A Backpacker's Paradise: Dulan Forest

One of my former co-workers went on a road trip throughout Taiwan in January during News Year’s Eve. She said she only knew about Dulan because she met a local on her road trip who told her and her friends to go. He told them, “It is the hippy town of Taiwan.”

View from our Airbnb

At the beginning of April, my friend and I went to Dulan on the last day of our long weekend vacation after staying in Taitung and Green Island. As we were planning our weekend trip, I convinced my friend to stay in Dulan for one night before we went back to Taipei.

The main street in Dulan

The day we came back from Green Island, we took a taxi from the Green Island ferry straight to our Airbnb in Dulan.

We get dropped off in front of the Dulan Sugar Factory which is a store, bar and gift shop for handmade items and art.

The beach is so close

Since our Airbnb host spoke Chinese (and my Chinese isn’t that good), we had 4 people tried contacting us to speak in English. When I was talking on the phone, my friend had her phone up to mine, while using google translate on speaker phone! Despite the translation difficulties, the host sends a friend to pick us up. He drives us to our Airbnb for the night. Our room wasn’t ready when we arrived, so our host upgraded us to a room with a balcony and views of the mountains in the background.

Beach views on one side of the road, mountains on the other

When we were checking out, he drives us to his restaurant and serves us breakfast. That was probably one of the best breakfast vegetarian noodles I have had since I've been in Taiwan. He also held our bags at his place while we went to the beach. When we came back from the beach, he showed us his shower hose had had in the back. He let us shower and freshen up since we had a 6-hour train ride going back to Taipei. The hospitality of the Taiwanese still blows my mind, even though I have been living here for 9 months.

Dulan is a quint, surf town with hippy vibes. It consists of a forest full of palm trees and misty mountains. Dulan town consists of a street that has some hostels, bars, restaurants, surf shacks, and food stands.

Ocean and mountain views

This is the place to go if you want to experience a load back vibe, solitude, surfing and mountain views in Taiwan. Dulan beach is a black sand beach where you can surf, and relax. Dulan Beach is not a crowded beach by any means. When my friend and I went around noon, there were few people, while it was a very clear and hot day.

To our surprise, Dulan beach was not crowded. How can a place be so beautiful?

One of the best beaches in Taiwan

If you ever visit Taiwan, you must go to Dulan Forest. Even though it is a small town, I have seen more expats here for such an intimate place to visit. If I were to go again, I would spend at least 2 nights there. I would rent a motorbike and drive toward the mountains. I hear it is breathtaking.

Enjoy yourself and have an adventure by renting a surfboard and try yourself!

Lost in Dulan