Experience the best of Taitung

Taitung is the seat of a long, thinly populated county that faces the Pacific along a coast of cliffs and beaches. The Huadong Rift Valley runs through the county between two mountain ranges, and its farms and terraces grow rice.

Indigenous peoples, including the Amis, Paiwan, Bunun and Rukai, live in the county, and their festivals, woodwork and music are on show in many villages. Lanyu, or Orchid Island, and the smaller Green Island lie offshore in the Pacific and are reached by plane or ferry. The Luye Highlands host a hot-air balloon festival in summer, and the hot springs at Zhiben lie a short way from the city.

Night markets serve grilled sausages, oyster omelettes and fresh fruit, and Taitung is known for its sugar apples. Indigenous dishes use millet and wild herbs. The county is hot and humid in summer, and typhoons can arrive from July to October. The coast and the rift valley are most comfortable to visit in spring and autumn.