Taiwan Nature, Culture, Beauty |
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Hello Fellow Travelers!
I am currently traveling in Taiwan and every time I come here, I'm amazed by the beauty of the landscape and how wonderful the Taiwanese people are. I am constantly adding more Taiwan dates to my schedule. My next tour is scheduled for November 2024. Don't miss this opportunity to go birding and exploring in Taiwan.
Next Tour: November 5 - 20, 2024, Spots left = 6
- Group Size: 10 travelers plus guides
- Trip Length: 16 days
- Rates Rate per person = $5,120 for double occupancy. Single occupancy is an extra $1,280.
- Rates include: Domestic transfers, lodging, breakfast, lunch, dinner, scheduled group tours, park entrance fees and basic travel insurance.
- Not included: International airfare, customs & immigration fees and visas, alcohol, trip cancellation insurance.
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Adventure level: Moderate because of high altitude and stairs, please check "Welcome" page for definition
Here is more info on Taiwan:
Time to Travel to Taiwan: No visa required, officially bi-lingual with English as the second language, and non-stop flights from many cities in the United States.
Taiwan is a very special place and is one of our favorite places! If you are a birder, in Taiwan you will find 32 endemic species and over 650 species in total. If you are a nature lover, besides the beautiful birds, you will find wonderful forests, canyons, mountains, stunning coastlines, lots of butterflies, fantastic local people, many interesting mammals, and great food! If you are a hiker, you will find great trails through the forests, mountains, and river canyons.
Taiwan is a small island located 110 miles off the coast of southeastern China. Although Taiwan maintains its own independent government, it is officially: “The Republic of China”. Taiwan is about 1.5 times larger than the state of New Hampshire and has a population of nearly 24 million people. Taipei is the capital city and is located in the northern part of the country and 9.3 million people live in the Taipei–Keelung–Taoyuan metropolitan area. Artifacts dating back 30,000 years have been found on the island and the Taiwanese Aboriginals have lived in Taiwan for 6,000 years. Over the past centuries, there have been many occupying forces: The Dutch, Spanish and Japanese, with China having the most control and influence. Today 85% of the population identifies as Han Chinese. Most Taiwanese are either Buddhist or Taoist and freedom of religion is in the constitution.
Through all the years of changes, the one thing that has not changed is the Taiwanese people's love of nature. Taiwan has 10 national parks covering a total of 1.9 million acres and every county has local forest preserves and parks. Taiwan is dominated by forested mountains and has 18 National Forest Recreation areas. The island is criss-crossed with a network of well-maintained hiking trails. Taiwan has 65 different fire-fly species, which are a beloved insect and protected in the country. Taiwan is home to abundant biodiversity. Over 650 different bird species, 61 mammal species (including the endemic Formosan White-throated black bear), 92 reptile species, 30 amphibian species, 400 butterfly species and over 4,000 vascular plant species.
Taiwan is a very modern and developed country with all the conveniences and luxuries anyone could need. About 10 million foreign tourists visit Taiwan every year and the country has the best hotels and restaurants for a great travel experience. It is a free, democratic, and progressive society. You can visit Taiwan without having to get a visa in advance and much of the country is bi-lingual with English as the second language. Taiwan has a fantastic infrastructure including a wonderful rail system with bullet trains traveling 185 mph. We will take the train several times on the Taiwan tour, and it is a very nice and relaxing experience to travel on the trains. According to the U.S. Department of State, violent crime against foreigners is unusual, and overall violent crime rates in Taiwan are among the lowest in the world. Taiwan has modern medical facilities, with state-of-the-art equipment available at many hospitals and clinics. For many of the other countries we travel to, these things are not always the case and so there are no excuses not to go to Taiwan!
You can find the Itinerary with more details here: Taiwan Tour
You can find a Map of the travel route here: Taiwan Map
You can find the list of Birds that we have seen on this tour here: Taiwan Trip List
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Jian Long Wu, our local guide
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Jian Long Wu lives in Taipei and is a freelance bird guide and translator. "Wu", as he likes to be called, translated the field guide “Birds of Taiwan”, written by the Wild Bird Society of Taipei from Chinese to English. He is also the eBird regional reviewer for Taiwan and its islands including Kinmen and Matsu. We have one of the top birders as our local guide. Wu lived in Minneapolis for 2-years.
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Endemic Taiwan Blue Magpie |
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Red-and-White Giant Flying Squirrel |
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The Taipei 101 building currently is the 11th tallest building in the world and from 2004 - 2010 it was the tallest in the world. The shape represents bamboo with eight segments each having eight floors for good luck and prosperity. Close to the Taipei 101 is a large mountain park where we can view the endemic Blue Magpie, Grey Treepie, Crested Goshawk and many other birds and local squirrels. |
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Taipei has beautiful city parks, forest parks and botanical gardens that are home to many bird species, including endemics. The are small mountains surrounding the city with great hiking trails. |
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The tropic on Capricorn crosses the southern part of Taiwan, just south of Yushan Mountain. Taiwan has a marine tropical climate and the highest peaks occasionally get snow. |
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Yushan (Jade) Mountain is the highest peak at 12,966 ft and makes Taiwan the 4th tallest island in the world. Taiwan has 200 peaks over 9,500 feet. |
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Photo of a tea farm in Nantou County. Taiwan produces 20% of the world's Oolong Tea. There will opportunities to learn about tea and enjoy a tea tasting. |
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Depending on the group size, we traveling in a large van or minibus. Breakfast is buffet style with western food options. Lunch is picnic style and or at a small cafe. Dinner is always at a nice restaurant served Taiwanese family style with both traditional local food or western food options. |
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Birding the northeast coast |
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Endemic Collared Bush Robin |
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Taroko Gorge Marble Canyon |
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Easy Hiking for Birds and Wildlife |
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2023 Visiting Hualien and the Taroko Gorge |
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Visiting the Chiang Kai-shek
Memorial Park in 2018
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Chiang Kai-shek Memorial Park is a great birding area and cultural site. |
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The Pei Kong Creek Resort |
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Taipei Botanical Gardens 2019 |
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Kaiyote receiving an award at the Taiwan Bird-a-thon 2016, representing "Team America". Although we didn't win, we were the first American's to compete in the competition. |
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Private Birding tour October 2019 |
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Southwestern Taiwan is full of wetlands, marshes and slat flats for excellent birding. The Black-faced Spoonbill Reserve has over 200 species of resident and migratory birds listed. |
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Travel Schedule 2024
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Texas Birding and Solar Eclipse Tour (8 days) April 6 - 13th spots left = 2
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Taiwan and Taroko Gorge Tour (15 days) April 22 - May 7, spots left = 0
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Panama Gamboa Rainforest (10 days) May 26 - June 4th spots left = 6
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Argentina Iguazu and Uruguay (10 days) May 26 - June 4th, spots left = 4
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Santa Fe Opera & Birding (8 days) August 4 - 10th spots left = 0
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Panama Bocas del Toro (10-day) September 25 - October 4th, spots left = 3
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El Salvador Birding (8 days) October 9 - 16th, spots left = 4
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Taiwan and Taroko Gorge (16-days) November 5 - 20th, spots left = 5
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New tour - Philippines Luzon (12 days) December 1- 12th, spots left = 4
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Stockholm Christmas (8 days) December 20 - 27th spots left = 6
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Iceland/Estonia New Years (7 days) December 30 - January 5th spots left = 6
2025
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Gamboa, Panama February 8 - 17th (10 days), spots left = 4
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Panama The Darien, February 19 - 28th (10 days), spots left = 4
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Colombia Bogota Valley, April 1- 9th (10 days), spots left = 6
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Colombia Agami Trail, April 10 - 15th, (6 days), spots left = 6
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Mongolia Birding tour: July 15 - 26th (12 days), spots left = 5
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Mongolia Fishing tour September 1 - 12, (12 days), spots left = 6
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Mountain Biking tour: September 15 - 26, (12 days), spots left = 4
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