Private Tour: Yangmingshan National Park Day Trip from Taipei

Meet your experienced guide at a designated location in the Zhongzheng District of Taipei and hop aboard a private, air-conditioned vehicle to begin your full-day tour of Yangmingshan National Park. Located 3,280 feet (1,000 meters) above sea level, the park’s volcanic landscape thrives with natural minerals and an abundance of seasonal plants and flowers.

Departing at 9am, you’ll reach your first stop in Yangmingshan, located less than an hour away. Visit the Zhongshan Building (Chung-Shan Building), one of several structures in the Sun Yat-Sen Memorial Hall complex. Your guide will inform you about the historical significance of the building – its image appears on the new Taiwan 100 dollar bill – and discuss the architectural style of the white walls and green tiles, designed by the female architect Xiu Zelan.

Next, enjoy lunch at Stone House Restaurant, one of Yangmingshan’s famous restaurants. Dine on delicious authentic Taiwanese cuisine in an intimate setting decorated with antiques.

After lunch, your guide will take your private party to the small oil pit (Xiaoyoukeng) to discover Taiwan’s famous extinct volcano. Keep an eye out for remnants of the site’s former volcanic activity as steam and gases are still emitted from this natural phenomenon. Learn about the sulfurous rocks and natural hot springs in Yangmingshan as you walk along nearby hiking trails and pass through a thick bamboo forest in a region covered with silver grass.

From here, head to Qingtiangang Meadow, also known as ‘Valley of the Sun,' where lush green pastures blanket grounds that were once a lava field. Take a lazy stroll around Qingtiangang Meadow to watch cattle graze and revel in the clear, fresh air of Taiwan’s countryside.

Finally, drop by enchanting Bamboo Lake where a 32-acre (13-hectare) field of flowers bursts into bloom (depending on the season) in the fertile, volcanic soil. In spring, calla lilies are a favorite for picking in this picturesque valley where mountains dot the landscape that is some 500,000 years old.

Around 5pm, your guide will transport you back by private vehicle, arriving in Taipei around 6pm.