Neiwan Old Street (內灣老街) in Hsinchu county is one of my personal favorite old streets in Taiwan. This is a totally off-the-beaten track alternative to touristy ones like Jiufen Old Street and Shifen Old Street, and can also be done as a day trip from Taipei.
Here you’ll find a wide variety of Hakka foods (including the rare chance to make and try Hakka pounded tea), lovely sceny, a historic theater, and a suspension bridge.
Half the fun is getting there. By public transportation, you can ride the Neiwan Line, a non-touristy alternative to the Alishan Forest Railway.
With a car, you can add nearby attractions like Lavender Forest and Jianshi Hot Spring. Even without a car, you get a taste of Jianshi at the gorgeous Hui Lai Hot Spring Resort (會來尖石溫泉渡假村, see on Booking / Agoda), which offers free pick-up from Neiwan.
One of my family’s favorite weekend getaways from Taipei is to drive to Neiwan Old Street for food then go camping or stay in a hot spring hotel in Jianshi district after. We have done this half a dozen times.
Neiwan Old Street Introduction
Neiwan (內灣, literally “inner bay”) is located in the hills southeast of Hsinchu city center.
During the Japanese colonial period in Taiwan (1895 to 1945) and the decade after, Neiwan village was the center of a thriving forestry and mining industry. The village lies at the gateway to the forests, mineral-rich mountains, and Atayal aboriginal tribes of Jianshi county.
In 1948, Neiwan Theater (內灣戲院) was constructed to provided entertainment in the form of plays, Taiwanese opera performances, and films to the workers.
Today it is one of the best-known and best-preserved historic theaters in Taiwan.
In 1951, the Neiwan Line from Hsinchu station to Neiwan was completed for transporting workers and materials in and out of the region.
With the subsequent decline of the forestry and mining industries in Taiwan, Neiwan also went into decline.
In the early 2000s, Neiwan was reborn as a tourist destination. The Neiwan Railway Line now transports mostly domestic tourists to and from Neiwan.
The bustling Neiwan Old Street runs the entire length of the village. It is lined with hundreds of shops and stalls featuring specialties of the local Hakka people, who make up 15-20% of Taiwan’s total population.
When to Go: Since the vast majority of visitors to Neiwan are Taiwanese, the old street is much busier on weekends and quieter on weekdays.
It’s open every day, but some stalls might take a break on certain weekdays. Come on a weekday for a quieter experience or on the weekend to find the market bustling and everything open (I recommend the latter).
Check GoogleMaps for the opening days and times of individual stalls.
Riding the Neiwan Line to Neiwan Old Street
The Neiwan Railway Line (內灣線) is the best way to get to Neiwan. The 13-station line is operated by Taiwan Railways and starts at Hsinchu Station. It sometimes but not always is pulled by the old-school black locomotive shown in the above photo.
You may start your ride on the Neiwan Line at Hsinchu Station (the 1st station) if coming to Hsinchu by regular train. This way will be cheaper but slower.
You may also start from Zhuzhong Station (the 5th station) if coming to Hsinchu by HSR. This way will cost a little more but get you to Neiwan faster. I’ll introduce both ways below.
Coming By Regular Train
Expect it to take 2.5 to 3 hours to travel from Taipei to Neiwan by regular train.
Trains from Taipei Main Station to Hsinchu Station take 60 to 100 minutes. The fastest ones need to be reserved while slower ones don’t. Search the times here and find out exactly which ones need to be booked in my train booking guide.
For the one-hour Neiwan Line ride from Hsinchu to Neiwan, search the times on the same website. However, you’ll found there are only 7 direct trains per day on weekdays and 4 on weekends, and the times aren’t very convenient.
Here is the trick: you will find many more departure options if you break the Neiwan Line ride into two legs. First, search Hsinchu to Zhuzhong (the 5th stop). For this, you’ll find departures every 30 minutes or so.
Then you’ll need to change to a different train from Zhuzhong to Neiwan, which also has frequent departures. This is because Zhuzhong is a kind of transfer station with connections to Hsinchu HSR station (see below), so many trains start and end here.
The Neiwan Line is a local type train, so that means you can just swipe EasyCard or buy a ticket in cash from the machine or counter in the station to ride it.
If you’re coming from Taipei also by local train, then you can swipe your EasyCard to enter the station in Taipei, and you don’t need to swipe out until you reach your final destination (Neiwan).
However, if you get reserved seats on a faster train from Taipei to Hsinchu, then at Hsinchu station, you’ll have to exit the station (deposit your ticket into the machine when leaving), then re-enter the platforms by swiping your EasyCard or purchasing a ticket for the Neiwan Line.
Overall, compared to the HSR option (see below), taking the regular train to Hsinchu and starting the Neiwan Line from there will save you TWD 113 to 176 (depending which train you take from Taipei to Hsinchu), and the same thing going back.
However, it adds 35 minutes to 75 minutes of traveling time on your journey to Neiwan (depending on which train you catch to Hsinchu), and the same thing going back.
Coming by HSR
Taking the HSR can get you from Taipei to Neiwan in about 2 hours.
In other words, taking the HSR from Taipei to Hsinchu will save you 35 to 70 minutes on your trip to Neiwan, but will cost you 113 to 176 more, each way.
For this route, ride the HSR from Taipei to Hsinchu (35 minutes, TWD 290). As to whether you need to book it in advance or not, read this section of my HSR booking guide (the quick answer is that personally I wouldn’t bother). But if you do, book your HSR tickets on Klook to get a discount.
At Hsinchu HSR stations, follow the signs to Liujia station and ride the short Liujia Line (4 minutes) to Zhuzhong Station. This is also a local type train, so you can swipe EasyCard to enter or buy a ticket from the machine or window in cash at the station.
At Zhuzhong Station, transfer to the Neiwan Line and ride it to Neiwan station (40 minutes). You can swipe out with your EasyCard once you arrive at Neiwan.
From Other Cities in Taiwan
If you’re already in Hsinchu city center, it will make sense to start the Neiwan Line at Hsinchu station. If you happen to live in Zhubei (the location of the Hsinchu HSR station), then ride the Lujia Line to Zhuzhong station and board the Neiwan Line there.
Coming from Taichung, it’s very similar to coming from Taipei. The HSR method will get you there slightly faster but cost slightly more.
From cities further south, like Chiayi, Tainan, or Kaohsiung, the differences will be bigger – taking the HSR will cost quite a bit more, but will save you quite a bit more time.
Spending the night: While most people do Neiwan as a day trip, if you want to spend the night, Wan Yu (Booking / Agoda) is a simple B&B in town. But we prefer staying in one of the hot spring hotels in Jianshi district nearby.
Hui Lai Hot Spring Resort (會來尖石溫泉渡假村, see on Booking / Agoda) is the best one and offers free pickup from Neiwan. See the end of the article of my Jianshi guide for more info.
Arriving at Neiwan Old Street
If you drive to Neiwan (see my guide to driving in Taiwan), park in this parking lot at the bottom of the village. Then walk up Datong Road, which is lined with shops and food stalls, into the village where it meets Zhongzheng Road (the main street of Neiwan Old Street).
If you’re coming with kids, you’ll find a large area of games and rides (see “Other Things to Do in Neiwan” section below) just below the parking lot.
If you come on the Neiwan Line, you’ll arrive at the lovely Neiwan Station, which dates to 1951 and is here right next to Neiwan Old Street.
From there, Neiwan Old Street (Zhongzheng Road) stretches about 200 meters south to the the highway and 400 meters north to Neiwan Fude Temple (內灣村福德祠, here).
You could go either direction first – it doesn’t really matter. If you go south first, when you reach the highway, cross it to access Neiwan Suspension Bridge. When you go north from the station, don’t miss Neiwan Theater (I’ll describe both of these more below).
Budget 2-3 hours to fully explore Neiwan Old Street area, depending on how slow or fast your group is.
What to Eat on Neiwan Old Street
Neiwan Old Street is one of the best places in Taiwan to taste Hakka foods. The Hakka are a formerly nomadic people (hence the name 客家人 (ke jia ren) or “guests”), originally from Central China.
They are known for their hearty cuisine meant to fill up after a hard day of work, and for their unique pounded tea.
In my personal opinion, the food on Neiwan Old Street is much better than what you’ll find on the tourist old streets like Jiufen and Shifen!
Hakka Pounded Tea
Neiwan Old Street is one of the few places in Taiwan that visitors try making and drinking this unique beverage.
Called 擂茶 (lei cha) or “pounded tea”, the drink is made by pounding roasted tealeaves with a variety of grains, nuts, seeds, and herbs using a mortar and pestle, then adding hot water to it. It can be served hot or cold.
Leicha often comes with puffed rice on top and is best served with freshly made mochi (麻糬) coated in peanut powder, another Hakka specialty.
When in Neiwan, we always stop for leicha at A Zhu’s Hakka Pounded Tea (阿珠客家擂茶, here at the far northern end of the old street) and I highly recommend it.
For TWD 200 per person, you can learn how to make lei cha yourself in the DIY experience. It’s not on the menu, so you just have to ask.
If you don’t do the DIY experience, you can just order a pounded tea (TWD 80) like we did and they will make it for you.
An order of mochi is also TWD 80 and I totally recommend it. In the traditional manner, it comes as a large blob and you have to use chopsticks to separate it into bite-sized pieces.
The mochi we had was so fresh that it was still warm. The peanut powder is sweet and a hint salty. Together with the thick pounded tea drink, this is practically a meal!
You can also buy tins of pounded tea to take home for TWD 500.
I’ve never tried it, but there’s another Hakka pounded tea stall here closer to the center of the old street which also offers the DIY pounding experience.
Brown Sugar Cake
Another Hakka specialty you’re sure to see on Neiwan Old Street is brown sugar cake (黑糖糕 – in Mandarin it’s “black sugar cake”). Locals compare the bumpy texture of the cake’s surface to a peony flower.
These round, chewy cakes are made from ground rice flour and brown sugar. They can be plain or topped with ingredients like smoked longan (桂圓), dried cranberry (蔓越莓), sesame seeds (芝麻), dried mango (芒果), cheese (起司), or chocolate (巧克力).
It’s hard to miss the photogenic round pans of cake on display, but if you want to seek it out, there are brown sugar cake stalls here, here, here, and here.
Interesting note: a very similar cake is considered a specialty of the Penghu islands. See photos of the Penghu version here.
Hakka Dried Tofu
My personal favorite food in Neiwan and other Hakka communities is Hakka dried tofu (豆乾 or dou gan).
The English translation “dried” is not the best here. Dougan comes in many shapes, textures, flavors, and levels of dryness or wetness. It can range from little cubes or sticks that are as dry and chewy as rubber to big pieces that are still wet after marinating in sauce.
The dried tofu at Neiluwan Braised Foods (內滷灣滷味, here near Neiwan Theater) is considered the best in Neiwan. Their dougan is braised in broth until the skin becomes black. It is juicy when served and incredibly flavorful.
They also have braised eggs, chicken feet, and the like. Here’s a Mandarin blog about the stall with lots of photos of it.
On previous visits to Neiwan, we’ve bought other kinds of dried tofu, but I can’t find the stalls on GoogleMaps.
Note: the best Hakka-style dried tofu I’ve had in Taipei is at this stall in Shilin Night Market (click here and scroll down a bit), while other Hakka old streets like Nanzhuang Old Street, Daxi Old Street, and Beipu Old Street are also known for their dried tofu.
Hakka Tang Yuan and Ban Tiao
It’s most common to see tang yuan (湯圓 or “glutinous rice balls”) as a sweet food. They may be served coated in sugar, on top of shaved ice, or in a hot, sweet soup.
However, on Neiwan Old Street, you can also find the savoury version. At Hakka restaurants like this one, you can order tang yuan in a salty, meaty soup (客家鹹湯圓).
This restaurant any many others also also serve the signature Hakka ban tiao (半條 or “wide rice noodles”).
Other Foods
The foods I’ve introduced above are just the tip of the iceberg of what you’ll see at Neiwan Old Street.
I loved the all-vegan luwei (滷味 or “braised foods”) at this stall near the southern end of the street. Luwei is a type of street food where a variety of items (like tofu, veggies, and normally meats) are marinated in soy sauce and various herbs.
You take your pick of ingredients and they dress them up with more sauce and spices for you to eat on site or take away in a bag. This was the perfect take-away meal for me, but I forgot to get a photo of it…
Several stalls on Neiwan Old Street sell zongzi (粽子 or “sticky rice dumplings”). Normally associated with Dragon Boat Festival in Taiwan, in Neiwan they sell them year round.
At Master Peng’s Wild Ginger Flower Zongzi (內灣彭老師野薑花粽, here) on the old street, the owner puts some interesting ingredients you won’t usually find in zongzi, like wild ginger flowers (野薑花), Hakka preserved plums (客家梅乾) and red yeast rice (紅麴米).
In the below photo is baxianguo (八仙果), a traditional throat lozenge in Taiwan. They are made by smoking a whole Buddha’s hand fruit (佛手柑) with Chinese herbs.
These are great for sore throats, so I promptly bought the below bag of them.
Here are some other yummy foods we spotted on Neiwan Old Street:
Other Things to See an Do in Neiwan
Besides stuffing yourself, don’t miss these other things to see and do around Neiwan Old Street.
Neiwan Theater
Roughly in the middle of Neiwan Old Street, and just down a little alley, Neiwan Theater (內灣戲院, here) is the most well known historic structure in town.
As I described above in the article, the theater was originally built in the late 40s to early 50s for entertainment events for the many logging and mining industry workers in town.
After being closed, changing hands a few times, and undergoing a lengthy land ownership dispute, the theater was eventually renovated and reopened as a tourist restaurant.
As I write this, the theater is no longer open to the public, but can still be viewed from the outside.
There are several little gift shops around it – when we last visited, one of them was a poop-themed gift store (reminiscent of Modern Toilet in Taipei), but I’m not sure if that’s there anymore.
Pro tip: Even though Neiwan Theater is now closed, the restaurant has relocated to this newer venue beside the parking lot at the bottom of the village, and they play old-time films while you eat.
Neiwan Suspension Bridge
Most visitors to Neiwan take a stroll across Neiwan Suspension Bridge (內灣吊橋), which crosses the Youluo River just south of town.
The 147-meter bridge is for pedestrians only, and we found it sways a little when we were crossing it. To access it, just cross the highway at the southern end of the old street and you can’t miss it.
According to one of my Facebook group members, at the end of the suspension bridge, you can turn right to find a hiking trail up the mountain not shown on GoogleMaps. It starts right around here.
Neiwan Children’s Amusement Park
At the bottom of Neiwan village, just below the main vehicle parking lot, there’s an area of children’s games and rides.
Most of these are best for toddlers, such as a small train, excavators, and moving robots, but my adult Taiwanese family members enjoyed their ride of the go-karts.
Jianshi Hot Springs
Five minutes’ drive past Neiwan, Highway 60 crosses the river and travels south into the mountains of Jianshi District (尖石鄉).
We love Jianshi district and have spent numerous weekends there (twice for camping and several times for staying in B&Bs or hot spring hotels).
For more info and photos than I’ll provide here, please click over to my Jianshi guide.
Hui Lai Hot Spring Resort (會來尖石溫泉渡假村, see on Booking / Agoda) is the best in the area. The large outdoor springs feature many pools beside a small river, with a children’s water play area (non-heated, so only in warmer months).
We had a lovely stay in the cabins here, which are on the other side of the river via a suspension bridge.
If you came by train, you could walk to the resort in 45 minutes from Neiwan Old Street or call them to ask for free pickup 3 days in advance (03-584-1000 or 886-3584-1000 from abroad). The pickup location is just across the highway from the 7-Eleven here at the southern end of Neiwan Old Street.
I introduce this area in more detail in my Jianshi guide (coming soon!)
Lavender Forest Jianshi
Bout 15 minutes’ drive past Neiwan Old Street is Lavender Forest Jianshi (here, official site, Klook tickets). This is a branch of the better known Lavender Cottage in Taichung (see the Klook link for that one too).
The best time to visit here is when the lavender is blooming, usually mid-January to late March.