A Guide to Sun Link Sea (Shanlinxi) Forest Recreation Area

Shanlinxi (杉林溪) is a hidden gem in Taiwan. Its name is often poetically translated to English as the phonetically similar “Sun Link Sea”.

This remote mountain park is deep in the mountains of Nantou, Taiwan’s only landlocked county. It is known for its cascading waterfalls, misty forest trails, fresh air, and as one of the prettiest autumn foliage and cherry blossom spots in Taiwan.

A typical visit may also include stops at Checheng Old Street, Lugu tea growing area, and Xitou Monster Village on the way. It can be done as a day trip from Sun Moon Lake or from Taichung, but there’s also a hotel on site and some lovely local guesthouses and cabins nearby.

Sun Link Sea is well off the beaten track of most foreign visitors. Local elderly trekkers, on the other hand, flock to it.

In this article, I’ll tell you how to make the best of your visit to Sun Link Sea, whether you plan to drive, take a tour, or get there by public transportation.

Sun Link Sea Quick Introduction

Sun Link Sea is officially called Shanlinxi Forest Recreation Area (杉林溪森林生態渡假園區). It also goes by the name Sun Link Sea Forest and Nature Resort.

The 40-hectare park is located roughly halfway between Sun Moon Lake and Alishan, at 1600-1800 meters above sea level.

While Sun Link Sea doesn’t have the “national” status or fame of National Forest Recreation Areas like Alishan or Taipingshan, the park nevertheless rivals those more famous ones in its overall appeal and variety of natural attractions.

A few of Sun Link Sea’s waterfalls have been voted the most beautiful in all of Taiwan.

The area is known for its mist, which can sometimes totally enshroud these waterfalls, so that visitors can barely see them (this happened to me at one of them).

The combination of high elevation and misty air also means that tea grows very well around here. Shanlinxi Tea is one of the best high mountain oolong teas in Taiwan.

With subtly sweet and floral characteristics, the tea is comparable to better known high mountain oolongs like Alishan, Lishan, and Dayuling.

Meanwhile, Lugu, which all visitors will pass through on the way to Sun Link Sea, is better known for its Dong Ding oolong tea, which is more heavily roasted and thus has a toastier, nutty flavor profile.

When to Visit Sun Link Sea

Your visiting experience at Sun Link Sea will be dictated by the season, and every season comes with benefits.

Generally speaking, spring is for cherry blossoms. These usually bloom from mid-February to mid-March). When I visited in late March, I caught the tail end of the season. Find more info in my cherry blossom guide. There are several other flowers in spring, too.

Summer is best for escaping the heat of the lowlands. Sun Link Sea’s waterfalls will be the largest and most impressive at this time. There will also be more insects and butterflies (late summer for the latter).

Autumn is for fall foliage, and Sun Link Sea is one of the best places in Taiwan to see it.

Finally, winter is for tulips and plum blossoms, but has a higher chance of fog (though fog can happen in any season).

The below table is a more specific list of Sun Link Sea’s flower, foliage, and wildlife viewing by the month. These are introduced in more detail here.

January	tulips, colorful cabbage, plum blossoms, fuchsia (year-round flower)
February	tulips, cherry blossoms, colorful cabbage, plum blossoms
March	cherry blossoms, peonies, wisteria, rhododendrons
April	peonies, wisteria, rhododendrons
May	hydrangeas, Japanese snowbells
June	hydrangeas, Japanese snowbells
July	hydrangeas, insects
August	hydrangeas, butterflies, insects
September	insects, bird watching
October	bird watching, ginkgo / maple foliage
November	bird watching, ginkgo / maple / metasequoia foliage, colorful cabbage
December	metasequoia / maple foliage, colorful cabbage

Time Needed to Visit

You need a bare minimum 1.5 hours to visit the park’s top attraction, Songlong Rock Waterfall, if you take the free park shuttle there and back.

If you take the shuttle to the falls then walk back, visiting the Flower Center and a few other spots along the way, budget 3 hours.

If you want to add the hike to Qinglong Falls, the second most famous one, your total visiting time will be 4.5 hours. This is my most recommended way to visit Sun Link Sea.

If you’re a slow walker or like to visit at a leisurely pace, add even more time.

Spending the Night around Sun Link Sea

The official Sun Link Sea accommodation is here, connected to the Visitor’s Center, and can be booked here on the official park site.

Another option would be to spend the night at the much cooler Monster Hotel (see on Booking / Agoda) in Xitou Monster Village and visit Sun Link Sea from there.

There are also many lovely local guesthouses and cabins like this one, this one, this one, or this one along the highway between Lugu and Xitou.

Last but not least, we once had a great stay at this gorgeous guesthouse in Lugu area run by a man who is very passionate about tea.

Getting to Sun Link Sea

You will most likely reach Sun Link Sea from Taichung or Sun Moon Lake.

While Sun Link Sea is geographically between Sun Moon Lake and Alishan, if you’re traveling between the two, it won’t be on the way, as it’s up a totally different highway.

Driving and Tours

Driving to Sun Link Sea is the easiest way. I recommend using this link to rent a car at Taichung HSR station. See my guide to driving in Taiwan.

Sun Link Sea is a 1.5 to 2 hour-drive from Taichung or from Sun Moon Lake. Please note that the second half of the drive is extremely winding.

If you plan to visit Cingjing Farm, Hehuanshan, or Sun Moon Lake, rent your car at Taichung HSR, do those first (for 1 or 2 nights), then head to Sun Link Sea. After SLS, you could continue on to Alishan or your next destination in Taiwan.

For me, I did Sun Link Sea as a day trip by car from Sun Moon Lake.

There are several possible stops on the way to Sun Link Sea, including Checheng, Lugu, Xitou Monster Village – I’ll cover those in detail below.

You could also visit Sun Link Sea with a private driver. Try this one or see my list of private drivers.

Or you could join a Sun Link Sea and Xitou Monster Village day tour from Taichung like this one or this one.

Public Transportation

There are only three direct buses per day from Taichung to Sun Link Sea and a few from Sun Moon Lake.

From Taichung

Direct bus 6883B travels from Gancheng Nantou bus company station (here a few blocks north of Taichung train station) and Taichung HSR station to Sun Link Sea.

If you board the bus at Gancheng Nantou bus company station, go to the ticket window first (even if you plan to swipe EasyCard) and they’ll give you a number representing your spot in the line.

But heads up: demand for this bus tends to be extremely high (many locals go to Sun Link Sea for hiking). According to a reader comment (see end of article), the station told them that you need to show up more than one hour earlier to get a spot.

Taichung Gancheng Nantou	Taichung HSR	Xitou	Sun Link Sea
7:20	7:40	8:55	9:35
10:30	10:50	11:40	12:15
12:30	12:50	14:00	14:45

And here are the times coming back:

Sun Link Sea	Xitou	Taichung HSR	Taichung Gancheng Nantou
11:00	11:45	12:55	13:15
14:50	15:35	16:45	17:05
15:35	16:20	17:30	17:50

See the official bus schedule here, here, and here.

My most recommended way to visit Sun Link Sea only is to take the first bus to Sun Link Sea at 7:20 and leave on the 14:50 bus. This gives you just over five hours at the park, which is enough to see all the main spots without rushing.

You could also take the second bus at 10:30 and leave on the 15:35 bus. This gives you just over three hours at the park, which is a little short but doable if you don’t mind missing some parts of the park.

If you want to see Xitou Education Area and Xitou Monster Village on the way to Sun Link Sea, take the 7:20 bus, get off at Xitou bus stop (8:55), then get back on the bus at 11:40.

Do the nature area first because shops at Monster Village don’t open till 10. Then you’ll leave Sun Link Sea at 15:35. Personally, I feel Xitou Nature Education Area is not as impressive as Sun Link Sea, so personally I’d skip it.

If you want to see Xitou Monster Village only, do it on the way back from Sun Link Sea, so you can beat the mist at Sun Link Sea.

Take the first bus of the day to Sun Link Sea, leave on the 14:50 bus, get off at Xitou at 15:35, and then get back on the bus to Taichung at 16:20.

That gives you just under an hour – enough for a quick visit, but watch the time.

Reserving Seats on the Bus

Because Sun Link Sea is very popular among local elderly hikers and tour groups, the bus from Taichung to Sun Link Sea often sells out, even on weekdays.

Therefore, it is recommended to reserve seats on the bus from Taichung Gancheng or HSR station to Sun Link Sea.

Follow the instructions in this article, but instead of choosing a bus to Sun Moon Lake, choose 台中–溪頭 (Taichung to Xitou, see the light green button at the top of the below screenshot).

You’ll then see four possible buses you can book (also see above screenshot):  

• 干城–溪頭 (Taichung Gancheng to Xitou)
• 高鐵–溪頭 (Taichung HSR to Xitou)
• 干城–杉林溪 (Taichung Gancheng to Sun Link Sea)
• 高鐵–杉林溪 (Taichung HSR to Sun Link Sea)

Let’s say you book a bus to Xitou because you want to visit Monster Village first. When you get back on the bus to go to Sun Link Sea, your only option for the remaing journey will be to swipe EasyCard.

For the return journey, select 溪頭–台中 (Xitou to Taichung), the second button at the top.

Then you’ll see two options. 溪頭–台中 (Xitou to Taichung, choose this for going back to either Taichung HSR or Gancheng) or 杉林溪–台中 (Sun Link Sea to Taichung, also back to HSR or Gancheng).  

From Sun Moon Lake

Taking the bus from Sun Moon Lake to Sun Link Sea is a little more complicated because it requires a transfer at Xitou.

There are six buses per day from Sun Moon Lake (bus stop here) to Xitou. Only the first two (7:00 and 9:00 departure) are viable for a day trip, arriving at Xitou at 8:30 and 10:30, respectively.

See the schedule here and here. There’s no option for online booking the bus from Sun Moon Lake, but it also tends to not be so busy.

If you take the first one, you could connect to the 8:50 bus to Sun Link Sea (see previous section), but the 20-minute transfer won’t be enough time to see Monster Village.

I think this is the best way (get to Sun Link Sea early before it gets foggy), then you can see Monster Village on the way back.

Coming back, your first option will be leaving Sun Link Sea at 14:50, arriving Xitou 15:35, visiting Xitou Monster Village for about two hours, then leaving Xitou at 17:30 and arriving back at Sun Moon Lake at 19:00. This is my most recommended way.

The second option will be leaving Sun Link Sea at 15:35, arriving Xitou at 16:20, visiting Xitou Monster Village for less than one hour, then leaving Xitou at 17:30 and arriving back at Sun Moon Lake at 19:00. This is a little rushed but enough for a quick visit at Monster village.

If for some reason you want to see Xitou Nature Education Area and Xitou Monster Village on the way there, take the first bus from Sun Moon Lake to Xitou, then the 11:40 bus from Xitou to Sun Link Sea. This will give you just over three hours at Xitou, enough to see both attractions there. Do the nature area first because shops at Monster Village don’t open till 10.

For a shorter stop at Xitou Monster Village only on the way there, take the 9 AM bus to Xitou then 11:40 bus to Sun Link Seat. That will give you just over an hour, enough time for a quick look at Monster Village.  

My Experience Visiting Sun Link Sea

I’m now going to introduce my detailed experience visiting Shanlinxi Forest Recreation Area, including possible stops on the way there, things to do in the park, and how to plan your visit.

On the Way to Sun Link Sea

If you’re taking the bus to Sun Link Sea, it’s quite easy to add a stop at Xitou Monster Village.

If you’re driving like I did, this opens up many more possibilities. You may find there are too many, so you’ll need to prioritize. I’ve driven to this region twice, so my recommendations come from two different tips (you can’t see it all in one day!)

Xitou Monster Village & Nature Education Area

If you’re coming by bus, the main stop you’ll want to consider on the way to (or from) Sun Link Sea is Xitou, which is about 45 minutes before Sun Link Sea.

There are two main attractions at Xitou: Xitou Nature Education Area (溪頭自然教育園區, here) and Xitou Monster Village (溪頭妖怪, here).

For a shorter stop (1-2 hours), I recommend Xitou Monster Village. This is a small and quirky Japanese monster-themed tourist village.

There are some monster statues and torri (Japanese gates) in the forest, shops, and interesting snacks (think eyeball chocolates, witch finger cookies, stinging nettle buns, etc). There’s also a monster-themed hotel on site (see on Booking / Agoda).

For a longer stop at Xitou, you could also add Xitou Nature Education Area. The park features some lovely forest trails, steams, and ponds.

However, in my personal opinion, Sun Link Sea is more impressive than Xitou Nature Education Area, so I personally recommend skipping this one and prioritizing Sun Link Sea, with perhaps just a short stop to see the Monster Village only.

Other Possible Stops by Car

Driving from either Taichung or Sun Moon Lake, consider making a short detour (30 extra minutes, including driving and visiting time) to see Jiji Wuchang Temple (here).

The temple was totally destroyed by the 921 earthquake and left as is. Jiji was the epicenter of the deadly 1999 earthquake.

A longer detour (add two hours, including driving and visiting time) could be made to Checheng, a small, cute former logging village on the Jiji Railway line. See my full guide to Checheng here.

I actually visited here for a late lunch after my day trip to Sun Link Sea. It’s an easy stop on the way back to Sun Moon Lake, but more out-of-the-way if returning to Taichung.

And an even longer but worthwhile detour (add three hours including driving and visiting time) would be to Shuiyuan Rainbow Suspension Bridge (closed Wednesdays), the most beautiful suspension bridge in Taiwan.

Again, this would be a littler closer if returning to Sun Moon Lake but further if returning to Taichung.

After those possible detours, you’ll turn up Highway 151 towards Xitou and Sun Link Sea. You’ll soon pass through Lugu, a town with many teashops selling Dong Ding, the locally grown oolong tea.

To see an extremely scenic tea farm just before Xitou, you can make a detour (one hour-return) up a small country road to Dalunshan Tea Farm (here). Be careful for traffic jams on weekends.

After Xitou, where you may want to stop at Xitou Monster Village (as I described above), the road gets especially winding and scenic for the final 30 minutes to Sun Link Sea.

There are very few designated places to stop along the way, but I did stop my car randomly a few times just to take in the impressive views of mountains and Shanlinxi tea farms.

There are a few shops along the way selling local tea, such as here and here.

Shortly before arriving at the park, I stopped at a scenic viewpoint here, where it’s sometimes possible to see a sea of clouds before sunset.

From there, I was able to just barely see Qinglong Falls, the largest waterfall in Sun Link Sea, which was a plus, because when I’d later hike to it, it would be totally blocked by mist.

Arriving at Sun Link Sea & Eating

After the above scenic viewpoint, I drove through a long tunnel.

At the end of the tunnel, I arrived at the Sun Link Sea entrance gate (here), where I paid the park entrance fee (TWD 350 per person + 100 for parking). If you come by bus, they will board the bus to collect the fee – have cash ready.

They should give you an English map of the park, which came in handy during my visit.

I then parked in the large parking lot in front of the Visitor’s Center (here), which is also where buses will arrive.

Also in front of the Visitor’s Center, I noted a line of people waiting for the shuttle bus to Songlong Rock Waterfall. The park shuttle used to have a fee but now it’s free.

Across the parking lot from the Visitor’s Center, there’s a cafeteria-style restaurant, with items including:

• Tea eggs (大補蛋)
• German-style sausages (德式香腸)
• Tremella & winter melon sweet soup (銀耳冬瓜甜湯)
• Vegetarian herbal soup (素藥膳湯)
• Chicken herbal soup (藥膳雞湯)
• Tea scented tofu (茶香豆腐)
• Purple sticky rice dumplings (紫米養生粽子)
• Candied sweet potato in sweet soup with tapioca balls (蜜地瓜粉圓)
• Mini hot pots

Personally I tried the tea egg and vegetarian herbal soup here. I really liked the emphasis on herbal and very local ingredients and would have tried everything if I could!

Note: there are two more restaurants with the almost identical menus at the Flower Center and Songlong Rock Waterfall.

Next door to the restaurant, there’s also a convenience store with drinks and snacks, including eggs roasted on tealeaves (焗蛋).

Next to the restaurant, there’s a small, arched pedestrian bridge called Sun Link Sea Bridge over Jiaozouliao River (加走寮溪), which in February to March is lined with cherry blossoms on either side.

Later I’d be crossing this bridge for the hike to Qinglong Falls. However, I wanted to visit Songlong Rock Waterfall (the main highlight of the park) first, so we’ll come back to this spot later.

The Journey to Songlong Rock Waterfall

Time Needed: 1.5 hours for waterfall only by shuttle bus (both ways), 3 hours to do everything I’ll introduce below, including walking one way and riding shuttle one way.

If you do only one thing at Sun Link Sea, it should be visiting Songlong Rock Waterfall (松瀧岩瀑布, here). It is in my personal opinion one of the most beautiful waterfalls in Taiwan.

There are two ways to reach Songlong Rock Waterfall – you can take the free shuttle bus from the Visitor’s Center (10 minutes) or walk there along the car road (40 minutes, no traffic except the electric shuttles).

I decided to walk because I wanted to see some of the things on the way. I didn’t realize the whole walk would be slightly uphill.

So, my recommendation is to take the shuttle to the waterfall and walk back (or take the shuttle back, too, if you are short on time).

Note: there’s also a walking trail up to Songlong Rock Waterfall. Called Chuanlin Trail (穿林棧道), it’s on the other side of the river. However, this trail was closed due to repairs when I visited, so walking up the car road is the only option.

A few minutes into my walk, I saw a collection of cherry blossoms that were still just barely blooming (end of March visit) at the southern end of Shanlinxi Park, just across a vehicle bridge over the river.

A few more minutes in, I reached some stairs up into the forest on the left, which is the start of the Taiwan Rhododendron Trail (台灣杜鵑森林步道, here).

I didn’t try this 1700-meter (40-minute loop) hike into a forest of virgin Rhododendron trees because my priorities were the more famous waterfall hikes.

Note: you could do a small part of this trail and connect to Yenan Trail for Longling Waterfall (which we’ll get to below).

The entrance to the Rhododendron trail is right next to a block of Red Brick Buildings (紅樓, here) on either side of the road. These contain a few small souvenir shops and teahouses. The shuttle bus makes a stop here.  

Just after that, I did the short (10 minutes return, uphill) hike on Yenan Trail (燕庵步道, here) to Longlin Waterfall (龍鱗瀑布, here). The waterfall was small and barely trickling at this time of year, but it was a serene spot to take a little break in solitude.

Back to the main road, I continue on the for some time to reach the large Flower Center (花卉中心 and Garden (牡丹園).

This spot includes an indoor flower center (right side of the road) and outdoor flower gardens (both sides of the road).

While you can spot lovely flowers throughout the park, a large number of them are concentrated here, and it’s one of the highlights of the park.

During my visit (late March), I noted the following: peonies (several types), cyclamens, calla lilies, azaleas, geraniums, violas, villous lilacs, cacti, succulents, and colorful cabbage.

You’ll see different flowers depending on the time of your visit.

There’s also a restaurant here (same menu as the one at the Visitor’s Center) and the shuttle bus stops here, too.

A few minutes after the Flower Center and Garden, I reached the Golden Yellow Metasequoia (黃金水杉林) forest, which was very beautiful. These are a rare tree that was once thought to be extinct.

If you visit in autumn (November to December), when the trees turn yellow, it would be especially beautiful.

A final push after that and I reached the entrance to Songlong Rock Waterfall (here), where the bus terminates and there’s another identical restaurant.

There are a few different ways to go here, but I kept to the right as I entered the huge cave / rocky overhang to take in the classic view of the 38-meter waterfall.

The waterfall can be enjoyed from several angles, include the right side of the cave (classic view), where you can walk right up to it, as well as from the suspension bridge and more lookout platforms directly in front of the falls.

Next, I crossed the suspension bridge over the large pond to access the trail system on the other side.

From there, I took the trail through a small tunnel, which eventually led to a huge Ancient Red Cypress Tree (千古紅檜, here, 400 meters from waterfall).

Then I followed an uphill set of stairs in the forest to Eye of Heaven and Earth (天地眼 or tian ti yan, here, 600 meters from waterfall). This is another rocky overhang with large indents that look like eyes.

These have been formed by years of wind and rain erosion. They looked like owl eyes to me.

From there, I turned back. This little side hike from Songlong Rock Waterfall to Red Cypress Tree Trunk and Tian-Ti Yan took me about 30 minutes and was fairly tiring due to the uphill stairs in the forest.

Do it if you have the time and energy, but I honestly wouldn’t worry too much if you miss it.

Returning to the waterfall entrance, I lined up and rode the next shuttle bus back to the Visitor’s Center.

However, if you learned from my mistake and took the shuttle bus up to the falls, then you may want to enjoy the downhill walk back down to the Visitor’s Center, stopping at the Flower Center or other small spots along the way.

The Journey to Qinglong Falls

Time needed: 1.5 hours return

Back at the Visitor’s Center, I now embarked on the second half of my visit, which is the hike to Qinglong Falls (青龍瀑布).

While this waterfall is taller, it is the less impressive of the two (in my opinion), so only do it if you have time. Also, this one has no shuttle bus option.

I started by crossing the small arch Sun Link Sea Bridge over the river, which can be found next to the restaurant and convenience store.

Then I turned right and followed the path along the river. If you’re there from mid-February to mid-March, you should be able to enjoy some cherry blossoms on both sides of the river.

After the trail and river curved to the left, I entered a beautiful forest of Harp trees (豎琴樹) and Ginkgo trees (銀杏), which should have beautiful yellow colors in October in November.

The river here is dammed so it is wide and calm. They call it Lake of Ginkgo (銀杏湖).

At this point, something shocking happened. A literal wall of mist blew up the river and filled the forest around me. The whole forest took on a spooky, mystical vibe.

This mist would stick around until I left the park, taking away my chance of seeing any more waterfalls.

Still, I pressed on, eventually reaching Triple Split Stone (三陽開泰石, here), a massive boulder that was split into three pieces by the 921 Earthquake.

The stone sits at an intersection of trails.

I should have been able to see Qinglong Falls from this spot. I could hear it but couldn’t see it at all, due to the fog.

The 116-meter Qinglong Falls has been voted the most beautiful waterfall in Central Taiwan.

I can’t say for sure, because I couldn’t see it, but based on photos, I feel like Songlong Rock Waterfall is more impressive due to the cool cave location.

However, Qinglong is quite a bit taller, and supposedly it is especially impressive in the summer wet season.

From this spot, a trail leads to the left to Qinglong 2nd Waterfall (青龍二瀑, 200m), while a trail forward leads steeply downhill to the base and main view of Qinglong Falls (400m).

I didn’t bother going down because I knew I wouldn’t be able to see the water, and then I would have to walk steeply back up.    

However, I did walk just a few steps down the trail to visit Energy House (能量屋), a small cabin that is severely tilted from the earthquake.

Standing inside it made me feel dizzy, almost like the building is currently falling. You have to try it!

I didn’t have to hike all the way back to where I started. Instead, there’s an option to cross the red-colored 88 Suspension Bridge (八八吊橋, here) to the other side of the river. It’s just a few minutes before the intersection of trails – you can’t miss it.

88 refers to the year 1999 on the Taiwanese calendar system, the year of the devastating 921 Earthquake.

When I reached it, the bridge rather eerily seemed to disappear into the mist. While crossing, I noted some cool circular holes in the riverbed below.

At the end of the bridge, I turned right and followed the river back towards the start. I eventually found a small path that led me directly back to the main parking lot and my car.

From there, I had a winding drive through the mist going down the mountain. I had a late ralway bento lunch at Checheng logging village then made it to Hohocha Tea Center before closing, and finally back to Sun Moon Lake for sunset. It was a long but awesome day!