TRAVEL MAMA · TAIWAN PRIVATE TOUR
Southern Taiwan 5-Day Private Tour | Maolin Butterflies, Duona & Tainan
Travel as a private party of four between November and March. Start at Kaohsiung Airport, explore Maolin’s winter butterflies and Duona’s Rukai heritage, then discover Tainan, Meinong and Qishan before returning to Kaohsiung Airport.
Kaohsiung International Airport arrival and departure | Mandarin-speaking guiding
The base price is for four travelling together and requires confirmation of dates and hotel availability. Flights are excluded, Saturday hotel supplements apply, and Taiwan public holidays, extended holidays and Lunar New Year are excluded from the base quotation.
Seasonal tour: November to March
Did you know? Maolin’s Purple Butterfly Valley shares its reputation with Mexico’s monarch butterfly valleys as one of the world’s great butterfly overwintering spectacles. You don’t have to travel as far as Mexico to experience butterflies filling a sheltered valley: Maolin, in Kaohsiung, Taiwan, offers the chance to see it for yourself.
Maolin’s Purple Butterfly Ecological Park has received the Michelin Green Guide Taiwan’s highest three-star recommendation. From late autumn to early spring, purple crow butterflies head south to spend the winter in warm, sheltered valleys. On a clear, mild morning, sunlight filters through the trees and the butterflies may take flight, their purple-blue iridescence shimmering through the woodland like a flowing river of colour.
These are wild butterflies. Sightings and numbers depend on the weather, temperature and season; large gatherings cannot be guaranteed.
Your five-day itinerary
Arrive at Kaohsiung Airport
Meet on arrival at Kaohsiung International Airport (KHH) and transfer to Fullon Hotel Kaohsiung or a similar hotel. The rest of the day is at leisure.
Meals: All meals at your own expense · Overnight: Fullon Hotel Kaohsiung or similar
Maolin butterflies, Duona heritage and mountain coffee
Walk in Maolin to look for overwintering purple crow butterflies, then explore Duona Suspension Bridge and Duona village, known for its Rukai slate-house heritage. Coffee or dessert at Yishanmu Coffee House is at your own expense. Butterfly activity depends on weather and natural conditions. A specialist Maolin ecology guide is an optional extra.
Meals: Hotel breakfast; lunch and dinner at your own expense · Overnight: Fullon Hotel Kaohsiung or similar
Tianliao Stone Temple, Anping and Taiwan history
Visit Tianliao Stone Temple, decorated with shells, coral stone and unusual rocks, before exploring Anping Old Street in Tainan. Visit the National Museum of Taiwan History and, subject to opening days and timing, a Tainan night market. Steps and uneven surfaces at the Stone Temple require care.
Meals: Hotel breakfast; lunch and dinner at your own expense · Overnight: Grand Banyan Hotel, Tainan or similar
TJC cosmetics, Meinong Hakka culture and Qishan
Visit the TJC cosmetics tourism factory, then discover Hakka culture in Meinong Folk Village. Choose one included activity: oil-paper umbrella painting or Hakka lei cha tea-making. Explore Qishan Old Street, with local snacks at your own expense, and visit Fo Guang Shan Buddha Museum. Sunset viewing depends on weather and the day’s schedule before returning to Kaohsiung.
Meals: Hotel breakfast; lunch and dinner at your own expense · Overnight: Fullon Hotel Kaohsiung or similar
Kaohsiung at leisure and airport departure
Enjoy breakfast and free time before your transfer to Kaohsiung International Airport (KHH), timed to your departing flight. Transport, meals and purchases during free time are at your own expense.
Meals: Hotel breakfast; lunch and dinner at your own expense · Overnight: No overnight stay
Tour fee includes
- Four hotel nights: three in Kaohsiung and one in Tainan, at the listed hotels or similar.
- Four hotel breakfasts on Days 2–5.
- Arrival and departure transfers at Kaohsiung International Airport (KHH).
- Ten hours of vehicle use per itinerary day in a Mercedes-Benz Vito, Volkswagen Transporter or similar, including tolls, parking, fuel and the driver/guide’s accommodation and meals.
- Mandarin-speaking guiding and local travel insurance.
- Admission to the National Museum of Taiwan History and one Meinong Hakka activity: oil-paper umbrella painting or lei cha tea-making.
Tour fee does not include
- Flights to and from Taiwan, related taxes, and personal travel-document or visa fees.
- All meals on Day 1, lunch and dinner throughout, and additional food and drinks.
- Specialist Maolin ecology guiding, optional activities, personal expenses and anything not expressly included.
- Applicable Saturday hotel supplements and separately requested room types or services.
Booking notes for this winter itinerary
The price of HK$5,880 per person is based on four people travelling together, with a base group total of HK$23,520. Enquiries are welcome for groups of at least four; groups of five or more require a separate quotation.
Available for departures from November to March each year. Dates, room arrangements and hotel availability must be confirmed when booking.
The base quotation does not apply to Taiwan public holidays, extended holiday periods or Lunar New Year.
For ordinary Saturdays outside public and extended holiday periods, hotel supplements are HK$130 per room per night at Fullon Hotel Kaohsiung and HK$465 per room per night at Grand Banyan Hotel, Tainan, subject to the confirmed dates and hotel.
Children aged four or above, or measuring 120 cm or taller, require their own bed. Other child arrangements and charges must be quoted separately.
Hotels, visits and the itinerary order may change with flight times, weather, opening hours and local conditions. A particular number of butterfly sightings cannot be guaranteed.
Enquire about the Kaohsiung and Maolin winter tour
Please enquire for at least four travellers and select a departure date at least 10 days from today. This season’s date selection ends on 31 March 2027. Groups of five or more require a separate quotation.