I’ll start this post with a mea culpa: I was wrong about Kenting National Park. Or at least, I was wrong to dismiss it as harshly as I previously did without giving it another chance.
Of course, I don’t want to push too far in the other direction: Kenting is not the best destination in Taiwan, and there are plenty of things I find overrated about the wild southern tip of Taiwan. I’m not aching to go back, as genuinely as I enjoyed my most recent visit there.
Nonetheless, it’s my hope that this newest iteration of my Kenting travel guide will provide a more balanced, sober view of the park than my last one did. And that it will leave room for you to form your own judgment, instead of having mine imposed upon you.
Where to Base Yourself in Kenting National Park
The majority of Kenting hotels and guest houses are near Kenting town and the Kenting Night Market, but I’m going to invite you to buck conventional wisdom on this front—namely, to stay near Baishawan Beach. Obviously, this has the immediate effect of giving you walking-distance access to the best beach in the national park, though this is not the only benefit of basing yourself in this area.
Nor is it simply that doing so allows you to avoid the traffic and crowds you’d find further west, even if that would be beneficial as well. Rather, it’s the quality of accommodations here, which are high—and not just relative to how they are elsewhere in Taiwan, a country where hotels generally leave a lot to be desired. I personally loved staying at the quaint Blue Ocean Hill, though I also considered the elevated (literally) SkyeBay Club.
What to Do in Kenting National Park
Hit the beach at Baishawan
I’ll declare boldly that Baishawan is the best beach in Kenting. It’s also one of the best in Taiwan more broadly, and the only one of many that share is name to live up to its meaning, literally “White Sand Bay” in Mandarin. Beyond this, I do think that starting your trip at this beach (whether or not you sleep here—more on that in a second) is the surest way to get it off on a high note.
Enjoy the view from Fengchuisha or Mobitou
By contrast, some additions to your Kenting itinerary are much more for looking or admiring than they are for feeling the sand between your toes. For example, it’s impossible to deny the beauty of the vistas you enjoy from viewpoints like Fengchuisha, near the northeastern entrance to the park, or Mobitou on the south coast. It’s also hard, however, to imagine that you won’t literally be blown off a cliff to your death on one or both of these scenic coastlines.
Visit the southernmost tip of Taiwan
I’ll be honest: Eluanbi Lighthouse itself is not as impressive as I was hoping, though that’s as much because I set the expectation of it actually being on the water as it is because I wished that I could go up inside it (you can’t). With this being said, there’s something cool about walking to the nearby monument to the southernmost tip of Taiwan, at least when you’ve explored the country as much as I have.
Eat your way through Kenting Night Market
Whether from seeing all the best beaches in Kenting or simply because you came to Taiwan to eat, Kenting Night Market is one of the best in the country—and not just due to the fact that it stretches for almost a kilometer along both sides of the road in Kenting Town. It’s home to as many different types of cuisine as you could want, from sit-down seafood, to take-away fish and chips, to (of course) bubble tea, and alcoholic concoctions as well.
Don’t forget about Hengchun
Hengchun is a small city located a few miles north of Baishawan, one you’ll past through (or at least very near) on your way into the park from Kaohsiung or Pingtung City, whether you come by bus or your own car. I highly recommend stopping here for at least a couple of hours, even if it’s simply to walk atop or through its beautiful city walls, or simply to see life in Taiwan’s far south without having to look through the lens of Kenting’s mass tourism.
How to Get to (and Around) Kenting National Park
Although buses run from Kaohsiung somewhat regularly, as well as through the park itself, Kenting is one of the few destinations in Taiwan for which I really argue it’s necessary to rent a car. This serves a few purposes, including the fact that you can much more seamlessly integrate the park into your trip. The first time I visited, for example, I dipped down to Kenting on my way from Taitung over to Kaohsiung.
Having a car also empowers you to explore the park as deeply as you’d like, not matter how many days in Kenting you decide to spend. You don’t just have to focus on the top “attractions,” let alone in the sequence the bus stops at them; you can pull off to the side of the road whenever the mood strikes you (and it will). Plus, the roads here are in excellent condition and mostly pretty straight, so there’s no real disadvantage to having your own set of wheels.
Other FAQ About Kenting National Park
Is Kenting worth going to?
Kenting is absolutely worth going to—and I declare this having spent many years believing that it wasn’t. The key to enjoying Kenting National Park is giving yourself an adequate amount of time to explore (at least one night; maybe two) and going during the right time of year (i.e. not the busy summer or autumn months).
Do you need a car to visit Kenting National Park?
You don’t need a car to visit Kenting, but it helps. Buses travel to the park from Kaohsiung, and travel through the park at regular intervals. On the other hand, having your own set of wheels allows you to see the park more or less at your leisure, and stop when you want, which can take a lot of pressure off.
How many days do you need in Kenting National Park?
If you can, spend at least two nights in Kenting National Park. Keeping in mind that you’ll have to get in on day one and leave on day three, this allows you a full 24 hour period where you can wake up and go to bed here, and spend the full day exploring.
The Bottom Line
I’m glad you’ve stumbled upon this Kenting travel guide, as opposed to previous versions of it. In the past, I was probably too harsh in my appraisal of the park, even if I genuinely did not enjoy my first few trips there. I didn’t get what the hype was—it was crowded and surprisingly urbanized and, so far as I could tell, not home to any of the best beaches in Taiwan. It took years for me to go back and force myself to see the place with fresh eyes, and I’m so glad I did. Now, Kenting isn’t my favorite place in Taiwan, and probably doesn’t even rank in my top tier. Still, I hope you’ll give it a chance, whether on your own, or incorporate into one of my custom Taiwan itineraries.
