📍 Lanyu (Orchid Island) Worthit!
☀ Lanyu, Taiwan
An outlying island, with all the beauty of culture, nature, and humanity. 🌊
Here is a detailed 3-day trip itinerary to Lanyu, the Orchid Island in Taiwan. 🌴
1⃣ Day 1 1⃣
2022.06.03
⛴ 7 am: Cruise from Pintung Hou-pi-hu Fishing Harbor (屏東後壁湖) to Lanyu
You can either head to Lanyu from Pintung or Taitung.
Make sure to book your cruise ticket in advance!
You can also book the tickets directly from the cruise company.
There are 2 cruise companies to choose from:
If you start from Pintung: 金星三號 or 綠島之星三號
If you start from Taitung: 金星八號 or 綠島之星號
🛵 9 am: Airbnb (homestay) check in & get our scooters
Again, make sure you book your stay and scooters as early as possible!
🍚 11 am: Lunch at 美佳欣餐館
🍹 12 pm: Sorbet at 蘭嶼瑟郎冰沙小舖
The flying fish fried rice here is said to be gooood!
There is a unique fruit- screw pine fruit (林投果) which you can find in the southern part of Taiwan.
But is it somehow even more popular in Lanyu!
Try out the screw pine fruit juice or sorbet at restaurants in Lanyu!
The commonly seen screw pine fruit juice/ sorbet in Lanyu (Right).
After lunch, we started the big hike towards the Da Tianchi (Big Tianchi Lake/ 大天池).
The weather was extremely hot but the trail was almost covered by trees so it was comparatively pleasant.
The trails were not that obvious, and there were some places where you might need to climb up with ropes.
🏔 2 pm: Da Tianchi (Big Tianchi Lake/ 大天池)
The water at the Da Tianchi was full compared to what I heard last year.
Btw, we tried to fly our drone but without success…… it was almost covered in a prohibited zone.
🍩 5:30 pm: Dinner at Dong Qing night market (東清夜市)
This is where you can get a bunch of local foods (flying fish egg sausages, millet doughnuts, etc.) and enjoy the sunset at the seaside!
Remember to take off your shoes when enjoying the food and the seaside view on the platform near the night market (Because locals tend to take a nap on the pavilions and platforms in Lanyu).
🎣 18:40 pm: Catching the flying fish
Our homestay host recommended we book the trip with a local fisherman 張郡務 (📞: 0921445739)
With his boat 大洋號, we left from the Dong Qing harbour (東清港口), and it was definitely one of the highlights of our trip!🐟
The fisherman gave us the rackets to “scoop” the fishes.
The flying fish tend to swim towards the lights. So while we were catching the fish, the fisherman kept using his HUGE light to attract the fish.
Seeing the fish flying (even though that means they were scared lol) was definitely worth it!
And after the whole trip (it actually lasted for 1.5 hours which was longer than the schedule suggested) (I think it was because we really had so much fun), we caught 10 fish in total!
2⃣ Day 2 2⃣
2022.06.04
🤿 7am: Scuba diving at 母雞外礁 & 玉女外礁
Most people come to Lanyu for scuba diving for the purpose of seeing the Badaiwan Wreck (八代灣沉船).
But to see it, you really need a good wind, good wave, and good luck.
Generally, the diving shop will only let you know which area you’ll be diving in after you’re on board.
And if you want to see the Badaiwan Wreck, the best timing will be around September (the locals said around the mid-autumn festival). This is because in the summer time there is a strong southwest monsoon, and in winter there will be a northeast monsoon.
Both summer and winter are not the best time to see it…. so unfortunately I didn’t get to see it either.
🍚 12 pm: Lunch at 恩寶．喵喵食坊
🍨 1 pm: Shaved snow ice at 狠舔雪花冰
Yet the Lanyu-produced taro was really yum!
🛵 2 pm: Round Tour & The Underground House Tour
Old Lanyu Lighthouse (舊蘭嶼燈塔), Jipinayyao (像水渠一樣), Jikarahem (最深處), Underground House Tour, Domiyaow (情人洞)
One thing you might notice when you ride your scooter through the Iraraley (Langdao, 朗島) tribe is the white stone with the blue words on it (see photos below).
This is because the Langdao tribe in Lanyu initiated a campaign in 2015 to correct the name of the tribal landscape.
The young tribal youths had emphasised that the Taiwanese government gave the tribal landscape a similar name, which was very different from the name called by the tribe.
To give tourists the idea of what the original tribe thinks about the tourist attractions, the tribe has been trying to rectify the names.
For example, Jikarahem should be called 最深處 in Mandarin instead of the name “五孔洞” given by the government.
The underground houses tour was definitely another highlight of our trip.
We saw a commercial on the way of our round tour, and just dial the number on the ad.
Then it was a young lady coming to tell us the story of the famous underground houses.
There are many places on Lanyu where you can see the underground houses, but most of them are in the Ivalino (Yeyin, 野銀) tribe and the Iraraley (Langdao, 朗島)tribe.
To join the tour, because they were offered independently, so simply book online, call on-site and then basically pick a tour guide you like! Generally, the price will be around NTD$350 per person.
About the underground house tour,
Traditionally, these houses were developed in response to the windy weather and the cold winter. It enables to avoid typhoons in summer, northeast monsoons in winter and earthquakes.
You might ask why the house is underground, and will not be flooded when the rain comes?
This is because the roof is generally tilted towards the gaps in the cobblestones in front of the houses which can effectively drain the rainwater, and then the rainwater will flow to the sea.
Usually, the underground is quite hot in the summer, so in the summer people usually will seat outside their houses.
This is why before you enter their houses, there will be several stones outside, symbolising the living room couches.
The house we visit is a 2-floor house.
The “first floor” is for the purpose of greeting visitors in the winter, and also the kitchen area.
The “second floor” is for sleeping.
The fish skin hanging on the ceiling represents the excellent fishing performance of the owner, and the horn or the jawbone of the pig is a status symbol.
When cooking, different foods also need to be cooked in separate pots, especially the flying fish!
And the locals love using the smoke from the cooking to make the smoke flying fish. Moreover, the smoke in wooden houses can be used to prevent moths and insects. But it is also the smoke that the ceiling is often turned into dark brown.
Lanyu pig is a small-eared pig breed native to Lanyu with a small body. It originated from the wild boar domesticated by the ancestors of the Dawu (達悟) people (the locals).🐷
The Lanyu pig belongs to the Eurasian wild boar species, which originated 600,000 years ago. It was sown from the islands of Southeast Asia to Taiwan during the Ice Age and was domesticated by humans about 10,000 years ago. 🐽
Afterwards, it was geographically isolated due to the rising seawater, retaining its genetic uniqueness. Therefore, apart from Taiwan, no other genetically similar breeds of pigs have been found anywhere in the world.
Traditionally, every family in Lanyu raises pigs. For the islanders, pigs are a symbol of wealth and normally will not be killed and eaten unless there’s a very big ritual.
So fellows! Next time when you see some vendors selling “Lanyu pork”, it is of course not the real one as people don’t eat them casually!
A well that used to be the water source of the tribe now was covered with slippery green moss stones.
Do means “at”, Kowa means “big”, ranom means “water source“
After the awesome introduction of the underground house, we head to the Domiyaow (情人洞).
Domiyaow is a natural sea cave. The entrance of the cave is a natural stone arch that has been eroded by waves over the years. It is about 5 feet in diameter with a spectacular deep pool inside.
Legend has it that a person from the tribe walked into a dark cave around and accidentally fell into another deeper cave, and was lost after then. Years later, the man came out of a cave from Dojisangi (青青草原, green grassland on the island) and has become a white-hair old man.
This place is also highly recommended by the locals to watch the sunrise.
🍱 7 pm: 蘭嶼海誓景觀餐廳
We accidentally found the restaurant and turned out this was then ranked by us as the best restaurant with the best sea view!
Well. of course you don’t see much at night though…
⭐ 9 pm: Lanyu Weather Station (蘭嶼氣象站) Stars watching
There are several places on the island where you can enjoy the beautiful night sky.
Our Airbnb host recommended the Dojisangi (green grassland) as it was said to be without the light pollution.
Nevertheless, we found the view from the Lanyu Weather Station (蘭嶼氣象站) wasn’t a bad idea either!
Simply walk for about 10 mins then you’ll reach the top.
🍸 11 pm: Bar (蘭嶼散漫酒吧)
Well, it is said that even the police on the island will drink and ride… but of course not in a “dangerous” way of riding the scooter.
There aren’t many places on Lanyu where you can grab a drink. This place offers BBQ and cocktails for your reference!
3⃣ Day 3 3⃣
2022.06.05
🥪 8 am: Breakfast at 阿力給早餐店
They sell really nice light cheese walnut sandwiches… and also sell a nice smile from the owner!🌞
Free classic Taiwanese black tea (the one with Cassia seed) when you order a sandwich!🥤
🛵 9 am: Round Tour
Jipanatosan (尾端/部落界線/雙獅岩), 蘭嶼鬼洞
After breakfast, we head to the Jipanatosan. This is actually also a great place to do the free diving and the fishing!
Lanyu was formed by volcanic eruptions from the bottom of the ocean. The stratum is mainly composed of andesite lava and basalt agglomerates. After years of sea erosion and weathering, forming various interesting rock landscapes.
Don’t these two rocks look exactly like two lions facing each other?
The iconic rocks that divide the Dongqing (東清) tribe and the Iraraley (Langdao, 朗島) tribe.
🤿 3 pm: Snorkeling at 蘭嶼野銀冷泉
Personally, I would say….. except it was a bit windy that day; otherwise, the corals here are much better than the ones in the Great Barrier Reef in Australia lol
This is the place where the salty seawater and freshwater meet, and due to less pollution, you’ll definitely want to book a snorkelling activity here!
🌅 6 pm: Watching the sunset at Dojisangi (青青草原)
Dojisangi (Qingqing Grassland, 青青草原) is the widest grassland at the southern end of Lanyu Island.
It is a raised coral reef platform and was originally a farming land for residents in the early days.
The soil here is rich in iron, magnesium and other minerals to form laterite. The natural prairie now has become a good place for tourists to enjoy the scenery and the sunset.🌅
🔦 8 pm: Night Tour
Our tour guide was really thorough. He introduced almost EVERYTHING from Lanyu Scops-Owl (蘭嶼角鴞) to different kinds of plants on Lanyu island and all the way to hermit crabs. $300 for 2 hours was absolutely worth it!
He was good at mimicking the sound of the Lanyu Scops-Owls and thus we were just lucky to see them! It was too far to take a video though.
4⃣ Day 4 4⃣
2022.06.06
🥾 10 am: Round Tour
東清秘境 & Lanyu Lighthouse (蘭嶼燈塔) & Xiao Tianchi (Small Tianchi Lake/小天池)
The way up to the Lanyu Lighthouse (蘭嶼燈塔) was not easy to find. Make sure you double-check with the locals before you go.
The lighthouse is prohibited from tourists, and the wind was strong at the hilltop. But the view was awesome!
Xiao Tianchi (Small Tianchi Lake/小天池) was said to be no water for almost 40 years until this year!
Lucky for us to see the water thanks to the long-lasting plum rain season this year.
About only a 10 mins simple walk from the starting point you’ll see it!
🍝 12 pm: Lunch at 蘭嶼漂流木餐廳
🍧 1 pm: Shaved ice at 雯雯芋頭冰
⛴ 3 pm: Back to Pingtung
The upper left photo from the bottom shows the shop at the harbour selling interesting enzyme drinks to prevent seasickness.
Also if you tend to have motion sickness, make sure you get a seat at the back of the boat!
The orange man belongs to the Coast Guard Administration (OAC), you get to see them on almost every coast in Taiwan.
🐟 5 pm: Dinner at Qiu’s Sashimi (邱家生魚片)
Last but definitely not the least:
Do Not Forget to grab the cheapest sashimi with the top quality when you get back to Pingtung!
For 40 pieces, they only cost you NTD $200! Unbelievable!
