night Market. If you could only pick one night market in Kaohsiung, I’d have to recommend Ruifeng Night Market.
Ruifeng Night Market just had such a great variety of food and drinks to sample. There were so many vendors here it was a tad overwhelming. I ended up trying chicken feet, grain pancakes, fried chicken, squid on a stick, and steamed buns.
Night markets in Taiwan are generally cash only.
Hike Shoushan National Nature Park
Just my opinion, but not Kaohsiung itinerary is complete without a visit to the beautiful Shoushan National Nature Park.
Shoushan National Nature Park is easily accessible from anywhere in Kaohsiung City.
We stayed near Formosa Boulevard Station and ended up taking the KMRT Orange Line to Hamasen Station and hopped on the Green Light Rail to Gushan Station. From there we walked directly to the trail head.
I recommend Shoushan National Nature Park because it offers visitors a great chance to see local wildlife and beautiful nature.
We hiked for about 3 hours here and saw many Taiwanese Macaques, got great views of Kaohsiung City, and met a lot of friendly people both locals and tourists.
Interested in reading more? I have a dedicated post on Hiking Shoushan National Nature Park.
Sanfong Temple
In my opinion, one of the prettiest temples in Taiwan is the Sanfong Temple. This Taoist temple is known for its photogenic lanterns in the courtyard and beautiful architecture.
To take some of the best photos of Sanfong Temple, feel free to walk inside and up the stairs. Here you will see hundreds of lanterns strung across the center of the temple. The temple is free to explore.
Formosa Boulevard Station
Not exactly a must do when visiting Kaohsiung City, but if you are transiting through or staying near Formosa Boulevard Station, it’s worth wandering around.
The main attraction at Formosa Boulevard Station is the Dome of Light. It’s a giant stained glass piece of art in the center of the station. At certain times there is even a light show on the ground of the station.
Otherwise, there are some decent restaurants in Formosa Boulevard Station, convenience stores, and plenty of places to sit down and relax.
Love and Glory Pier
I visited the Lover and Glory Pier on a rainy day in hopes of seeing the giant rubber ducks floating around. Apparently the ducks are seasonal, so I didn’t see any.
Nonetheless, we took the Light Green Line to the Love Pier Station, got off, and walked around the pier for a bit. From here, you get great views of the skyline to include the dominating 85 Sky Tower.
Conclusion
My Kaohsiung Travel Guide is perfect for visitors that are exploring Kaohsiung for their first time. Any Kaohsiung City itinerary should include a half day at Fo Guang Shan, a morning hike at Shoushan National Nature Park, a walk around Lotus Pond, and a night of exploring the night markets. Kaohsiung City has plenty of sites and attractions to keep anyone busy for a few days. One of the best things about Kaohsiung is that it doesn’t feel overrun by tourists yet!
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Plan Your Trip: 🗺 ✈️ 🇹🇼
Booking Accommodations ⛺️ 🛖
For booking recommendations on the best deals and locations, check out Agoda or Booking.com
Activities and Tours 🏖 🚁
Find fun activities and things to do through Tripadvisor. If you are looking for tours and day trips, Viator and Get Your Guide have a lot of great options.
In need of a car rental? 🚗 🚘
I recommend checking with Rental Cars.
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