Taiwan sits where two tectonic plates collide, and that has given it well over a hundred hot spring sources, from sulphur vents a metro ride from Taipei to a seawater pool on the rocks of Green Island. The Japanese, who ruled the island from 1895 to 1945, built the first bathhouses, and the soaking culture they started is still everywhere: public pools, private family rooms rented by the hour, hotel suites with a tub fed straight from the spring.
The easiest soaks are in the north. Beitou and Yangmingshan are inside Taipei’s city limits, Wulai is an hour south in the mountains, and Jiaoxi in Yilan has hot water under the town itself, with free foot baths in its parks. The east has the quieter rural springs of the Rift Valley and Taitung’s Zhiben valley; the south has Guanziling’s grey mud springs and Sichongxi near Kenting.
Away from the water, Taiwanese foot massage is a cheap and useful habit after long days of walking, and Buddhist monasteries such as Fo Guang Shan offer meditation retreats for visitors.
At a Glance#
- Easiest from Taipei: Beitou, a metro ride from the centre, with sulphur springs, the steaming Thermal Valley and many hotels with private baths.
- Mountain springs: Yangmingshan’s milky sulphur water and Wulai’s clear alkaline springs in an Atayal village.
- Free soaks: Jiaoxi’s foot baths in Tangweigou and the Jiaoxi Hot Spring Park, about an hour from Taipei by bus.
- The east: Ruisui’s iron-rich amber springs in the Rift Valley and Zhiben’s resort valley near Taitung.
- Unusual water: Su’ao’s cold carbonated springs, Guanziling’s mud springs near Tainan, and the seawater pools of Green Island.
- Costs: public baths up to about NT$250 (about 8 USD); private hotel rooms by the hour cost more.
- When to go: November to March, when cool weather makes a hot soak most welcome.
Beitou and Yangmingshan#
Beitou, at the end of the Xinbeitou branch of the Taipei MRT Red line, is Taiwan’s best-known hot spring area. Walk up from Xinbeitou station past the 1913 public bath, now the free Beitou Hot Spring Museum where you cannot bathe, to the Thermal Valley, a steaming green-sulphur pool too hot to touch. The open-air Millennium Hot Spring public pool closed for renovation in 2025; check whether it has reopened before you go. Otherwise use the old Japanese-era public bathhouse Longnaitang or one of the many hotels along the river that sell day passes to their pools or rent private rooms with a tub by the hour.
Higher up, Yangmingshan has sulphur springs with milky white water around the fumaroles below Qixing Mountain, and hotels on the road up offer baths with mountain views. Combine a soak with a hike in the national park. Our Taipei itineraries include a day built around Beitou and Yangmingshan.
Wulai#
Wulai, an Atayal village about an hour by bus or taxi from Xindian MRT station, has clear, odourless sodium bicarbonate springs said to leave the skin smooth. The free riverside pools that used to line the Nanshi River were removed some years ago, so soaking now happens in the resorts and small hotels along the hot spring street and up the valley, many with outdoor pools over the river. Wulai also has a waterfall, a small tourist train and Atayal food stalls selling bamboo-tube rice and wild boar sausage.
Jiaoxi and Yilan#
Jiaoxi is unusual: the springs are under a flat town, not in the mountains, and the Kamalan and other buses from Taipei through the Hsuehshan Tunnel take about an hour. In Tangweigou Hot Spring Park and the larger Jiaoxi Hot Spring Park opposite the bus station there are free public foot baths, and Tangweigou also has a fish foot spa and a small, cheap public bath. The forest-themed pools in Jiaoxi Hot Spring Park cost about NT$250. Dozens of hotels have private rooms and rooftop pools.
Down the coast, Su’ao has one of the rare cold springs, carbonated water at about 22°C that locals bathe in on hot summer days and use to make soda-style drinks. The coast also leads to Guishan Island, a whale-watching trip from Toucheng.
The east coast#
The East Rift Valley between Hualien and Taitung has the most rural soaking on the island. Ruisui’s springs are salty and rich in iron, turning the water a rusty amber colour; the old Japanese-era inns there are the classic place to stay. Antong, further south, has clear alkaline water and a quiet setting among rice paddies. Both are easy stops on a drive down Highway 9 (see our road trips in Taiwan page).
Zhiben, just south of Taitung city, is a resort valley at the mouth of a river gorge, with large hotels and the Zhiben Forest Recreation Area for walks. Out at sea, Green Island has one of the world’s few seawater hot springs, Zhaori, where you sit in stone pools on the shore and watch the sunrise. Our islands and beaches guide covers the ferries.
Central and southern Taiwan#
Guanziling, in the hills east of Tainan, is known for its grey mud springs, with fine clay particles that give the water a muddy colour and are sold as face masks. Sichongxi, on the Hengchun peninsula about 30 minutes from Kenting, is the southern option, with old Japanese-era bathhouses and hotels in a small valley. In the central mountains, Lushan and Dongpu are deep in the hills near the trailheads; check road conditions after typhoons, since landslides have closed both in the past.
Massage, spas and retreats#
Taiwanese foot massage, a firm reflexology style, is sold in shops in every city, often open until midnight. Expect roughly NT$600 to NT$1,200 for 40 to 60 minutes, and look for places that post prices outside. Full-body massage and hotel spas are more expensive, with five-star hotel spas in Taipei charging international prices.
Taiwan has few dedicated yoga resorts, but its Buddhist monasteries take visitors. Fo Guang Shan, near Kaohsiung, has pilgrim lodging and short meditation programmes, and Dharma Drum Mountain in Jinshan on the north coast runs meditation retreats. Book well ahead and expect early mornings, vegetarian meals and silence.
Etiquette and safety#
- Public baths: most separate men and women and are nude; mixed pools need a swimsuit and sometimes a swim cap.
- Shower first: wash fully before entering the water, and keep your towel out of the pool.
- Private rooms: hotels rent family or couple rooms by the hour, which suit anyone uncomfortable bathing in public.
- Health: limit soaks to 10 or 15 minutes at a time, drink water, and avoid hot springs after alcohol, if pregnant or with heart problems.
- Thermal areas: stay behind barriers at fumaroles and hot pools such as Beitou’s Thermal Valley; the water there is near boiling.
Go on a weekday afternoon. Taipei’s hot spring hotels fill on weekend evenings and charge more for private rooms, and the public baths are quietest before 5pm.
For soaking elsewhere in the region, see wellness and spa in East Asia.
Best places for hot springs in Taiwan#
More Things to Do#
Taiwan hot springs FAQs#
What is the best hot spring in Taiwan?
For convenience, Beitou in Taipei. For a mountain setting, Wulai or Yangmingshan. For something unusual, the seawater pools at Zhaori on Green Island, Guanziling’s mud springs or Su’ao’s cold carbonated springs.
Do you have to be naked in Taiwan hot springs?
In gender-separated public baths, yes. Mixed outdoor pools require a swimsuit and often a swim cap. If you prefer privacy, rent a private hot spring room by the hour at a hotel.
How much does a hot spring cost in Taiwan?
Public baths cost up to about NT$250 (about 8 USD), and the foot baths in Jiaoxi are free. Hotel day passes and private rooms cost more, roughly from several hundred to a few thousand NT$ depending on the hotel and the time.
Can you visit a hot spring as a day trip from Taipei?
Yes. Beitou is about 30 minutes by MRT from the centre, Wulai about an hour by bus, and Jiaoxi about an hour by bus through the Hsuehshan Tunnel.
When is the best time for hot springs in Taiwan?
November to March, when the weather is cool and the north is often damp. Summer soaks are possible, but in July and August Su’ao’s cold springs are the more pleasant choice.
Are tattoos allowed in Taiwan hot springs?
Usually. Tattoo bans are much less common than in Japan, but rules vary by venue, so ask ahead if you have large tattoos.