Alishan (阿里山) is the most popular National Forest Recreation Area in Taiwan. Known for its giant trees, misty forests, cherry blossoms, high mountain tea, Alishan Forest Railway, and easy hikes, it is one of the country’s top attractions.
However, again and again, travelers tell me that planning their itinerary for Alishan is the most complicated part of their Taiwan trip. Some visitors even skip Alishan because the transportation and planning seem so daunting.
That’s exactly why I am writing this article.
Below, I’m going to provide detailed, workable itineraries for visiting Alishan region in one, two, three, or four days. These itineraries will include popular stops in the region like Fenqihu, Shizhuo, and Xiding (Eryanping Trail), which are often the most complicated part.
I will also include some key info and tips for making this part of your trip as smooth and efficient as possible.
See more of my Taiwan itineraries and the more detailed paid versions here.
Essential Tips for Your Alishan Itinerary
- One night for Alishan is generally enough. For day trippers, you can ride the small train in the park and walk the main trails of Alishan in 3-4 hours.
- If you plan to do Mianyue Line, a half to full-day hike in Alishan (my favorite one by far!), then I recommend spending two nights at Alishan.
- Hotels in Alishan National Forest Recreation Area are expensive and limited, so they almost always sell out. Book early, but keep in mind that most of them don’t release their rooms until 2-3 months in advance. If nothing is available, keep checking back.
- Here are my recommended hotels in Alishan. The best reasonably priced one, in my experience, is Dafeng Villa (see on Booking / Agoda), but it’s still nothing special.
- Most hotels are located on one street at the back of the tourist village. Some offer pickup from the station if you ask. Two more hotels (Alishan Hotel – see on Booking / Agoda) and Gou Hotel – see on Klook / Agoda) are deeper inside the park, pricier, and offer pickup.
- If you don’t manage to get a hotel in Alishan, you can also stay in Chiayi city, Xiding (Eryanping Trail), Shizhuo, or Fenqihu and do a day trip to Alishan. But if you want to see the sunrise at Alishan, it’s best to stay at Alishan.
- Fenqihu can be done as a stop on the way to/from Alishan by public transportation, but spend a night here if you are especially interested in its old street, bamboo forest hikes, and fireflies.
- To explore the tea plantation hikes in Shizhuo or Xiding, it’s best to spend the night at either one.
- There are luggage storage lockers at Fenqihu (in the train station) and Alishan (in the bus station and train station), but not at Shizhuo and Eryanping. See my guide to using these lockers across Taiwan.
- It can be tough to get seats on the popular Alishan Forest Railway from Chiayi to Fenqihu to Alishan (5 hours). Use my guide to getting seats on the Alishan Forest Railway, including some secret hacks for scoring tickets early.
- Taking the bus from Chiayi HSR Station (outside the city center) or Chiayi Train Station (in the city center) to Eryanping, Shizhuo, Fenqihu, and Alishan is easier and faster (2 to 2.5 hours). Here is the bus timetable.
- You can swipe EasyCard for the bus, but at busy times (weekends, holidays, cherry blossom season in March to April), I recommend reserving your seats.
- Coming from Sun Moon Lake to Alishan (or Alishan to Sun Moon Lake), I always recommend booking that bus. Here is how. Also see my Sun Moon Lake itinerary.
- When you arrive at the park by bus, show your bus ticket to get a 50% discount on the park entrance fee (150 instead of 300). If you arrive by train, the park fee is included in the ticket price.
- If you arrive by car, you’ll need to pay 300 per adult plus 100 for parking.
- From Alishan Bus Station, it is a 10-minute walk to Alishan train station (for riding the small train to places inside the park) or a 15-minute walk to the tourist village and most hotels.
- Also read about Sun Link Sea and Taipingshan, which are more off-the-beaten-track alternatives to Alishan.
Alishan Day Trip Itinerary
Let’s say you are short on time, didn’t manage to get a hotel in Alishan National Forest Recreation Area, or you find the hotels there too expensive. In that case, you may want to do a day trip to Alishan.
Organized Day Tours and Drivers
The easiest way would be to join an organized day trip to Alishan. There are many options on Klook and KKday, such as:
- Day tour from Taichung, Kaohsiung, or Chiayi (Klook)
- Day tour from Kaohsiung with stop in Fenqihu (Klook)
- Day tour from Taichung with stop in Fenqihu (Klook / KKday)
- Sunrise day tour from Taichung (KKday)
Another option is to hire a private driver for the day. You can book one on Klook, KKday, Tripool (click the link or use my referral code Nick2026 when registering on the Tripool app to receive three TWD 100 discount vouchers by email), or contact one of my recommended drivers in Taiwan.
Getting There on Your Own
If you want to travel to Alishan on your own, renting a car, scooter, or taking the bus will be your only options. Taking the Alishan Forest Railway won’t give you enough time to explore Alishan on a day trip.
Coming from Sun Moon Lake, there are only two buses per day, which depart Sun Moon Lake at 8:00 and 9:30 on weekdays and 8:00 and 8:30 on weekends. The ride to Alishan takes about 3 hours.
This still gives you enough time to explore Alishan and catch one of the last buses from Alishan to Chiayi. You can put your luggage in one of the luggage storage lockers inside Alishan Bus Station (or Alishan Train Station if those are unavailable) while you explore.
Coming from Chiayi, there are some very early buses, so you can have even more time at Alishan. For example, the first bus of the day from Chiayi station (6:05 AM) will get you to Alishan as early as 8:08 AM.
Here’s the full bus timetable, how to book the bus online (with ticket pick-up at FamilyMart), or how to book the bus directly at FamilyMart.
If you go that early, you could easily fit a stop at Xiding (Eryanping trail), Shizhuo, or Fenqihu into your Alishan day trip, either on the way there or the way back.
I’ve included all those stops in the above bus timetable, so you can figure out your bus times. I’ll also cover how to map it all out in more detail below.
Local tip: Some foodies choose to spend a night in Chiayi city before going to Alishan, especially to try some of the city’s Netflix-featured foods. See my guide to Chiayi’s Wenhua Rd Night Market to read about them.
Arriving At Alishan
The below schedule can easily be done in 3-4 hours (from arrival at Alishan to departure).
Coming by bus, you will arrive at Alishan Bus Station (here, see photo above), just outside the Alishan National Forest Recreation Area park entrance gate.
Inside the bus station, there used to be a 7-Eleven that sold return bus tickets but it’s no longer there.
This means you can only reserve your return tickets online online (before your Alishan trip, because you’ll need to print it at FamilyMart, and there’s no FamilyMart in Alishan) or line up and swipe EasyCard. There’s still another 7-Eleven inside the park but it doesn’t sell bus tickets.
If you need it, you can also find luggage lockers inside the bus station and more at Alishan train station inside the park.
Next, you’ll need to walk up the road for a few minutes to the Alishan Park Entrance Gate (here, photo above), where you will pay the park entrance fee.
Make sure to show your bus ticket or voucher (the driver should give this to you if you swiped EasyCard). This will give you a 50% discount on the park entrance fee (TWD 150 instead of 300).
Taking the Train to Zhaoping
After passing through the gate and paying the fee, keep walking along the car road (slightly uphill) for five minutes to reach Alishan train station (here on the right).
You can also access Alishan tourist village (on the left), where there are several restaurants, shops, large parking lot for cars, hotels, and 7-Eleven.
If you drive to Alishan, you will drive through this gate and pay the park entrance fee (300 per adult) plus parking fee (100), then proceed to park in the large parking lot in the tourist village.
From the parking lot, you’ll need to walk up a big staircase to reach Alishan train station for taking the train into the park.
At Alishan Station, purchase a ticket in cash from the ticket window or machines for the next train to Chaoping (Zhaoping).
The ride costs TWD 100 and takes six minutes. Every Wednesday, the lovely antique hinoki (cypress interior) trains run on this line. Here are the train times.
If you don’t want to wait for the next train, you can also walk along the vehicle road to Chaoping station (20 minutes).
Once you reach Chaoping Station area, there are a few short but pretty boardwalk trails around it. In winter, watch for white blossoms blooming on Plum Garden Trail (here).
In cherry blossom season (March to early April), watch for the whitish-pink flowers next to Alishan Police Lodge (here), with Alishan trains sometimes going by.
Also don’t miss this beautiful forest observation deck.
See other beautiful cherry blossom spots around Taiwan here.
Sister Pond and Giant Tree Trails
Next, return to Chaoping station and follow the trail past Gou Hotel to find the entrance to Sister Pond Trail (here). This is the most popular walking trail at Alishan, so there are usually lots of people are tour groups here.
This easy trail goes through a forest of huge, ancient trees. It is often misty, which makes it looks spooky and very cool. The trail goes to two small ponds with lookout pavilions.
Mianyue Line is a 7 to 8-hour return hike that starts from Sister Pond Trail. It’s my absolute favorite hike in Alishan. It requires a permit, but you can hike half of it without one. See my Mianyue Line guide for all the details, but make sure you budget enough time for it.
After the second pond, keep following the path down some stairs to Magnolia Garden, after which you’ll reach Alishan Shouzhen Temple (here).
Next to the temple, there are two perpendicular strips of small souvenir shops and food stalls. Watch for famous local products like delicious Alishan wasabi, Alishan tea, and Alishan coffee.
Pro Tip: if you’ve had enough at this point, you can walk from Shouzhen Temple back to Alishan tourist village (20 minutes) or Alishan bus station (25 minutes) along the car road.
There’s also a minibus from Shouzhen Temple to Alishan Visitor’s Center in the tourist village.
At the corner where the two rows of shops meet, there’s a passageway (right around here) providing access to a boardwalk trail. Go down the path to connect to Giant Tree Trail.
Giant Tree Trail features many giant trees. It’s similar to Sister Pond Trail but not quite as busy. Heads up that it’s a little easier to get lost here.
Consider that Giant Tree trail is a large loop. You will be entering at the eastern side of the loop. Shenmu (Sacred Tree) train station, which is your way back to Alishan station, is on the northern side of the loop.
Therefore, if you want to have a shorter walk (15 minutes), turn right.
Then you will only need to walk one-quarter of the way around the loop to finish at Shenmu station. If you go this way, you will pass the enormous Alishan No. 28 Tree before you reach the station.
If you want a longer walk (45 min), turn left.
Then you will need to walk three-quarters of the way around the loop to reach Shenmu Station. On the way, you will pass Shunbao Fude Temple, Thousand Year Cypress Tree, Alishan Museum, Ciyun Temple, Pagoda of the Tree Spirit, and Xianglin Giant Tree before reaching Shenmu Station.
Here are the train times for Shenmu Station back to Alishan station. From Alishan Station, it’s a 10-minute walk back to Alishan Bus Station for going back to Chiayi.
If you have extra time, you could also have a meal or check out the shops in the tourist village before walking to the bus station and taking a bus back to Chiayi.
Adding a Stop in Xiding, Shizhuo, or Fenqihu
If you start your day very early, you could stop at one of these on the way to Alishan or when coming back down.
However, there is one key thing to note. You can only reserve seats on the bus if you are boarding at Chiayi or Alishan stations. So, for example, you can book you bus seats from Chiayi to Shizhuo if you want to make a stop there on the way to Alishan.
But you can’t book seats from smaller stops like Xiding, Shizhuo, or Fenqihu. So if you make a stop at one of those, when you get back on the bus to Alishan, you can’t book it.
You’ll just need to swipe EasyCard. If the bus seats are all taken (which is often the case), you’ll need to stand.
If you want to stop at Xiding for hiking Eryanping Trail, plan to stop for 1.5 hours (faster hikers) to 2 hours (slower hikers). Every bus from Chiayi HSR or Chiayi Station to Alishan passes by Xiding/Eryanping.
There are no restaurants or convenience stores near the trailhead. The bus stop is here.
In Shizhuo, the tea plantation trails have similar scenery to Eryanping, plus Shizhuo has restaurants and two convenience stores.
For a short stop (one hour), hike from the bus stop to Dingshizhao Lookout (here, photo above) and back. The Shizhuo bus stop is here.
With more time (2 to 3 hours), you could add Mist Trail, Sunset Trail (nice even not at sunset), and/or Sakura Trail (the cherry blossoms bloom in March).
Here’s a map I made of the trails. Just like Xiding, every bus from Chiayi to Alishan passes through Shizhuo.
Fenqihu (see my Fenqihu guide) is the least convenient place to stop on the way from Chiayi to Alishan because only a few of the buses make the small detour from the main highway to Fenqihu.
Only one bus per day from Chiayi HSR and three per day from Chiayi Station stop at Fenqihu. Check your bus times carefully!
For a day trip, your only reasonable option is the 7:05 AM bus from Chiayi Station, which reaches Fenqihu at 8:49. Then catch the 11:17 bus from Fenqihu to Alishan.
This would give you enough time to do a bamboo forest hike (I recommend Fenqi trail) and have an early lunch on Fenqihu Old Street.
You could also catch the 9:40 bus from Chiayi Station to Fenqihu, which arrives at 11:17, then the 12:38 bus from Fenqihu to Alishan, which arrives at 13:45. But only gives you enough time for a hike OR for getting food – not really enough for both.
Then you would have just over three hours to explore Alishan before catching the last bus (17:10) back to Chiayi. It’s tight but doable!
Pro Tip: On busy days, there can be a long line of people waiting to catch a bus out of Fenqihu, and the bus is usually full before it even gets there. I recommend lining up at least 15 minutes early to get a good spot.
Also note the bus stop location in Fenqihu changes on weekdays vs weekends/holidays/cherry blossom season.
Alishan Two-Day (One Night) Itinerary
Staying for two days (one night) at Alishan is what many travelers do (but I personally recommend two nights – see the next section!)
Two-Day Tours and Drivers
First, to make things easiest, there are organized two-day Alishan tours like this one or this one on Klook and this one on KKday. There’s also a 3-day tour tour which includes Alishan and Sun Moon Lake.
To avoid repeating information, I suggest you read the Alishan day trip section above for all the info about how to take the bus from Sun Moon Lake or Chiayi to Alishan, and how to enter the park.
If you want to hire a driver and spend the night, it will cost you quite a bit more to keep the same driver overnight. Therefore, consider to get a one-way transfer to Alishan (for example, on Tripool), and a separate one-way drive for leaving the next day.
If you want to make stops on the way (such as Fenqihu or Shizhuo), they offer an hourly rate.
Arriving and Checking into Your Hotel
If you arrive before your hotel’s check-in time, which will be the case if you arrive by bus from Sun Moon Lake or take an earlier bus from Chiayi, you will have two options for your luggage.
The first option is to put your luggage in a locker inside Alishan bus station or Alishan train station. I don’t really recommend this option, though, because you’ll have to walk a ways to come back and get it later.
The second option is to leave your luggage at your Alishan hotel’s front desk. Most hotels are located on the same street at the back of the tourist village parking lot. These are around 15 minutes’ walk from Alishan bus station (with some uphill).
Some hotels will offer pick-up service from the bus station if you ask in advance or call them on arrival, including the two hotels which are deeper in the park (Alishan Hotel and Gou Hotel).
Lunch and Exploring the Park
After leaving your luggage at the hotel, follow the staircase or car road from the road of hotels up to the tourist village.
You may want to pop into the Alishan Visitor’s Center (here at the hotel side of the large parking lot) to get a handy map of the hiking trails or ask any questions you might have. If you want to take a Stargazing Tour at night, you should book here.
For lunch, across the big parking lot, you will find several restaurants and a cheaper covered food court (here).
For a faster bite to eat, there’s a 7-Eleven (here) at the upper end of the village, close to the train station. Fun fact: this is the highest 7-Eleven (2200 meters) in all of Taiwan (read other fun facts about Taiwan here).
From the big parking lot, there’s a large staircase leading up to Alishan train station.
Follow the instructions I provided in the Alishan day trip section above for riding the train or hiking to Chaoping, walking the flower trails, Sister Pond Trail, Shouzhen Temple, and Giant Tree Trail.
This should take around three hours in total.
What you will do next depends on the time and your plans for sunset.
Pro tip: if you prefer to avoid crowds and the most touristy trails, consider hiking Shuishan Giant Tree Trail (starting here near Chaoping Station) instead. This 60-90-minute return trail follows an old railway line to a giant tree.
Sunset and Stargazing
While Alishan’s sunrises get all the attention, you can also see incredibly beautiful sunsets there.
One important consideration in your plans is the sunset time. At the peak of summer, the sunset at Alishan is around 6:45 PM, while at the peak of winter, it’s much earlier, around 5:10 PM.
If by the time you get to Giant Loop Trail it’s already close to sunset time, you may want to stick around there to watch the sunset. Try to find this exact spot around Ciyun Temple, which has a nice view and possible sea of clouds (see photo above).
You’ll miss the last train from Shenmu Station back to Alishan station, but you can walk back to the tourist village via the car road from Shouzhen Temple to Alishan. Heads up that reception is spotty or sometimes doesn’t work in the area.
If you still have lots of time before sunset and don’t want to wait around, take the train from Shenmu Station back to Alishan (or walk back). For an easy (but not the best) view of the sunset, go up to the second floor of Alishan train station.
For a better spot than the train station, walk 15 minutes (from Alishan Station) to this sunset viewpoint just outside the park entrance gate.
And the absolute best (but furthest) sunset viewpoint is here on the highway, 30 minutes’ walk outside the park. If you see any hotels offering a sunset tour, this is where they will take you.
Remember to bring your Alishan entrance ticket for coming back into the park.
As for stargazing, you’ll need to get away from the lights of the tourist village. There’s a stargazing tour, which needs to be booked earlier in the day at the Alishan Visitor’s Center. The exact time will depend on the season. Once you know the time, you can work that into your dinner and sunset plans.
For the Stargazing Tour, they will take you by bus to Xiaoliyuanshan (here), which also happens to be one of the three famous sunrise viewpoints (we’ll get to those below).
It’s fairly easy to hike there (about one hour from the tourist village) yourself via the Chushan Sunrise Trail, which starts here near Chaoping Station. Xiaoliyuanshan is just 10 minutes past Chushan train station. Bring a flashlight.
Here are detailed instructions on walking from Alishan to Chushan and Xiaoliyuanshan.
For dinner, there are several restaurants in the large buildings here in Alishan tourist village. Most have similar menus of local dishes like rice, noodles, fried meats and veggies, tofu, etc, ideal for sharing. Or visit the food court for cheaper, street food-type meals.
Go to bed early for your pre-sunrise wake-up time tomorrow!
Alishan Sunrise
The next morning, you will be waking up very early for sunrise. The exact time of sunrise ranges from around 5:30 AM in summer to 7:00 AM in winter.
You will most likely need to wake up around two hours before that to catch the sunrise train or hike to the sunrise viewpoints. You can also take a shuttle bus to sunrise, which departs from the visitor’s center. It is faster and less packed than the train. Buy your ticket (TWD 150) from the center the day before.
Pro tip: If you Google “sunrise time at Alishan” for the date of your visit, you’ll need to add around 20 minutes to the times listed on sunrise/sunset websites. That’s because when you watch the sunrise at Alishan, you’ll need to wait for the sun to rise not only above the horizon but also above the peaks of the Yushan mountain chain.
The exact times of Alishan sunrise will be posted at Alishan train station the day before (1:30 PM to 4:30 PM). I recommend going at this time to buy tickets for the next morning’s sunrise train. They can sell out on busy days, but they usually don’t.
You can get the most accurate sunrise times on the Alipedia app (updated daily at 4:30 PM daily for the next day’s times), which show the time of sunrise from Chushan.
The Chushan train departs early enough to get everyone to the Chushan (Zhushan) sunrise viewpoint (there may be one or two departures). You can buy tickets in cash the day before or just before riding (day before is recommended because it can sell out at peak times).
The exact departure times change throughout the year according to the sunrise time.
While most hotels provide a voucher for breakfast in one of the restaurants in the tourist village, they won’t be open this early. In fact, you may not even use the breakfast voucher because you will be out hiking all morning. Don’t worry – the breakfasts aren’t even very good.
If you need a hot coffee, a mini bottle of whiskey (for strengthening your coffee), or a take-away breakfast for your later hiking, get it from the 7-Eleven (here) just before going to the train station. There could be a morning rush in the 711, so budget a little extra time for it.
Seats on the sunrise train are first-come, first served. The train is usually packed. The ride to Chushan sunrise viewpoint takes 25 minutes and costs TWD 150.
When you arrive at the beautiful, newly renovated Chushan train station, you will find that Chushan sunrise viewpoint (here) is totally packed with noisy tourists. There are also some simple food stalls here for breakfast.
You have two alternative sunrise viewpoint options, both which are better than Chushan: hike 10 minutes up a trail to Xiaoliyuanshan viewpoint (here), which will have fewer people. It also has this nice teashop for after sunrise.
Or you can follow the car road downhill for 10 minutes to Duigaoyue Sunrise Platform (here, my personal favorite), which will have few to no people. To find it, as you’re walking down the road, turn right at the point where the train tracks cross the car road.
You can also hike from your hotel to Duigaoyuen (45 minutes), Chushan (1 hour), or Xiaoliyuanshan (1 hour 15 minutes). Follow my directions here and bring a flashlight.
After Sunrise
What you do after sunrise depends on your plans for later today and how quickly you want to leave Alishan.
If you plan to catch a later bus to Chiayi or the 1 PM bus to Sun Moon Lake, you have tons of time. If you plan to make a stop in Shizhuo, Fenqihu, or Xiding on the way back to Chiayi, you may want to leave soon.
For the fastest way out, take the crowded train back to Alishan station. A nicer but slower way to go back is to hike down via the Zhushan Sunrise Trail. Here are the directions, and just do it in reverse.
You’ll follow the car road down from the sunset viewpoints then take a 20 minute downhill trail (Zhushan Sunrise Trail, all stairs) through the forest, ending at Chaoping station.
Trains from Chaoping back to Alishan won’t be running yet, but you can walk from Chaoping to Alishan tourist village in 20 minutes.
If you want to do another hike before leaving, and you already did Sister Pond Trail and Giant Tree Trail the day before, try Shuishan Trail. It starts here near Chaoping Station and takes 60-90 minutes return.
If you have the time, you could use your breakfast voucher now then check out from your hotel and walk to Alishan bus station.
Adding a Stop in Xiding, Shizhuo, or Fenqihu
To avoid repeating information, you can see all the details about how to add a stop at Xiding (Eryanping Trail), Shizhuo, or Fenqihu in the Alishan day trip section above.
The information will be exactly the same, except in this case, you will have more time for it because you have two days.
You could stop in these villages on the way to Alishan or the way back down. I’ll describe it for the way back down, since you’ll be up so early for the Alishan sunrise.
Assuming that you will have luggage with you and are taking the bus, this means that Fenqihu will be the easiest (assuming you’ll be proceeding to Chiayi on the same day).
That’s because it’s the only one that has luggage storage lockers. These can be found in Fenqihu train station, which is about five minutes’ walk from where the bus will drop you off.
Take the 10:10 AM bus from Alishan to Fenqihu (try to book it in advance), which will get you to Fenqihu at 11:10. Then you can take the 14:35 train (essential to book, two weeks in advance) or 15:10 bus (can’t book, swipe EasyCard) back to Chiayi, which will get you there at 17:10.
Either way will give you enough time to do a bamboo forest hike and have lunch in Fenqihu.
There are no luggage storage lockers in Xiding or Shizhuo. So if you are traveling to Alishan with luggage, there wouldn’t be anywhere to leave it in those villages while you do the tea plantation hikes.
If you’d really like to do the tea plantation hikes, I suggest adding a second night to Alishan region (see below) and sleeping in either Xiding or Shizhuo, with a possible lunch stop in Fenqihu on the way.
Alishan Three-Day (Two Night) Itinerary
This is my most recommended amount of time for Alishan region.
With three days (two nights), you can easily spend a night in Xiding or Shizhuo for the tea plantations, a night at Alishan and see the sunrise there, and make a stop in Fenqihu on the way back down.
You will have more time for each spot and feel less rushed.
There are many ways you could plan this. First, I’ll describe it with a stop in Xiding/Shizhuo on the way up and Fenqihu on the way down.
After, I’ll describe how to do it if coming from Sun Moon Lake to Alishan, with stops in Fenqihu and/or Xiding/Shizhuo on the way down to Chiayi. You could also use this itinerary to see how to visit Alishan first then Fenqihu AND Shizhuo on the way down.
Day One: Xiding or Shizhuo
On the first day, take a bus from Chiayi HSR or Chiayi station to your choice of Xiding (for Eyanping Trail) or Shizhuo.
I understand this can be a tough choice, as they are both quite similar. Xiding has the excellent Sunsweet Hotel (Booking / Agoda), which has amazing views but is not cheap.
Besides that hotel, there are only a few others. Shizhuo, by contrast, has over a dozen guesthouses of varying prices and most are run by tea farming families. Shizhuo also has restaurants while Xiding has almost none (Sunsweet provides meals).
Xiding only has two trails (Eryanping Trail and the connecting Tea and Mist trail), but they are beautiful and offer both sunset and sunrise views. Shizhuo has five connecting tea trails but only sunset views.
Whichever one you choose, after checking in, hit the trails and enjoy the sunset. Note that the trails in both villages are steep and have lots of stairs.
Pro tip: For visitors with young kids, consider spending the night in Fenqihu instead. Fenqihu has easier trails for kids and fireflies at night.
I recommend Fenqihu Hotel (Booking / Agoda), which also offers a free firefly walking tour. See pics of my kids in Fenqihu.
Day 2: Alishan
If you stayed in Xiding, consider doing Eryanping or Tea & Mist trail again for the sunrise (which is a totally different direct and view from sunset). The weather is often better in the morning, too.
If you stayed in Shizhuo, there’s no sunrise viewpoint, but early morning is often the clearest and most beautiful, so you may want to hit the trails again before leaving.
Catch a late morning bus from either village to Alishan (can’t book, swipe EasyCard).
Then follow my directions in the previous sections for entering the park, dropping luggage at your hotel, exploring the park, and watching sunset.
Day 3: Sunrise and Fenqihu
Again, follow my instructions in previous sections for waking early, hiking or taking the Chushan train to see the sunrise, and doing a little more hiking before checking out.
And just like I described in the two-day itinerary, take the 10:10 AM bus to Fenqihu, stop there for lunch and a hike in the bamboo forest.
Then take the 14:35 train (essential to book, two weeks in advance) or 15:10 bus (can’t book, swipe EasyCard) back to Chiayi.
Coming from Sun Moon Lake
The above itinerary won’t really work if you’re taking the bus from Sun Moon Lake to Alishan, but you can make it work with some slight adjustments.
On Day 1, you’ll take the 8 AM bus from Sun Moon Lake and arrive at Alishan around 11:00. Then you can follow all my instructions for entering the park, checking in, exploring the park, and watching sunset.
On Day 2, follow my instructions for watching the sunrise. But here’s where it differs. In winter (when you will have less time to make it to Shizhuo before sunset), try to catch the earlier (9:10 AM bus) from Alishan to Fenqihu. You’ll get to Fenqihu at 10:00.
Then, after exploring Fenqihu and having lunch there, catch a bus from from Fenqihu to Shizhuo (depart 15:10, arrive 15:20).
That will get you to Shizhuo early enough to check in and do some quick hiking before sunset. In summer, you’ll have more time (later sunset), but in winter, you’ll be a little more rushed.
On Day 3, you can do some more hiking in Shizhuo before taking a bus back to Chiayi.
What if you are going to Sun Moon Lake AFTER Alishan? Well, then you can essentially do all of the above in reverse.
Alishan Region in Four Days (Three Nights)?
While it’s easy enough to fit in the highlights of Alishan region in three days, as I described in the previous section, there would be no harm in staying longer, especially if this region really interests you.
One reason more time is always good is that Alishan weather is notoriously unpredictable and often foggy.
I have been to several Alishan (or Eryanping or Shizhuo) sunrises or sunsets where I saw nothing, because I was literally inside a cloud. But sometimes, the next day or two days later, I saw an amazing one at the same spot.
If you really want a better chance of seeing a nice sunrise or sunset, then plan to try several times. The more days you spend in the region, the better chance you’ll have of good weather.
One way to plan a four-day (3-night) itinerary would be to spend one night in Xiding or Shizhuo, one night in Fenqihu, and one night in Alishan. Fenqihu is quite small, but it has enough trails (plus fireflies at night!) to justify staying overnight.
Another way you might plan this is to follow my three-day itinerary exactly, except add a second night at Alishan.
Do this if Alishan is a major priority for you and you want time to explore some of the more off-the-beaten-track trails there, such as Shuishan Trail, Duigaoyue Trail, Tatashan Trail, and especially for the full-day Mianyue Line (permit required), or if you want to have two tries seeing the sunset there.
I hope this information helps. As always, if you need further clarification or want to get feedback on your itinerary, please share it in my Taiwan Travel Planning group and I’ll do my best!
Kudos Nick for this very helpful and informative blog on Alishan. Grateful to have stumbled upon your blogs and FB group. A big help indeed for my Taiwan trip this coming April. I’m planning for a day trip to Alishan, You nentioned about Shuishan Giant Tree trail and I’m interested in walking this trail. But given the time constraints of a day trip, is it still doable to also walk along the flower trails and Sister Pond trail and also do Shuishan? Or I really need to forego one of these trails given the limited time ? Thank you very much!
You could easily do the flower trails, Sister Pond trail, and Shuishan Trail in a day trip. The flower trails are very short (like 15 minutes) and close to Chaoping train station. Shuishan Trail also starts near Chaoping Trail and takes 60-90 minutes return. And please note, most of the trail is currently closed, with expected reopening time being March 9, 2025. And Sister Pond Trail also starts near Chaoping Station and takes maybe 30 minutes return. If you are going before March 9, then I suggest you do the flower trails, Sister Pond, and Giant Tree trail instead, as I outline in this article. Also note, if you are visiting in March or April, this is the busiest time of the year at Alishan due to cherry blossoms, so booking your buses in advance is recomemnded.
Thank you for this informative guide. We are currently planning to go to Alishan in late March, stopping for one night in Fenqihu and continuing on to Alishan the next day, and staying at Alishan Hotel the second night. I have two questions.
First: if we aren’t planning on catching the sunrise, is there another relatively short hike/activity you would recommend for our final morning before leaving Alishan? E.g., Shuishan Trail (assuming open), or anything else?
Second: we want to return to Taipei from Alishan. Is the most efficient way to do that via private transfer? (We are OK paying the cost.) If so, is that something we can ask Alishan Hotel to arrange, or something that can be booked via Tripool or through one of your recommended drivers?
Thank you!
Yes, Shuishan would be a good option for that day. Others include Sister Pond Trail and Giant Tree Trail (if you didn’t do it the day before). And yet another is Tashan Trail. This is a longer one (but you only need to go as far as you want). It starts near Chaopoing Station, and there is a train connecting Sister Pond trail to it. For getting back to Taipei, the fastest way would be bus (or private transfer) to Chiayi HSR station, then ride the HSR back to Taipei. That’s because HSR is so much faster than driving. Driving the whole way back could maybe be a similar amount of time, but it could also take longer. It totally depends on the traffic conditions along the way. But my guess is that once you include a few rest stops, driving would most likely take longer.
Hello Nick
I am still quite lost with regard to the bus services to Alishan! I shall be there in first week of March and putting up @ Fenchihu minshu for 5 days since I couldn’t get my accommodation last July (unbelievable!) be it Alishan, Shizhuo etc.. I have bought my tickets through Fami app to Fenchihu and return as well but is there a need to book for return trips to Eryanping, Lincuo and Shizhuo? Based on the bus time table, Fenchihu is not so convenient. Is it safe for me to walk from Shizhuo to Fenchihu if I cannot board or miss the bus? Even for Alishan timings, I reckon I have to take a bus to shizhuo and transfer to Alishan & then to arrive back in Fenchihu via Shizhuo in the evening, possibly by walking over an hour. Do give me your valuable advice. Thanks in advance.
Hi there, as I mention in my guide to booking the bus tickets, you can only reserve bus tickets starting from Chiayi or Alishan. If you’re getting on the bus at Fenqihu or any of those other small stops, you can’t reserve that. The only way is to swipe EasyCard. If you said you already booked the ticket from Fenqihu, that’s not possible, so maybe you booked a longer one or something – either way, they won’t say an empty seat for you on a packed bus. The only exception is if you booked bus 7302, which only goes from Chiayi to Fenqihu (no Alishan) – so for that one, because Fenqihu is the first/last stop, it’s possible to book it online. If you booked the 7322 or 7329 (Chiayi to Alishan buses) and hope to board at Fenqihu, that’s not allowed (the driver may let you on anyways, but you wouldn’t have a reserved seat).
Yes, you can walk from Shizhuo to Fenqihu or vice versa. But the walk would be along the highway, with cars driving by. I think it’s still safe enough, but you’d want to be careful. And the road is uphill from Shizhuo to Fenqihu, so that would be a more difficult one hour climb. Walking from Fenqihu down to Shizhuo would be easier. Having said that, most people are able to get on the bus most of the time. Even if seats fill up, you can still get on and stand.
Hello Nick. I can’t even tell you how many times I’ve come back to this blog 😅 as a visual learner tho I’m still confused about some parts.
I’ll be staying in Alishan for three days two nights on the third week of March, however I’m not following your 3d2n itinerary here and will just be staying in Alishan. First day is arrival mid-day and then later walking to the farther out sunset viewpoint. Second day is taking the sunrise train, hiking down the zhushan sunrise trail and then..? I’m not sure what to do next because my only plan was just to ride the hinoki train to Zhaoping when it starts running (this 2nd day is a wednesday). Should I head straight back to the Alishan center after sunrise trail and then take the hinoki train up again later and when I arrive in Zhaoping, do the Sister Pond and Giant Tree trail? This is a loop right? Is this a different giant tree trail from Shuishan Giant Tree trail? Alternatively, would you suggest I do the hikes when I reach Zhaoping from the sunrise trail? If so, are there other trails within the forest recreation area that I can do later in the day? (I’m assuming the sunrise and giant tree loop trails can all be finished before 11 am even if I take my time).
For my last day, my bus back to Chiayi is at 11:40 am. If I’m unlucky with the sunrise the day before, I might do the sunrise train again. Are there any other must see/do hikes and spots that I can fit before leaving?
Hi Nick, your articles helped us a lot to arrange our Taiwan trip (Fenqihu, Alishan and Tainan). Thanks so much! The info about bus schedule and accommodation is very useful. We stayed in the hotels mentioned in your articles. They are all very satisfying.
Btw, you know the title of the song (by a girl) played on the sunrise Alishan train ?
Hi Nick, Thank you for this nice and informative guide. Very inspiring.
We planned to visit Alishan this spring by car. Our son has difficulty walking and uses a wheelchair for longer walks. Is it still possible to visit this beautiful area? I see a lot of stairs during the walks? is it possible to get to nice places by car?
Thanks for advise
Hi Nick
Very detail and informative blog.
But may I ask whether we can drive to either Xiaoliyuanshan viewpoint or Duigaoyue Sunrise Platform? Should I pay entrance fee of Alishan park by going to that spot?
If possible, where should I park the car?
Thanks a lot in advance
You aren’t allowed to drive to those spots. Only hiking, riding the sunrise train, or in the daytime there’s a small electric bus from the Vistor’s Center. If you drive to Alishan, you will need to pay parking fee (100 per car + 300 per person entrance fee), park your car in the big lot, then hike or take the train/bus to these spots. The large parking lot is in the tourist village just inside the gate, here: https://maps.app.goo.gl/BJpkyfcjpMoeR1HRA
Visiting Alishan with wheelchair would be more challenging but not impossible.
On the drive up, there are some small scenic stops where you can just stop to take a quick view of the scenery. On GoogleMaps, search “Xiding Lookout” and “Xiding Xiangshan Lookout”. You’ll see others. It’s also possible to drive a small car (super narrow road) up to Eryanping Lookout on weekdays only. The pin is called “Kabudol Paradise Sea of clouds” on GoogleMaps. Yet another is “Dingshizhao Lookout” overlooking the tea farms in Shizhuo – a very small detour off the highway but worth it. In Alishan park, you can drop people right at the hotel by car and most hotels have parking spaces nearby. However, from the hotels, you need to walk upstairs to the tourist village (restaurants, shops, and large public parking lot) and from there up another big staircase to Alishan train station. Alternatively, you can walk up the car road to both, but it’s a little longer and uphill. Alternatively, you could drive your son to the train station, drop him, and then that person could return the car to the lot and walk up to meet you. The train stations and train itself are wheelchair friendly. Ride the train to Chaoping station and there are some short trails around the station there. The most popular, Sister Pond Trail, has some stairs on it but not many. You could also do the Chushan sunrise train for going to the sunrise viewpoint, which again should be wheelchair friendly, but again you’d need to get to the station in the early morning. Buy tickets for the sunrise train one day before at Alishan train station.
Sorry, I’m not sure! I’m going soon, though, so I will listed for it! Feel free to ask in my Taiwan Travel Planning group on Facebook, as others might know.
Hi Nick, just wanted to thank you for your guide. I have just come back from Alishan and it was great!
For anyone taking the bus from and back to Chiayi HSR, do book the bus tickets as the they were already full on March 10th. The bus driver going up did not allow anyone standing, but the one going down did, probably because there were so many people waiting!
Thanks for the tip!
Hi, sorry for the late comment approval. If you’re still trying to figure this out: After sunrises, if you want to kill some time, there are food stalls and a tea shop up by the sunrise viewpoint there. There’s also a hike up there called Duigaoyue Trail, which I think takes 1-2 hours. Or, you can walk down the sunrise trail to Chaoping, see cherry blossoms on the boardwalk trail around there, and/or walk the Sister Pond trail and come back to Chaoping – it’s not a loop trail, but you could just walk back the same way. Those are all options to fill up the time before the hinoki train starts running between Chaoping and Alishan station (Wednesdays only). Yet another option would be to ride the sunrise train back to Alishan tourist village area, have breakfast and/or rest at hotel, then set out again when the hinoki train is running. And yet another option is Shuishan Giant Tree trail, which takes about 60-90 minutes and the trailhead is also near Chaoping. Giant Tree trail, which maybe you could save for later, is a loop. Yet another hike to consider if you have more time is the longer and more difficult Tatatka trail. The trailhead is just a few minutes into Sister Pond Trail (a few minutes after Chaoping Station and Gou Hotel), on the right. You’ll see a sign and stairs going up through the forest. So overall, there are many different hike options to fill your time – the exact order you do them won’t matter too much, as everything is relatively close together and easy to reach.
cheers nick, really appreciate this blog. I’m in taiwan now and heading to alishan in 2 days. I’ve used this blog to work out buying train, bus and now another train ticket. many thanks 👍
You’re welcome, fellow blogger!
Thank you so much, Nick, for this fabulous blog! Been binge reading it !
We are planning to go to Alishan from Sun Moon Lake and spend two nights. Two questions: in your guide, you mention it’s possible to stay in Shizhuo for the second night. Can we also go to Xiding/SunSweet House?
Secondly, we planned this quite spontaneously and so couldn’t get any nice accommodation in Alishan. However, I found a nice hotel near Indigo Alishan. I remember that you mention Indigo as a good alternative Option to watch the sunrise, so I guess we are covered in that aspect, but how do we get to the hotel area? Are there public buses going to that area from Alishan? My idea was to go to Alishan from Sun Moon Lake, use the lockers for the luggage during the day and then move our stuff later to the hotel area. Do you think that will work? Thank you so much!
The scenery of Shizhuo and Xiding are similar, so sure, choose one or the other. Both are nice and both are stops on every bus from Alishan to Chiayi. Shizhuo has more (accommodations, hikes, restaurants), while Xiding is barely a village (only 1 convenience store, no restaurants, only 1 hike (Eryanping + Tea Mist trail). But SunSweet is excellent.
Indigo is already pretty close to Sunsweet. So if you stay one night in Sunsweet and one night near Indigo, you’d basically be moving between two hotels in almost the same area with similar scenery. If you’re planning to do Eryanping/Tea Mist trail for sunrise, then you already have sunrise covered. You can also walk only about 5 minutes from Sunsweet to a sunrise viewing spot. So I’m not really sure what your reason would be to move to another hotel near Sunsweet for sunrise reasons.
Alishan on the other hand is very different than all the above places. Yes, the hotels are a little older and overpriced there, but in my opinion it’s still worth considering for a night. The sunrise view there is different than the above places, too.
Thanks for all the hard work you put into this site!
I have a question regarding my first visit to Taiwan this coming November.
I am planning to spend 1 night in Alishan. I will be coming from Taipei. Initially I was thinking of stopping at Shizhuo on the way there to grab lunch and maybe do a real short hike just to get a glimpse. Leaving Alishan (on the way to Tainan) I was thinking about stopping at Fenqihu to grab a bento lunch and see the bamboo forest.
Looking at the bus schedules, I don’t think my plan going to Alishan with a stop in Shizhou would be good because if I don’t want to rush, I figure I need 2-3 hours there and won’t get to Alishan until around 3pm. In November the sun starts to set around 5, so won’t leave me much daylight.
I’m now thinking maybe I should go directly to Alishan and on the way down to Tainan, stop at Shizhou then. I would miss Fenqihu and its bamboo forest, but the trails in Shizhou all have bamboo forests too no? Do you think this is a good idea? Or should I just skip stops altogether? Is Fenqihu’s bamboo forests unique enough that I would regret it? I’m trying to see as much as possible without doing a speed run if you understand what I mean.
Thanks so much!
One consideration here is luggage. If you have any, there’s nowhere to leave it in Shizhuo, but Fenqihu has luggage storage lockers at the small train station. For Shizhuo, the hikes are quite short – you could hike Mist Trail and see Dingshizhao Lookout and be back to the bus stop in about one hour. There’s a small section of bamboo at the top of Mist Trail, but the tea plantation views are the more impressive thing here. The bamboo forests in Fenqihu look similar but are larger, with more bamboo, so the bamboo is the main focus. I hope this helps!
Hello, what would you recommend as best lookout to try to catch the sea clouds? I noticed you don’t mention them anywhere. Looking the map from alishan’s website, and our accomodation choices, it seems that they can be seen from several of the lookouts near xiding, on googlemaps, i’ve seen people post photos at the ”Kabudol Paradise Sea of clouds” lookout and 隙頂二延平步道觀雲平台 next to it. But I am unsure if they actually took the seacloud photos from there, or just posted all photos to same review. Can you validate this? Also, what happens to be chances of being able to catch them in late october?
ps: I won the Klook voucher from the newsletter contest, might be using it for the Alishan portion of our trip 🙂
Hi Karen, I don’t have a newsletter, I think you are confusing me with Neil from the other website and group (it happens a lot). 隙頂二延平步道觀雲平台 is Eryanping Trail – I have a whole article about that spot on this website, just search for Eryanping. And yes, that is a good spot to see the sea of clouds (but please note, sea of clouds is a little rare, so you need to be lucky to see it. I’ve tried many times, but only saw good ones a couple times). Also note that Eryanping is a small village on the way to Alishan, but it’s not in Alishan park. In the above article, I recommend spending 1 night at Eryanping (or Shizhuo) and then one night at Alishan, because the two are quite different.
Inside Alishan park, it’s also possible to see sea of clouds at the sunset viewing locations and sunrise viewing locations. The typical sunrise viewing location is Chushan, and that’s where the trail takes people in the early morning, so it’s packed with tourists. But you can also walk from there to two other sunrise viewing spots, Duigaoyue or Xiaoliyuanshan, both about 10 minutes walk, and far less people.
Hi Nick! Is it easy to find an Uber or LINE GO to get around the Fenqihu, Shizhuo, and Xiding area?
P.S. Sorry about the previous duplicate comment – I think I accidentally posted my Taroko question in the Alishan section!
No, it’s not common, because those are remote mountain villages. Taxis and Ubers are in the big cities of Taiwan. For that area, you’ll need to rely on buses, ask your hotel if they can find a driver for you, or arrange a driver (for example via Tripool) in advance.
Hi Nick! Thanks again for the excellent content on your site.
I’m planning a 4 day/3 night trip (March 16-19) to Alishan area, but me and my girlfriend want to see (almost) everything, including Mianyue Line, Fenqihu, Shizhuo and Xiding. We’re planning 1 night in Alishan + 2 nights in Shizhuo. We prefer 2 nights there over Alishan (Shizhuo is cheaper and we prefer more sunset/sunrise opportunities there) or Fenqihu (we are not interested in fireflies). Does this itinerary seem feasible?
Day 1: arrive from Sun Moon Lake, explore Alishan park (as per your 2-week paid itinerary). Sleep in Alishan.
Day 2: very early start. Sunrise in Zhushan/Xiaoliyuanshan, then hike Mianyue Line (start around 7 AM, aiming for bridge 22 at most to save some time). Return to the hotel, pick up the luggage and take a bus to Shizhuo (around 3 or 4 PM). Check into a hotel near Sunset Trail (e.g. Aliscenery B&B, with pre-arranged driver to pick us up in the bus stop) and watch the sunset from Sunset Trail. Sleep in Shizhuo.
Day 3: super early start again. Sunrise at Sunset Trail, hike down Sakura Trail and take the 8:40 AM bus to Fenqihu. Explore Fenqi/Logging/Cedar trails, 1912 Shed, Old Street. Take the 3:10 PM bus to Xiding to hike the Eryanping and Tea and Mist Trails for the sunset. Come back to Shizhuo with a driver pre-arranged by our hotel. Sleep in Shizhuo.
Day 4: maybe this day doesn’t need a super early start again (but may be nice to watch sunrise from Dingshizhuo Lookout?). Checkout and leave the luggage at the hotel. Focus on the Shizhuo area: Wufeng Temple, Dingshizhuo Lookout and then the Mist, Tea, and Cloud trails. Return to B&B, get luggage, take a late afternoon bus (or Tripool car even later) to Chiayi and head to Kaohsiung by train that night.
Appreciate your time and any insights you might have!
I’ve replied to your post in my Facebook group.
Hi Nick
Thank you for this information. I was keen to spend two nights in Alishan as a base and I like the idea of visiting Fenqihu for a few hours on my way back to Chiayi.
However, is there somewhere to store luggage in Fenqihu?
Yes, there are luggage lockers in Fenqihu train station. You can see a photo and description of them in my Fenqihu guide.
Hi Nick,
Is it possible to visit Tsou veoveoana Cultural and Creative Park using buses on a two-nights trip (Alishan and Fenqihu)?
Hello, do i hike from Zhushan Station to Duigaoyue Sunrise Platform or is there a nearer train station for the sunsrise?
Yes, all buses from Chiayi Station and Chiayi HSR to Fenqihu and Alishan will pass by this center. The bus stop name is Chukou Visitor Center. You can use GoogleMaps for the timings. I haven’t personally visited this center, so I can’t say how good it is.
Zhushan Station is the nearest. After getting off at Zhushan, there are three options. Zhushan Platform is right there, but it’s the most crowded. Xiaoliyuanshan is 10 minutes hike uphill, while Duigaoyue is 10 minutes downhill – walk down the paved car road, then turn right at the point where the train tracks cross the road. You can also just hike from your hotel all the way to Duigaoyue, but it would be an uphill hike mostly in the dark.
Hi Nick, I think someone mentioned in the FB group the 7-11 in the bus transfer station has closed (it’s now vacant).
However I found a 7-11 on the top (2F) of the row of shops in the shopping area when you first enter the park, after paying for tickets.
To find the 7-11; when you walk towards the road from Alishan train station and cross the zebra crossing, go down the steps, enter the first covered block of shops on the right hand side, walk to the end and walk up the stairs and the 7-11 will be behind you on your right.
Also my memory may not be right but I remember you can tag onto a bus with an Easycard if you have positive balance but not enough for the whole ride. The second to last bus departing from Alishan had someone without enough balance to cover the whole trip and the bus driver declined them and they had to pay in cash (no change given). It’s $283 from Alishan to Chiayi HSR.
Hope this helps!
Hi Nick!
We’re going to be staying in Alishan for one night at the end of November and will probably follow your 2 day itinerary with the stop in Fenqi.
Will walking/running shoes be ok? Or do we need hiking boots?
We’ll be using one of the driver services you suggested with Anda Travel, so thanks for suggesting them!
Thanks for your comment, Alice! Yes, I’m aware of the other 7-Eleven at Alishan and I mention it several times in the above article. As for the EasyCard situation, the card will let you go to a negative balance of -60. So for example, if you ride the Taipei MRT, and you only have +5, it will still work, because the longest possible MRT ride costs 60. However, for the Alishan bus, it’s different, because the bus ride costs 283. So the bus driver wouldn’t let someone swipe with a very low balance, because at the end of the ride, it would go to much lower than -60. I hope that makes sense!
I feel that regular walking or running shoes are good enough for all the main trails in Alishan and Fenqihu. Just be careful with shoes that don’t have good grip on the bottom. Some trails can get a little slippery when wet.
Important info re bus tickets: booking a seat on the bus from Chiyai to Alishan does not guarantee you a seat on the bus. We had booked seats but people got on before us and took them and driver refused to give us our seats. Argued with several people forever but got nowhere. It’s purely first come first serve. Standing here now at the bus stop and can confirm this is normal from talking to others. What a BS system!
Can you please confirm, do you book via the FamilyMart system or on Klook? The former absolutely should give you a reserved seat, and you should even have known your seat numbers from the booking. If you booked on Klook, that’s a voucher to board the bus but not a seat booking.
We had tickets through FamilyMart, printed in advance. Specific assigned seats (930 bus from Chiyai HSR seats 7a, 7b, 9c,9d. Driver confirmed yes the tickets were valid, but someone got on ahead of us and sat in them. He said it would not be fair to move them as they got on before us, and we should just wait for the next bus.
Also worth noting that the morning train (only one while we were here) does indeed sell out quite quickly. Many people were turned away and sent to the shuttle bus so definitely get your tickets the day before.
Oh, well then that sucks. Sorry to hear that happened!
Hi Nick,
first of all, big thank you for your great overview here on your website.
I have spent several hours of planning and at the end we (myself, my wife and our 9 months old son) are staying 2 nights in Shizhou (Dec. 11-13). We will probably take the 7am bus from Chiayi to Alishan, store the luggage there, spend some hours hiking and then go back for check in and Sunset in Shizhou.
Not clear is the 2nd day. Is it worth to go to Eryanping area (Sunrise seem to be difficult, maybe daylight or Sunset instead?) or is it very similar to Shizhou and not worth the extra transfers via bus?
Thanks!
The scenery of Eryanping is very similar to Shizhuo, so I wouldn’t bother doing both. The main benefit of Eryanping is that it has a sunrise viewpoint (which requires 1.5 hours hike, with lots of stairs), while Shizhuo doesn’t have a direct sunrise viewpoint. But if you’re staying in Shizhuo, there’s no way to get over to Eryanping that early. So personally I would just stick with Shizhuo and enjoy the sunsets there. If you want to visit another place on Day 2, I would recommend Fenqihu, which is a short bus ride from Shizhuo but totally different, with trails through cypress and bamboo forests and old street with interesting foods. Also heads up, for Shizhio, depending which hotel you chose, it may be a bit of an uphill hike from bus stop to hotel.
Hey Nick! Do you think it’s possible to take the bus from Chiayi to Fenqihu. Spend the night in Fenqihu. Take morning bus to Alishan. Spend the day hiking around Alishan, then take the afternoon bus to Xiding to spend the night? I just don’t think we want to spend the night in Alishan
Yep, that definitely works! And you can find lockers inside Alishan Bus Station and Alishan train station if you want to store your luggage while you are there.
If I am coming from SML on Monday with the 8AM bus, is it doable to explore Alishan somewhat and then take either the 4:10 or 4:50 bus to Shizhuo to check in there before sunset?
Alishan accommodations are either raising red flags or out of my budget (at least the ones who have rooms available to book in April rn) XD
Yes, this is certainly doable. On arrival at Alishan, you can put your luggage into lockers at the bus or train stations, then spend about 3 hours exploring the park as outlined in my day trip itinerary. Getting to Shizhuo in time for sunset will be tight but possible. For example, with the 4:10 bus time, you’ll arrive in Shizhuo at 4:50. Then, depending on where you stay there, it may be a 15 to 30 minute walk to your guesthouse (none of them are really close to the bus stop), while a few do offer pickup. And then a little more time to walk to a sunset viewpoint. Sunset is around 6 PM in April, and the best colors are usually 15-30 minutes before the actually sunset time, so that really doesn’t leave much time. If catching sunset is a priority, choose one of the guesthouses which are close to the sunset viewpoints, such as Green Incense. That one isn’t too far of walk from the bus stop (maybe 15 minutes), then you can walk just 5 minutes from it to Dingshizhao Lookout, which offers sunset view.
Hi Nick! Thank you so much for this information. I have a few quick questions.
1) I want to verify that there’s no problem taking a small roller suitcase (carryon size) and backpack on the smaller buses (from Sun Moon Lake to Alishan and then from Alishan to Shizhuo)? I have experienced buses in other countries that don’t allow these items.
2) I will be coming from Sun Moon Lake on 8 am bus to Alishan then staying 2 nights at a hotel in Alishan. Once I check out of the hotel, I was planning on visiting Fenqihu and staying one night in Shizhuo before heading to Chiayi. I was looking at a map and if I understand the bus route correctly, from Alishan the first stop is Shizhuo. and it continues on to Fenqihu? I am thinking about getting off the bus and check into my hotel so I can get rid of my luggage. Then go back on the bus to Fenqihu? The reason I’m not sure if this idea can work is because there are limited buses from my understanding. Is it a better idea to take bus straight from Alishan to Fenqihu with luggage, store luggage in locker, explore Fenqihu and take bus back to Shizhuo?
Thank you for your time! I really appreciate reading about these places and can’t wait to see them in real life.
Hello Nick!
What kind of information could you offer for hitchhiking between Alisan and the lower villages? I find it hard to plan perfectly with the buses, my accommodation will be in Xiding, and I thought since this is a touristic road with possibly lots of comers and goers, hitchhiking could be my fall-back plan in case all others fail.
Happy New Year and thank you very much.
Alexandra
I don’t have any specific information about it. It’s not common practice in Taiwan, but some people still do it, especially on more remote roads where there are no bus options. In Alishan’s case there are tons of buses and taxis, so people may be less willing to give you a ride knowing that, but you could still get lucky – no way to predict this in advance.
The buses on these routes are big buses now with luggage storage compartments below, so you’re good!
For buses going down from Alishan to Chiayi, every single bus passes by Shizhuo. But only a few per day make the small detour to Fenqihu, which is off the main highway. So please check the bus schedule carefully here: https://www.taiwanobsessed.com/chiayi-to-alishan-bus-schedule/
For a short visit in Fenqihu (one hour, just to have lunch on the old street), take the 9:10 bus from Alishan to Fenqihu, visit for one hour, then 11:10 bus from Fenqihu to Shizhuo. Since the time is short, I suggest just carrying your luggage with you on the old street.
For a longer visit in Fenqihu (four hours, time for hiking and enjoying the old street more deeply), take the 10:10 bus from Alishan to Fenqihu, put your luggage in lockers in Fenqihu train station, enjoy the hikes and old street, then bus from Fenqihu to Shizhuo at 15:10.