Complete Guide: Day Trip to Sun Moon Lake from Taichung

April 29, 2024

When most people think of Taiwan, Taipei often comes to mind—a bustling capital city that’s just the tip of the iceberg. Taiwan holds breathtaking landscapes akin to those found in Switzerland, featuring expansive turquoise lakes cradled by mountains. Among these wonders, Sun Moon Lake stands out as a true gem. Read on to uncover the allure of this hidden gem and learn how to embark on the perfect day trip to Sun Moon Lake from Taichung…

IS SUN MOON LAKE WORTH VISITING?

Absolutely! Whether you’re looking for a break from the city, are a nature lover, or just want to see another side of Taiwan, a day trip to Sun Moon Lake is the perfect choice. It’s one of those locations that you will never tire of, that caters to all interests, and offers breathtaking beauty that would be a shame to overlook.

WHERE IS SUN MOON LAKE?

Sun Moon Lake is located in Taiwan’s Yuchi Township, Nantou County and is the largest body of water in Taiwan! It’s name comes from the fact that Lalu Island in the middle of the lake separates the lake into two parts, such that one part is shaped like a crescent moon and another part is shaped like a round sun.

Fun fact: The lake and its surrounding countryside have been designated one of thirteen national scenic areas in Taiwan.

HOW TO GET TO SUN MOON LAKE FROM TAIPEI

A day trip to Sun Moon Lake from Taipei couldn’t be easier BUT it is long!

By train

There are no direct train routes from Taipei to Sun Moon Lake. You will need to take a TRA or HSR train from Taipei Main Station to Taichung. The HSR train is faster (around 1 hour) but more expensive. If you choose the TRA train, the journey will take about 2 hours and 30 minutes. Upon arrival in Taichung, head to Gancheng bus station (a few minutes’ walk from the train station) to catch the Sun Moon Lake shuttle bus. If you take the HSR train, you’ll arrive about 10 km (6.2 miles) away from Gancheng Station and will need to take a taxi or Uber to reach the Gancheng bus station. For more details on how to get to Sun Moon Lake once you reach Taichung, follow the steps in the section below.

By bus

An alternative is to take a direct bus from Taipei to Sun Moon Lake. Kuo-Kuang Bus 1833 departs from Taipei Bus Station (next to Taipei Main Station) and runs from 6:30 AM to 2:30 PM. The bus ride takes about 4 hours and costs NTD 470 each way.

By tour

There are many companies offering group tours to Sun Moon Lake. This is a good option if you want to have a hassle-free journey but it is much more expensive than doing it yourself by public transport. Also it is much easier to do yourself and you can control the times; personally I would choose this over a group tour, although you could always opt for a private tour if you want to splash the cash!

CAN YOU DO A DAY TRIP TO SUN MOON LAKE FROM TAICHUNG?

Of course and in fact this is the easier option as Taichung is the closest big city to Sun Moon Lake. There is a Sun Moon Lake shuttle bus that runs from Taichung to Sun Moon Lake, with multiple pick-up stops in Taichung. However, I can guarantee that if you don’t get on at the first stop, which is at Gancheng Station, then you won’t get on the bus at all as it will be full by the time it gets to the next stop, especially during peak season.

Your best bet is to head to Gancheng station and from there you wait for the Taiwan Tourist Shuttle Bus (bus number 6670A,B,C,D,E and F). They generally run every 30 minutes and a roundtrip cost is NTD380, where buses 6670B,E and F take around 1hr 45mins and buses 6670A,C and D take longer as they take a different route with more stops.

Tip 1: You can reserve your seats up to 2 weeks in advance online but it is only if your journey starts from Gancheng station.

Tip 2: If you don’t book the bus in advance, you can beat the queue by going to the Nantou ticket window at Gancheng station (or Sun Moon Lake Visitors Centre across the street from the bus stop in Shuishe) and get a queue number for the bus. This gives you priority boarding before others who line up (but after those who booked tickets online).

If you can’t get on a bus there are quite a few unofficial shared taxi transfers, which is what we ended up doing as we made the mistake of going to a bus stop that was 2^nd on the stop list. To be honest, the shared transfer only cost a tiny bit more and we did it one way and got the bus back.

HOW TO GET AROUND SUN MOON LAKE

Once you’re in Sun Moon Lake the first thing I recommend doing is renting a bike from one of the many hire shops by the car park, near to where the bus drops you. You don’t need a motorised bike in my opinion as most of the ground around the lake is flat, so a normal bicycle will do just fine. However it is down to preference! This will be the easiest way to get around the island, or at least part of it and there are clearly marked bicycle routes (each bicycle hire shop will give you a map with marked trails).

If you don’t fancy riding a bike, here are some other options:

Walking: you can walk around parts of the lake but it will take much longer. One of the walking routes which goes around one side of the lake is 5km one way (it follows the bicycle route and we saw a lot of people walking this).
Bus: There are local buses running which take you to different parts of the island and also across to Ita Thao village (other side of the lake). However, the bus timetable is infrequent so you can find yourself waiting a long time (during off-peak it was once every hour).
Taxi: There are many local taxis but they do charge quite a lot, and if you go to a more secluded part of the lake it will be hard to get a taxi back unless you agree on a roundtrip.
Boat: The beauty of taking the boat is that it will stop at the 3 major piers: Shuishe, Xuanguang, and Ita Thao, so you can visit all 3 areas at the cost of NTD 300. Annoyingly, you stop first at Xuanguang and they make you get off the boat and wait for the next one to take you to Ita Thao, so if you go during peak season you could be stuck in a long queue waiting for the next ferry.

WHAT TO DO IN SUN MOON LAKE

There are plenty of things to do in Sun Moon Lake but here are the top 6 things to do in my opinion:

1.Cycle around the lake: As mentioned above, renting a bike should be the first thing you do when you arrive at Sun Moon Lake. I’d recommend arriving early, especially in peak season otherwise the bikes may be sold out. It also is more peaceful in the morning before the crowds arrive. There are plenty of marked bicycle routes around the lake, where one of the longest ones is around 5km one way and takes you to a beautiful viewpoint from across one side of the lake.

2. Shuishe Pier: From this pier you get the most beautiful view of Sun Moon Lake so it is worth stopping here to snap that Insta-worthy picture.

3. Longfeng Temple: This temple can be visited easily as it is just off the bike trail route and up a small hill. The temple is also known as Dragon Phoenix, and is especially popular with young couples who visit the temple to get blessings for love and marriage.

4. WenWu Temple: To the northside of Sun Moon Lake you will find this stunning temple which is devoted to the God of Literature, the God of War and Confucius. Before the round-the-lake road was built, you could only get to WenWu temple from the Year of Steps from the pier. These steps are also known as Stairway to Heaven, and the 366 steps have dates carved on each stone step and wind chimes lining both sides of the stairs. It is worth descending down these steps once you’ve finished touring the WenWu temple.

5. Ita Thao Village: This village is the main Thao settlement, where legend has it that Sun Moon Lake was discovered by the Thao tribe when hunting a white deer across the lands. The easiest way to reach is by boat (see above) as it is on the other side of the lake. Once here, you can explore the village and the main shopping street which has a lot of delicious food stalls set up. If you have time you can also take the Sun Moon Lake Ropeway to Formosan Aboriginal Culture Village (which actually is more of an amusement park). Personally I didn’t see the point in going over to the amusement park but the cable car ride itself is very scenic and another way of viewing the lake.

6. Hiking: There are plenty of hiking trails around the lake and surrounding areas. Some of the popular hiking trails include Mt Qinglong trail and Mt Maolan trail.

HOW LONG DO YOU NEED AT SUN MOON LAKE?

It really depends what you plan on doing at Sun Moon Lake and how much time you have in Taiwan. If you’re not going to be hiking then a day trip to Sun Moon Lake is enough, but if you plan on hiking different trails or going to the amusement park you should factor in 2-3 days. We were short on time and opted for just a day trip, but it was perfect for us as we weren’t really bothered by the amusement park and we were going to do hiking in other areas.