Taichung Public Transportation

On Taichung’s western coast is a vast tidal flatland where the sea intrudes into the land and creates the marshy wetlands of Gaomei. Here you can watch spectacular sunsets over the vast open space, breathe fresh salty air and walk with the sea critters that live in the watery coastline. Its not your usual tropical sunset over a beach with a defined surf. Instead its vast and expansive, its flat and its water logged, muddy and wet.

There are big wind turbines lining the side of the winding road, and its in the eye of the beholder whether you think the wind turbines add or detract to Gaomei Wetlands’ appeal. On the opppsite shore there is a 800m boardwalk through the marshes so you can get up close to the sea environment without trampling on the mud or destroying any precious ecosystem.

How to go to Gaomei Wetlands from Taichung City by Bus

To get to Gaomei Wetlands from Taichung City, the most straightforward way is to take the bus 309. The bus stops along 3 places in Gaomei Wetlands before it terminates at Wuci Fishing Port: Gaomei Wetland Shansunlun Road, No. 18 Wind Turbine and No. 9 Wind Turbine. We suggest that you alight at the middle stop, No. 18 Wind Turbine. From here you can cross the blue Gaomei Wetlands bridge to the visitors’ centre and to the boardwalk.

On weekends, you can also catch bus 655 from The Rainbow Village or Xinwuri TRA Station (the Xinwuri station is adjacent to the Taichung HSR). This bus also terminates at the Wuci Fishing Port and stops in front of the visitors’ centre and No. 9 Wind Turbine.

Bus 309 originates from Taichung Station and terminates at Wuci Fishing Port. The bus pass through the main thoroughfare Taiwan Boulevard so you can catch this bus at the 2nd Market bus stop, the National Museum of Natural Science bus stop (near Sogo), Taichung City Hall bus stop or Shinkong Mitsukoshi/Top City Department Stores bus stops. Travel time takes 30 minutes to 1 hour depending on traffic conditions. When we took the bus, it took us 1 hour to reach Gaomei Wetlands but the return journey took only 30 minutes.

Most people go to Gaomei Wetlands to watch the sunset. The overhead sun can be scorching so the best time to visit would be past 4pm. If you happen to arrive earlier or you still find the sun too high or too hot for your liking, or suddenly feel hungry, don’t alight at the wetlands. Instead take the bus all the way to Wuci Fishing Port which is the last stop of the bus and only one bus stop away from Gaomei Wetlands. There is a market selling fresh seafood (but of course), restaurants and lots of shops selling foodstuff. The port is worth a visit if only to pass the time before sunset. When you are ready to head back to Gaomei Wetlands just take the returning bus 309.

One disadvantage of taking bus 309 though is that you will alight along the main road and from here its still a good 30 minute walk to the boardwalk.

Take bus 309 on the opposite side of the road to return to Taichung City. The last bus leaves Wuci Port for Taichung City at 7:30pm during summer (April-September) and 6:30pm during winter. This is a pity actually as we would have liked to linger longer but we have to catch the bus back. Still we were grateful to have been to Gaomei Wetlands and see its unique environment.

Address: Gaomei Wetland Preservation Area, Qingshui District, Taichung, Taiwan

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How to go to Rainbow Village by Public Bus?

Our guide to the Public Bus System:

How to Use the Public Buses in Taichung

Rainbow village is instagram paradise. If you don’t know yet, Rainbow Village is a cluster of houses in Taichung covered in cartoonish drawings of dogs, cats, chickens, birds, bunnies, people, pineapples, flowers and characters on bright swatches of red and blue backgrounds. Its not technically a village, since there are less than 10 buildings adjacent to each other and you can see the whole place in 5 minutes tops…if you don’t take any pictures that is. The paintings are colourful, quirky and evoke childlike wonder made even more surprising when you realise that the painter is no spring chicken himself.

As the story goes, Grandpa Huang, a former soldier and security guard who lived in the military housing complex, started painting his and his neighbors’ houses to give the area some spot of colour and life in 2010 when he was already 86 years old! The colourful houses inspired the students of the nearby university to petition to protect the former military housing complex from being torn down and replaced by condos. The rest is instagram history as today, millions of people visit Rainbow Village every year for the endless photo ops available.

If you are lucky, you may even get to meet Grandpa Huang as he still makes an appearance once in a while. We actually have the good fortune of seeing Grandpa on the day we visited but he looked so frail now we did not have the heart to disturb him.

Rainbow Village opens at 9:00 am and closes at 6:00 pm. The best time to visit is at 4:30 – 5:00ish in the afternoon when the sun is near setting and there are no shadows within the building complex. You won’t bake in the hot Taichung sun and the lighting at this time of the day is great. If you get there around 5, you will still have a good hour of scrambling for spots for great photos. Just be prepared for the crowds as it’s a really popular attraction. Its free to enter but do be respectful and keep the noise down as people still live in the houses, and if you can buy a souvenir or some food or drink to support the place, why not?

How to go to Rainbow Village using Public Bus?

You can get to Rainbow Village from Taichung City by first heading to the Taichung High Speed Rail Station. At the ground level of the station is a bus station. From the Taichung High Speed Rail Station, take buses that go to the nearby Lingtung University such as buses 70, 26, 800, 617, 56 or 74 (do note that buses 56 and 74’s stop is not in the HSR but located opposite the Xinwuri TRA Station which is adjacent to the HSR). These buses stop right across the Rainbow Village. Rainbow Village is about 15 minutes away from the HSR station.

Alternatively, you may also take bus 56 from Gancheng Station in downtown Taichung which heads the opposite way. Bus 56 terminates at the Xinwuri TRA station. However this bus runs only once every 30 minutes. Travel time from Taichung City to Rainbow Village by bus takes about 1 hour.

Rainbow Village is located in western Taichung. There is nothing in the area to see except Lingtung University and the Taichung High Speed Rail Station. The closest mall is Ikea so you may have a late lunch in Ikea then head to Rainbow Village. Given its proximity to the High Speed Rail, you may schedule your visit to the Rainbow Village around the time you arrive or depart Taichung City. You may leave your luggage inside the paid lockers in the station.

On weekends bus 655 run between Lingtung University and Gaomei Wetlands. If you finish early in Rainbow Village you could squeeze in Gaomei wetlands’ sunset. Journey time is 1 hour.

Do make time to visit Rainbow Village. Its not a large area but the place and its story is inspiring. Its how a single man can make a difference, how creativity knows no age, how joy abounds in unexpected places, and and of course how instagram can draw crowds.

Rainbow Village address: 408 Taiwan, Taichung City, Nantun District