Tainan Taiwan: A Traveler’s Guide

Tainan Taiwan is the oldest city in Taiwan; tourists get a chance to explore the rich cultural, historical and especially, the gastronomic heritage of Taiwan that goes back more than three centuries. Tainan was Taiwan’s capital city from the 1660’s to the 1800’s and housed a number of temples and buildings from the old dynasties and still embraces many traditions to date, Apart from the historical touch the city bears a modern and relaxed feel about it. However, if history holds your passion and you want to undertake in unraveling the mysteries behind historical enigmas of Taiwan, relish on scrumptious night markets and just stroll through quaint alleys filled with traditional shop houses then Tainan is the place to be.

Top Things to See and Do

With historic sites and temples galore, narrow alleyways dotted with quirky boutiques and endless snacks to sample, Tainan offers these top things to see and do:

1. Go to the Chihkan Tower or Ancient Fort Provintia:

 There is another building that used to be a fort – but the present building was built by the Dutch when the fort was already under Spanish rule in 1653 and later used as Confucian temple. An excellent view of Tainan city from the top floor is provided. Explore the main facade, gallery, interior showcases, and vicars’ hall with stone reliefs, wooden structure and ornamentation. 

2. Historic stroll and walking tour : 

Take a leisurely walk over cobbled pathways in one of the oldest neighborhoods of Tainan which was the business district of Anping in the earlier centuries, old fort which is actually a brick structure of the Fort Zeelandia the Anping Tree House at a leisurely pace, the quiet harbor, and the food stalls and temples and the Tianhou (Matsu) Temple in Anping. 

3. Buy at Hayashi Department Store:

 Take a journey back to the ‘Golden Age’ of shopping at the 1930s-50s post war Japanese inspired Hayashi Department Store in Tainan. It has rundown wooden floors, old elevators ; it has a massive upstairs food court offering regional specialities which just adds to the ambiance.

4. Visit the Grand Matsu Temple:

 This bright and ornate Confucian, Taoist and Buddhist temple in the Beimen district is a 300 year old, three funneled arch, hilltop temple with stunning views over the city. 

5. Walk through new neighborhoods:

 new districts such as Shennong-Downtown is lined with well preserved streets and with buildings that have two storey shop houses, temples, barber’s shops, tea sellers, mah-jong parlors and the likes that look like they were newly built today. 

6. Temple hopping:

 With almost 500 officially listed temples in Tainan, it’s impossible to go temple run in the city. The tree and thick bush covered Shrine of the God of War, the ancient Confucius Temple and the Ten Thousand Buddhas Pagoda, some of the most magnificent, are just a few of them. 

7. Having a taste of Tainan Street Foods at night markets of Tainan:

Tainan night markets, although come in different sizes, are considered tourist attractions where one has to go to be able to taste wonderful Tainan Snacks in the midst of entertainment. 

8. Fun at Chihkan Tower: 

Not only is this a beautiful tower from which you can get a great view of the city of Tainan, it is over 350 years old and contains a little museum where you can learn quite a lot about the post-aboriginal history of Taiwan, Chinese immigrants, the Dutch and much more through quite interesting displays.  

Top Local Foods to Try

As much as Taiwanese food twinkles brightest when Taiwan is the whole of the island, Tainan stands as the food champion of choice as the home to many quality specialties. Visitors would be remiss not to indulge in Tainan’s amazing food culture by sampling these top foods: 

• Coffin cake:This is a sweet, thick toast with egg soaked on it, covered with seaweed before being grilled into a rectangular shape, popular from street carts across Tokyo for breakfast food.
• Oyster omelets: Huge oyster that is very tender is covered with beaten eggs and fried to give this chinese pancake – like a creation its enjoyable taste. If you want to taste an original one, freshly made, go to a night market. 
• Milkfish belly soup: This dish is a Tainan specialty where a warm soup made from tender pieces of milkfish belly and vegetables in a milk- like soup. Best sampled at die-hard local soup shops.  
•  Danzai noodles: The pleasant looking bouncy egg noodles prepared with the pork broth blended with the shrimp and the yellow chives is mouthwatering; especially if consumed with dumplings, roast pork, and wontons.  
• Tropical fruits: Try delicious tropical fruits which will help you cope with the hot and humid climate in Japan. Shaved ice desserts: Enjoy your favorite pudding with fresh fruits, sweet beans, mochi, gelatin or smooth custard. This summer, you can taste Tainan-style sparsely shaved ice with fresh mangoes!

Less Common Experiences

But not only that Tainan is full of special atmospheres, delicious food and miscellaneous sights: there are many offbeat wonders if one wanders away from guidebooks. These include:

• Guanziling Hot Springs: Take an outdoor shower in hot spring pools espoused in a jungle valley replete with tropical flora; try out mud baths or take a break from your travel footsteps soreness. 
• Taiwan: Beigang Chaotian Temple:The most antique temple building in Taiwan with the tiered eave roofs that was constructed in 7 years without a single nail. You should be amazed at this architectural feat and the location right on the water body.  
• Sicao Green Tunnel: Lighting up the abandoned sugar train track as a unique action-packed bike trail, literally, one can cycle for several kilometers in this flat straight and covered path outside the city and amid green foliage. 
• Lost along the zigzags of non-main tourist zones downtowns: not only clothing stores, cafes, restaurants, and alcohol shops for locals but also backstreet boutiques are sources of beautiful things.  
• villages of fishermen and piers: Cuteness of the Tainan skyline color wooden piers and small fisher’s villages for those who are looking for the most desweakness and the best seafood meal while watching a pinky sunset over Taiwan strait.

Check Out: Taiwan’s East Coast: A Scenic Journey Through Untamed Beauty.

Where to Stay  

With plenty of atmospheric lodging options suiting various budgets, recommended places to stay in Tainan include:

• The Place Tainan: These are brand new, modern apartments located just steps off the main street of town for convenient, do-it-yourself and walking distance to most things. 
• Tayih Landis Hotel: modern and tall European styled building that provides quality rooms with spectacular city views as well as well over restaurant awards.
•  Tainan Lasare Hotel: Rather impressive property that originally was a Japanese colonial structure which received tasteful restoration
•  Shangri-La’s Far Eastern Plaza Hotel: Everything for the comfortable stay, located close to the station
•  RedTree B&B: Small thirty-two room guest house located off a red brick street with ample amounts of the type of ancient and quaint welcome that travelers always desire.  

Getting There and Around  

Getting to Tainan and exploring the city is easy with these options:  

• Flights:Tainan has a small international airport where you can fly to other Asian cities directly though most people use Kaohsiung or Taipei as their entry hub. From neither of these cities trains go often down to Tainan.  
• High speed rail: bullet trains connecting cities across Taiwan, when in Tainan, you can easily access the new train station for bullet transport around Tainan with train stations in Kaohsiung about 30 minutes and Taipei about 2 hours by rail.
• Taipei City Tour Bus: Another inexpensive means of transport within Tainan is through city buses even though trains and bikes and local trains are the most effective way to navigate within the city.  
• Taxis: Most of the taxis are easily affordable, and have meters, but one must write down addresses in Chinese in order to show the driver.  

Conclusion

Tainan is a city for everyone, whether you are a history lover, a culture vulture, architecture lover or just a foodie. What gastronomic delights can Taste of Taiwan offer to its visitors: a city-ancient alleyways seeming to stretch for centuries, colorful temples in every corner, numerous wonderful stories of the ancient world which can be heard here, a rich and warm-hearted welcome to the island. For the lovers of history, let me take you a couple centuries back. Finally the t-shirts are ordered and packed, now it’s time to get those flights to Tainan!

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FAQs about Visiting Tainan