Taiwan's Hot Spring Culture
2024 / December
Taiwan, located at the boundary between the Philippine Sea and Eurasian tectonic plates, has mountainous terrain with rich geothermal resources. This month we focus on hot springs across Taiwan, and introduce local tourism resources centered on hot springs culture. Did you know that Beitou’s green sulfur hot springs contain radium? That Zhaori Hot Spring on Green Island has a special zone where visitors can boil hot spring eggs? That at hotels around Su’ao Cold Spring Park in Yilan you can take a “soda bath”? The answers to these questions and more can be found in this month’s Cover Story.
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Featured Story
A Misty Wonderland:
Beitou and Its Hot Springs
“The mountainous district of Beitou in Taipei is one of the two places in the world whose turquoise-colored hot springs are known to contain radium. Beitou’s hot springs are richly varied in terms of their chemical compositions. With its traditions of itinerant musical performances and high-en......
Come to Us for a Hot Spring Soak!
—The Century-Old Bathing Culture of “Long Nice”
Stepping into the Long Nice Hot Spring in Taipei’s Beitou District is like returning to a traditional public bath of 100 years ago. There is none of the elaborate decor of modern hot springs facilities, only a simple wooden structure and wafting steam, making this a comfortable place for ordin......
Soaking by the Sea:
Green Island’s Zhaori Hot Spring
“Taiwan’s vibrant hot-spring culture has fostered the development of a saltwater hot spring on Green Island rivaling those of the Japanese island of Kyushu and the Italian island of Sicily.......
The Cold Springs of Su’ao
—Year-Round Bathing at 22°C
Immerse yourself in a cold spring with a temperature of 22°C (which it stays at throughout the year), then quietly remain there without moving, and your body will begin to feel hot. As bubbles cover your skin, you may get a sensation that has been described as being like soaking in soda pop. H......
A Stroll through Su’ao:
Walking Tour of a Small Town
Su’ao is a colorful harbor town with its back to the mountains and its face to the sea. It has developed in the foothills of Mt. Qixing with the Pacific Ocean on one side. Its “Su’ao mirage” was once considered one of the eight wonders of the Lanyang Plain. Today it is a transit hub for road, ......
Hidden Waters in the Mountains:
Enjoying Wild Hot Springs
Taiwan has abundant geothermal energy and hot springs, and especially a large number of “wild” open-air hot springs hidden away close to watercourses in mountain valleys. These secret springs, which have a fascinating aura of the rough and primitive, attract many people with a taste for adventure.......
Hot Springs Bathing in an Indigenous Community
—Pengpeng Hot Springs and the Atayal Lifestyle
Netizens have dubbed Pengpeng (also spelled Bong Bong) Hot Springs the most user-friendly wild hot springs in Taiwan. They are located near the Atayal indigenous community of Knbung in Datong Township, Yilan County. After parking one’s car, it is only a 15-minute walk to the springs, nestled ......
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