10 Things to Do in Tainan on a Small Budget

Located in Xinhua Township, Tainan, Nanzhenludidi'an Park is located close to farmland and Xinhua Sports Park. In a local regeneration project to make waterways more "park-friendly", viewing pavilions, arch bridges and trails were added to both sides of the embankment. Every spring, when the bougainvillea flowers are in full bloom, you can stroll through the magical pink tunnels that they form across the embankment. As the pink petals fall into the turquoise water, you can imagine yourself in a classical European garden, which is why locals also refer to this park as the "Rhine of Xinhua".

The delightful spectacle of the bougainvillea, a beautiful landscaping plant, naturally attracts many tourists, who come here to enjoy the view and take pictures, especially when the flowers are in bloom. A stroll on the lovely green embankment path is sure to lift your spirits. The park is also popular with locals, who often come here to walk and cycle. It's a great spot for relaxation and recreation without having to spend much money.

It's often hot and sunny in Tainan, but if the weather isn't good, you can visit the museums for some indoor entertainment since admission to most of them is free. The Sausage Museum in the South District of Tainan City is packed with retro shops and street scenes that transport you back in time. You can get a glimpse of Tainan’s early rural life here. And, of course, you get to learn all about sausages. Once you've seen all the exhibits, you can head to where the hot food is served to enjoy your fill of the delicious sausages before you leave.

If you like seafood, the Milkfish Museum is well worth a visit. Learn all about milkfish and enjoy the playful art installations featuring cats chasing the fish that are scattered throughout the museum. National Cheng Kung University Museum offers a fun and educational museum experience where you can explore ancient cultural relics and hunt for treasure. At Tainan Judicial Museum, a National Historic Monument, you'll see magnificent buildings and learn about Taiwan's judicial history. If you still need to satisfy your thirst for knowledge, head to the Meteorological Museum to learn about meteorology through its interesting and interactive exhibits.

Situated in Yonghuali at the north gate of Tainan, Jingzaijiao Tile-paved Salt Fields have a history going back more than 200 years and are the oldest salt fields in Taiwan still in existence today. Initially abandoned, the salt fields were revived as a tourist attraction following restoration works. You can visit and experience the salt fields for free. Broken earthenware pieces are used to pave the salt pans, creating a beautiful mosaic in the chessboard-like salt fields. You can walk barefoot in the Salt Field Experience Area and treat the soles of your feet to a spa experience with the natural coarse salt. You can also try your hand at salt harvesting.

Climb up to the observation deck, which is about three stories high, and you'll get a panoramic view of the entire salt fields. At sunset, enjoy the magical scene of clouds in bright fiery colours as you sample Jing Zhai Jiao Salt Fields' specialities of salted ice-cream and sunset salt cocktails. Smell the salt on the breeze and make the most of this relaxing experience. Don't forget to donate money for blessings at nearby Xing'an Temple. You'll receive a salt pouch to bring home together with delightful memories of your day at one of the oldest salt fields in Taiwan.

Every spring, around February and March, Xuejia District Office organises a host of flower season activities. Other than the stunning hollyhock, you'll also find fields of beautiful sunflowers and Taiwan quinoa. Complementing the flowers are many ingenious art installations. This fiesta of flowers and art brings cheer to the many visitors who come here and is undoubtedly one of the most gorgeous spring spectacles in Taiwan.

Hollyhock can grow up to a height of about one foot (30.5 cm). In the ancient Chinese royal court, the hollyhock was a popular flower symbolising wealth and only royalty and nobility had access to it. But today, anyone who's willing to travel can come to Xuejia to enjoy the hollyhock in all its splendour, just like the nobility did in ancient times. The sea of intertwined red, green and yellow flowers makes you feel as if you're in a magical fantasy land. In addition, there are wonderful installations and landscapes based on themes like Alice in Wonderland and Cinderella, with props for taking photos such as a pumpkin carriage and a rainbow tunnel shaped like a heart. This is a spot where you'll want to have your camera to hand at all times.

Taikang Cultural Center in Annan District, Tainan City, is a multi-purpose arts and cultural centre that integrates performing arts spaces, a library and a community college. It opened in 2019 and admission is free. The buildings are unique geometrical structures with long stairways that form an attractive arc, making the centre an Instagram hotspot for photos. The outdoor installations such as the giant tables and chairs are like something from Jack and the Beanstalk, and you can't help but feel as if you've sneaked into the giant's house. The experimental theatre is housed in a building that looks like a large tree branch. There's also an outdoor amphitheatre and various exhibition spaces.

One of the goals of the centre is to host artistic and cultural events for local residents to encourage appreciation of the arts. The library on the ground floor has an extensive collection of children’s books. The environment and ambience are specially designed to appeal to children, and there are regular storytelling sessions. There are also outdoor play facilities for children to promote physical activity. In addition to being a centre for arts and culture, it's also a great recreation area for children.

Tainan Fucheng is one of the earliest cities to be developed in Taiwan and has a history going back more than 300 years. It's said that there are historical sites around just about every corner, and you're never more than three steps away from one. Many of Tainan's famous monuments are former military strongholds ‒ Eternal Golden Fort (also known as Erkunshen Fortress), Anping Old Fort, which was built when Taiwan was ruled by the Dutch in the 17th century, and Chihkan Tower, also built by the Dutch for defence purposes.

There are also non-military monuments, such as the Confucius Temple, which promotes education, or Koxinga Shrine, which serves as a reminder of the hardship of the city's forefathers, as well as the Deji Company and Dongxing Company, which date back to the early commercial history of the canal in Taiwan. Lin Department Store is one of the earliest department stores in Southern Taiwan and you can still see the bullet holes made by US fighter jets during World War II. A high-class Japanese restaurant during the Japanese occupation, Ying Cuisine still retains a strong Japanese architectural style following its restoration. You may glimpse faint traces of the luxurious scenes of old, when the Japanese Crown Prince (later Emperor) Hirohito mingled with the political and business elites in this restaurant in 1923.

Yuguang Island is on the south side of Anping Port in Tainan and is formerly known as "Three Kunshan". "Kunshan" is a local term for an offshore sandbar. As the island is covered mainly by forest, it's also known as "Misty Forest". It's also home to Crescent Bay, a dating spot very popular with couples in Tainan. The azure blue waters, coupled with the beautiful heart shape of the sea formed by the protruding jetty built to protect the ecology of Crescent Bay, confer on this place a uniquely romantic beauty that's popular with Instagrammers, who come here to check in and take photos.

Yuguang Island Art Festival has been held every year since 2017. It's a major event that attracts both local and foreign artists and performers. Many of the art installations featured in the festival attempt to incorporate the natural landscape of Yuguang Island. With so much to see, the festival and installations have become part of the unique local landscape. The rays from the setting sun act like an artist's paintbrush, creating displays of colour, light and shadow on the ocean and beach that vary with the weather conditions. It's little wonder that this is regarded as one of the most beautiful beaches in Taiwan and a great place to come for a stroll and to look at the ocean.

Linchupi Kapok Road in Baihe District, Tainan, was named by a Spanish travel site as one of the 15 most magical streets shaded by flowers in the world, and was the only road of flowers in Asia to make the list. Every year when kapok flowering season comes round, this road attracts large numbers visitors, who come here to view the beautiful flowers.

Flowering season is around March and April each year, though the flowers may bloom as early as February if affected by warm winters. You can feel the warmth and vitality of spring radiate from the tall, flaming-red kapok trees lining both sides of the road. The road of flowers stretches for up to half a mile (800 metres), and is flanked by green paddy fields, aquatic plants and colourful ferns. Their colours intermingle to form a natural and poetic beauty. The kapok flowers are as bright as a burning flame and look stunning no matter how you choose to photograph them. Some people use the scattered kapok petals to form a heart shape or pile them up to complement the landscaping and photographic features prepared by the local government for the flower viewing season. Come here for a walk or a bike ride to enjoy the beauty of the flowers at your leisure.

Tainan has many distinctive manufacturing industries and one of the highest numbers of tourism factories in Taiwan. You can visit the food factory directly opposite Tainan Airport. Admission doesn't cost much and with your ticket you get pineapple cakes and little surprises. Professional guides and interesting interactive games give you an insight into how the products here are made. There are also restaurants on site, so you can eat your fill after working up an appetite during the tour.

At the Taiwan Metal Creation Museum in Yongkang District, you can see items made from various metals as well as the super-realistic Queen's Head, inspired by the rock of the same name in Yehliu, made of nuts and bolts. There are lots of interesting activities at the hydrogel tourism factory near Rende Interchange, and you can even make your own super-cute hydrogel babies. Visit the bird's nest factory to learn about the ecosystem of the beautiful swallow and create your very own bird's nest using rock sugar. Several tourism factories are currently working together to launch a new game based on real-world puzzles, which will definitely be an exciting activity worth adding to your itinerary.