Travel Guide

The Tainan Confucius Temple (also known as the First Academy of Taiwan), located on Nanmen Road, West Central District, Tainan City, Taiwan, was built in 1665 and is Taiwan's oldest Confucius Temple. It was proposed by Chen Yonghua during the Kingdom of Tungning period as a place for lectures and cultivating intellectuals. During the Qing Dynasty, it underwent multiple repairs and expansions, forming its current scale. During the Japanese colonial period, it was used as a public school and military barracks, and later underwent large-scale renovations in 1917. Today, the Tainan Confucius Temple is a popular tourist attraction and regularly holds ancient Confucian ceremonies, while also housing artifacts and musical instruments used for the rituals.

Anping Fort, originally known as Fort Zeelandia, was a fortress built by the Dutch East India Company (VOC) in Anping, Taiwan (now Tainan) from 1624 to 1634. In the 17th century, it served as an important trade hub and international commercial center in East Asia. The site has been renamed multiple times, and its current Chinese name means 'Anping Old Fort'. From 1661 to 1662, Koxinga (Zheng Chenggong) besieged the fort and eventually forced the Dutch to surrender.

Tainan Garden Night Market (Tainan Flower Night Market) is a tourist night market located in the North District of Tainan, Taiwan, and is generally considered the city's largest and most famous night market. It is often said, 'Garden in the South, Fengjia in the Central, Shilin in the North'. The night market was officially established in 1999, making it one of the youngest night markets in Tainan City. Garden Night Market is open every Thursday, Saturday, and Sunday, from 5 PM to midnight. It does not open on rainy days. Various foods and items are sold here, such as fried chicken, oyster omelets, beef rolls, scallion pancakes, takoyaki, eel noodles, bubble tea, clothes, dolls, phone cases, lighters, etc. Arcade games like basketball machines, ring toss, and balloon shooting can be found here.

The National Museum of Taiwan Literature (NMTL), located in Tainan, Taiwan, and operated by the Ministry of Culture, Taiwan, is the first national-level literary museum in Taiwan. The museum is responsible for researching, cataloging, preserving, and displaying literary artifacts, and holds a large collection of local works written in Taiwanese, Japanese, Mandarin, and classical Chinese. The museum was originally the Tainan Prefectural Hall, built in 1916, and was converted into a literary museum in January 2003. It is an important example of 'adaptive reuse of historic buildings' among official Taiwanese architecture, and was designated a national monument on November 10 of the same year.

The National Museum of Taiwan History (NMTH) is located in Annan District, Tainan City, Taiwan. It is a national museum dedicated to the history of Taiwan. The museum is committed to collecting, researching, preserving, and exhibiting historical artifacts and materials related to Taiwan, covering diverse cultures and historical contexts such as indigenous peoples, the Dutch and Spanish periods, the Kingdom of Tungning, the Qing Dynasty rule, the Japanese colonial period, and post-war development. With its rich collection and accessible exhibition content, it is an important venue for understanding Taiwan's history and culture.

Chihkan Tower, also known as Fort Provintia, is a military fortress built in Taiwan during the Dutch colonial period in 1653. It is located in today's West Central District of Tainan City and was an important stronghold for the Dutch in Formosa at that time. After Koxinga's invasion of Taiwan, the fortress was taken over by the Zheng family. In the 18th century, the fortress was damaged by war and earthquakes, and later rebuilt during the Qing Dynasty in the 19th century. Chihkan Tower not only possesses significant architectural and artistic value, but its collection of dictionaries and commercial transaction documents also records the use of the local indigenous Siraya language during the Dutch rule. Currently, Chihkan Tower is undergoing renovation and is planned to be transformed into a museum, expected to be completed in 2024, to celebrate the 400th anniversary of Dutch-Taiwanese relations.

The Koxinga Shrine, also known as Kaishan King Temple, is a historically significant temple located in Tainan City, Taiwan. It was originally built in the 17th century to commemorate Zheng Chenggong's father. After the Qing dynasty took control of Taiwan, Zheng Chenggong's tomb was moved to Fujian, and the worship of Zheng Chenggong was prohibited. However, the people of Taiwan secretly continued to worship him under the name 'Zhu Chenggong'. In 1897, during the Japanese colonial period, the shrine was converted into a Shinto shrine and renamed Kaishan Shrine. After World War II, it was restored as a Confucian temple in 1947. In 1961, the temple underwent a major renovation, and its architectural style changed from the original Fuzhou style to a Northern Chinese style. The Koxinga Shrine is an important historical and cultural attraction in Tainan City, drawing many visitors to learn about Zheng Chenggong's historical achievements and Taiwan's development.

The Tainan Judicial Museum, originally known as the Former Tainan District Court, is a historic building located in the West Central District of Tainan City, Taiwan. The building was completed in 1914 during the Japanese colonial period, designed by Japanese architect Matsunosuke Moriyama. It features an ornate Baroque architectural style with a unique pediment-style asymmetrical porch and an eight-sided oeil-de-boeuf window facade. After Taiwan's retrocession in 1945, the building underwent multiple renovations. It was designated a second-class historic monument in 1991, and restoration work began in 2003, concluding on November 8, 2016, when it reopened to the public as a museum. The museum offers a rich array of exhibits, including the building's history, legal documents, local history, an introduction to the architect, displays of the restoration process, and historical photographs, making it an important venue for understanding Taiwan's judicial history and architectural art.

Anping Tree House is located in Anping District, Tainan City, Taiwan, and is an old warehouse covered by the roots and branches of banyan trees. The name "Tree House" comes from its unique architectural style, where the living roots and branches of banyan trees completely cover the entire building. It was originally a warehouse built by Tait & Company in 1867 during the Qing Dynasty, used for storing sugar and camphor. During the Japanese colonial period, the building became the office and warehouse of the Japan Salt Company in 1911, and after being abandoned, it was gradually overgrown by banyan trees. After Taiwan's retrocession in 1945, it served as the office for the Tainan Salt Field. In 2004, the Tainan City Government transformed it into a tourist attraction, adding wooden and metal stairs and viewing platforms, and opened it to the public as part of the Anping Port National Historic Park.

Tainan's Douhua is renowned for its adherence to traditional preparation methods and unique flavor. Made fresh daily from freshly ground non-GMO soybeans, it boasts an incredibly smooth and delicate texture with a rich soybean aroma. The accompanying syrup and toppings are also meticulously selected.

A rice-based snack made by steaming seasoned indica rice batter with ingredients such as pork, salted egg yolk, mushrooms, and dried shrimp in a bowl. Tainan's Wa Kueh is dark brown and has a firm texture, making it a beloved breakfast or snack for locals.

A distinctive hotpot from Tainan, using a traditional charcoal copper pot. The broth is simmered with pork bones and dried flatfish, but its soul lies in the handmade shacha sauce. The shacha sauce usually includes secret ingredients like peanuts and garlic, offering a rich aroma and a flavor far superior to commercial products.

A traditional sweet snack commonly found in Kaohsiung night markets and traditional markets. Glutinous rice dough is deep-fried, then coated with peanut powder and powdered sugar. The Kaohsiung version is usually fried to be crispier and comes in more varied shapes.

A representative snack from the Anping district of Tainan. Fresh fiery shrimp, pork, fish paste, water chestnuts, and green onions are wrapped in pork omentum or special dough skin, then deep-fried until golden and crispy.

Tainan's most iconic breakfast and a unique culinary culture of the city. Freshly slaughtered warm beef is thinly sliced and then blanched to medium-rare directly with boiling hot beef bone broth. The soup is delicious, and the beef is incredibly tender.

Milkfish is a representative fish product of Tainan, with a wide variety of related dishes. From fish skin soup, fish belly congee, pan-fried fish belly to fish ball soup, every part of the milkfish is fully utilized. Its tender meat and delicious taste make it an important part of the daily diet for Tainan locals.

A century-old winter melon tea brand from Tainan, it is the most iconic traditional-flavored beverage in the area. Adhering to ancient methods, fresh winter melon and sugar are simmered together for several hours to create concentrated winter melon sugar bricks, which are then diluted with water. It contains no artificial additives.

A stir-fried dish with a strong Tainan flavor, cooked over high heat. Fresh eel slices are stir-fried with ingredients like onions and scallions over high heat, then a sweet and sour thickened sauce is added and poured over fried or boiled spaghetti.

Kaohsiung's Spanish Mackerel Thick Soup is a representative dish of southern Taiwanese flavor. Marinated Spanish mackerel pieces are deep-fried until golden, then added to a slightly sweet thick soup made with cabbage and dried flatfish. The Kaohsiung version typically features larger fish pieces and a more pronounced sweetness in the soup.

Tainan's zongzi are often referred to as 'cai zong' (vegetable zongzi). Unlike northern zongzi, they are made by wrapping raw glutinous rice and fillings in bamboo leaves, then boiling them in water for a long time. What makes Tainan's zongzi special is that they are drizzled with a thick soy sauce, garlic paste, and sprinkled with a generous amount of peanut powder and cilantro.

A century-old noodle dish originating from Tainan, it is one of the symbols of Tainan's local snacks. In a small bowl of oily noodles, bean sprouts and chives are added, topped with rich minced pork sauce, and served with a fresh shrimp or a braised egg. The portion is small and exquisite, intended for 'savoring' rather than 'filling up'.

A unique snack originating from Tainan, with a peculiar name but outstanding flavor. Thick slices of toast are hollowed out, deep-fried, then filled with a creamy or curry soup made with chicken, shrimp, squid, carrots, green peas, etc., and finally topped with the fried toast 'lid'.

A unique Tainan-style soup. Fresh milkfish or swordfish is made into a fish paste, with minimal starch added, then shaped into irregular strips and cooked in a clear broth. Because of the high purity of the fish paste, it naturally floats on the surface of the soup, hence the name 'Floating Water'.

Tainan's version of 'Da Lu Mian', it is a common dish served at local weddings, funerals, celebrations, and temple festivals. It is characterized by its extremely rich ingredients and thick, starchy broth, typically including pork, shiitake mushrooms, daylily buds, wood ear mushrooms, shredded bamboo shoots, carrots, and plenty of egg drops.

Tainan's almond tea is a traditional drink made by grinding sweet almonds (southern almonds) and bitter almonds (northern almonds) together with rice, and then simmering them. It has a thick texture and natural aroma, completely different from the almond powder mixed with artificial flavors found on the market.

Tainan's Mi Gao differs from 'Tongzai Mi Gao' (tube-steamed sticky rice). It involves serving steamed glutinous rice directly in a bowl, topped with savory minced pork sauce (rouzao) and shredded fish floss, accompanied by pickled cucumber and peanuts. The glutinous rice itself is usually white, emphasizing the flavor of the toppings.

A Tainan specialty snack that tests the chef's control of heat. Fresh pork heart is sliced thinly and quickly blanched only after the customer orders, to maintain its optimal crisp and tender texture. It is then served with refreshing vermicelli and a broth simmered with pork bones and traditional Chinese medicinal herbs.