Cijin district is the second smallest district in Kaoshiung. It is just a short ferry ride from the Gushan Ferry Pier, which makes it a perfect day trip from Kaohsiung! Read on to find out what Cijin Island has to offer.
Getting Here
Take the Kaohsiung MRT to Sizihwan Station, and then walk to Gushan Ferry Pier station. From there, you can take the ferry to Cijin Island.
Getting Around
Traveling by foot is an option, but it was much more convenient and faster to explore the island by bike because some of the attractions are quite far. But don’t panic yet if you don’t know how to bike, because there are family bikes available for rent.
When we arrived, the first thing we did was rent a bike. We have to leave some kind of ID card at the bike shop. The ID will be returned when we return our bikes.
Cijin Attraction Map
The map below shows where the attractions are located, you can save it for future purposes. I like to start with the farthest attraction first and make my way back to the attractions near the pier. But feel free to swap the attractions and adjust it to your preference. If you pass by the Rainbow Church and see that there’s no queue, grab your chance and take a photo first before heading to Windmill Park.
Attractions
Cijin Old Street
As we made our way to Windmill Park, we passed by Cijin Old Street. It is a busy street that has shops, seafood restaurants, and food stalls on both sides of the street. We couldn’t help but stop for a moment to buy some cakes, dumplings, and noodles.
Windmill Park
The Windmill Park is the farthest of all the attractions on the island. I was expecting a real windmill, but it turned out to be mini turbines attached to the poles of the park. The park is smaller than expected, but it was a good place to rest and take a short break. Besides these mini turbines, there were cute seashells and fish art installations for picture taking.
Seashell Museum
Making our way back, we passed by the seashell museum. We did not enter the museum, but if you are interested in seashells, do check it out because it features over 200 kinds of shrimps and crabs and over 2,000 kinds of seashells.
Rainbow Church
A few steps away from the museum is the famous Rainbow Church. Although the name has “church” in it, it has nothing to do with religion. The rainbow church is a famous art installation with colors of a rainbow. It is one of the Instagrammable places on the island, hence there were a lot of people queuing and waiting for their turn to take a picture. While waiting for your turn, you can go to the back and take pictures of the sea.
Qijin Star Tunnel
It was a pleasant bike ride from Rainbow Church to Cijin Tunnel. Before we went into the tunnel, we parked our bikes outside. The tunnel that passes through Cihou Mountain was once a military tunnel, which was built by the Japanese during their colonization. As we slowly walk inside the tunnel, there’s wind coming from the other side of the tunnel. The tunnel was decorated with stars and different colors of lights were installed. Hence the name, Star Tunnel.
Coming out on the other side of the tunnel, we were treated to the amazing ocean view. Although there is nothing much to do here, we still spent some time here, just taking in the view and the ocean breeze.
Cihou Fort
The fort is located near the Cijin Star Tunnel, it is up to you if you want to leave your bike outside the tunnel or bring it with you. The fort was built at the peak of Cihou Mountain during the Qing dynasty to protect and defend Kaohsiung Harbor. It was abandoned by the Japanese and has been open to the public since 1995. Interestingly, the fort was designed by an Englishman. We went to the top of the fort and saw a spectacular view of the island.
Lighthouse
Next, we walked up the slope to see the lighthouse. The white lighthouse was built by the British in 1883. Also situated on top of Cihou Mountain, it has a great view of the Taiwan Strait and Kaohsiung City. The view was similar to the one we saw on the fort. This was our last stop, so we picked up our bikes and went back to the pier. You can check out the opening hours of the lighthouse here.
Other art installation
Besides the major attractions mentioned above, there were a lot of other art installations displayed along the biking trails.
Tips
- Use EasyCard to pay for the ferry, it is convenient and cheaper
- Bring some cash to buy food from food stalls
- Bring an identification card that you can leave at the bike rental
- Secure your bikes when you park them outside the attractions
- Bring a cap and sunscreen
- Wear appropriate shoes
Looking for things to do in Kaohsiung? You can read about them here.