About
Hualien is a coastal city on the eastern side of Taiwan, facing the Pacific. It is best known as the gateway to Taroko National Park, a short journey inland, and many visitors use it as a base for exploring the surrounding landscape. The city is also known by its alternative spelling, Hualian, and by its Chinese name, 花蓮.
What the city offers
- Access to Taroko National Park. The park's gorges and cliffs are the reason many travellers come here, and Hualien is the usual starting point for trips into them.
- Indigenous culture. The area is home to Taiwan's indigenous communities, and their traditions are part of the city's character.
- Natural beauty along the coast. The city sits between mountains and sea, so its scenery changes quickly from one direction to the next.
- The night market. Hualien's night market is one of its well-known evening attractions, a place to wander among food stalls and local goods after dark.
The marble industry
Hualien is also famous for its marble industry. Stone quarried in the region is worked and sold here, so the city's shops and workshops offer a different kind of local souvenir from the usual food and crafts.
Hualien suits a visitor who wants to combine a relaxed coastal town with easy access to dramatic mountain scenery. Whether it is the right choice depends on how much of the park you hope to see, and on whether you would enjoy the city's night market and its indigenous heritage alongside it.
