Taiwan's southern tip: the tropical coast of the Hengchun peninsula and Kenting National Park — white-sand bays, coral reefs, cliffs, a lighthouse and Kenting Main Street, which turns into a night market every evening. For families: the marine biology museum and aquarium, shallow bays and snorkelling. You can swim all year; October–April is dry but winters are windy. No direct flights from UB — fly via Seoul or Hong Kong to Kaohsiung (KHH), then 2.5–3 hours by bus. Mongolian citizens need a visa.
🛂 Visa: Visa required✈ Flight: 9h☀ Best months: January, February, March, April
Orange — daytime average, blue — night, grey bars — rainfall, green — sea temperature. Best months: January, February, March, April, October, November, December.
Things to see (12)
🧸 for kids
National Museum of Marine Biology & Aquarium★ 4.5 (40,000)
KidsNT$450 (children 6+ and students NT$250; under 115 cm / under 6 free)9:00–17:30 (Jul–Aug 9:00–18:00, weekends 8:00–18:00)
Taiwan's biggest aquarium: a coral-reef underwater tunnel, whale sharks, penguins, belugas and a world-waters hall. A full day with children; there is even an overnight aquarium programme. 25 minutes by car from Kenting Main Street.
Like a well-travelled friend for a first-timer: before you go, landing, SIM, transport, money, food, safety, manners, apps, leaving — step by step.
🧳Before you goMongolians need a visa for Taiwan and there is no eVisa — get the visa first, then buy the ticket.+
1
Visitor visa — Taipei office in UB
Mongolian ordinary passport holders are on neither Taiwan's visa-exempt list nor its eVisa list. Apply in person for a visitor visa at the Taipei Trade and Economic Representative Office in Ulaanbaatar: BOCA fee $50 single entry, $100 multiple entry. Applications are taken on weekday mornings; the permitted stay is printed on the visa.
Tip: Prepare a passport valid for over 6 months, return ticket, hotel booking, bank statement and employment letter; confirm the document list by phone.
Paper arrival cards were abolished on 1 October 2025: fill in the Taiwan Arrival Card online, free, before you arrive. It reads your details from a passport photo, and one person can submit the cards for the rest of the family.
There is no direct flight. The nearest international airport to Kenting is Kaohsiung (KHH), with direct flights from Seoul and Hong Kong. Landing at Taipei Taoyuan (TPE) means half a day on the HSR and a bus. Through Beijing, check your bag through and stay airside — Mongolia is not covered by China's visa-free transit schemes.
Tip: Transiting in Hong Kong is visa-free for Mongolians and the easiest option.
🛬Landing and getting to KentingKenting has no railway or airport — the last stretch is by bus or car.+
1
Bus 9117B from Kaohsiung (KHH)
Outside KHH arrivals, the 9117B 'Kenting Airport Express' goes straight to Kenting in ~2.5–3 hours; first departure from the airport around 10:10, last around 18:30. The regular 9117 has many stops and takes ~4 hours. Pay with an EasyCard or cash.
Tip: If you land late, spend a night in Kaohsiung and go in the morning.
Take the Airport MRT to HSR Taoyuan, then the HSR to Kaohsiung's Zuoying station in ~1.5–2 hours (non-reserved seat NT$1,290). From Zuoying the 9189 Kenting Express takes ~2 h 20 min, NT$401 (return NT$600), about every 30 minutes between 08:15 and 19:30. Children under 115 cm ride free.
With children and lots of luggage, a pre-booked private car from the airport to Kenting is easiest. Renting a car in Taiwan requires an international driving permit — check with the rental company in advance whether a Mongolian licence is accepted.
📶Phone and internet+
1
Tourist SIM at the airport
Chunghwa Telecom and Taiwan Mobile have counters in the Taoyuan and Kaohsiung arrivals halls. Chunghwa's unlimited 4G data: 5 days NT$300, 10 days NT$500 (with a little call credit). They may ask for your passport plus a second ID (e.g. a driving licence). Shops are few in Kenting, so buy one as soon as you land.
Tip: Bring a second ID — Taiwan asks for two documents for a SIM.
If your phone supports eSIM, buy a Taiwan plan from Airalo, Ubigi or similar before you fly and it works the moment you land. No queue, but no Taiwanese number — LINE is enough for booking taxis and restaurants.
🚇Getting around KentingThe sights are spread along the peninsula's coast: tourist buses, taxis or a car with driver.+
1
Tourist buses and EasyCard
Taiwan Tourist Shuttle's Kenting routes run from Kenting Main Street to Eluanbi, Jialeshui, Houbihu, Baisha and the aquarium; services are infrequent, so check the last bus back. Pay with an EasyCard or iPASS; a one-day bus pass is also sold.
With children, hiring a car with driver for a day to circle the peninsula is easiest; your hotel can book one. Get taxis on Kenting Main Street or through your hotel — Uber is unreliable on the peninsula.
Scooter hire is popular but needs a valid motorcycle licence, and roads are busy and windy. Don't rent without one — insurance won't pay. E-bikes and bicycles are fine for cruising the coast road.
Night markets, small eateries and water-sports operators mostly take cash only. Withdraw New Taiwan dollars (TWD) with a foreign card at ATMs inside 7-Eleven — banks are scarce in Kenting, so take enough cash in Kaohsiung. Larger hotels accept cards.
Spend NT$2,000 or more in one TRS-labelled shop on one day and you can claim the VAT back — show your passport in the shop for the refund form. Small refunds are paid on the spot in the shop, the rest at the airport.
🍜FoodKenting means seafood, night markets and fresh sashimi at Houbihu.+
1
Kenting Main Street night market
Every evening the main street fills with stalls: grilled seafood, sausages, mango shaved ice and fruit drinks. Prices are a bit higher than elsewhere in Taiwan; bring cash.
Tip: Go early — easier with children; sort your rubbish.
At Houbihu harbour, small seafood places serve cheap sashimi from the morning catch. Hengchun's old walled town has local noodles, scallion pancakes and breakfast shops with soy milk.
Tip: No tipping in restaurants.
3
Cheap and reliable
Ready meals, onigiri and tea eggs from 7-Eleven and FamilyMart are good for breakfast or a beach picnic. Taiwanese breakfast shops (早餐店) are cheap and fast.
Police 110, ambulance and fire 119 — free, 24 hours. The 24-hour toll-free travel information line 0800-011-765 (English, Mandarin, Japanese, Korean) and the International Community Service Hotline 0800-024-111.
Kenting's beaches have strong currents and waves — swim only where lifeguards are on duty and follow the flags; put life jackets on children. Don't step on or touch the coral. During typhoons buses and flights may stop — follow the Central Weather Administration's warnings.
Hengchun Tourism Hospital (衛福部恆春旅遊醫院) has an emergency room. Serious cases are taken to the big Kaohsiung hospitals. Pharmacies are in Hengchun town. Call your insurer's assistance line first.
All of Kenting is a national park: taking coral, shells or rocks is banned, and don't feed wild animals or macaques. Eating and drinking on buses is not allowed.
2
Temples and people
Photos are fine in Taoist and Buddhist temples, but don't walk in front of worshippers or step on the main door's threshold. Taiwanese are polite and helpful — loud arguments or public anger are frowned on. Hand over money and gifts with both hands.
3
Sorting rubbish
Street bins are rare: put rubbish in your hotel's or a shop's bin. Sorting is strict — recyclables, food waste and general rubbish go separately. Rubbish trucks announce themselves with music.
📱Useful apps+
1
Routes and tickets
Google Maps shows Kenting bus times. Book HSR tickets in the T Express app and board with a QR code. Kenting–Zuoying bus tickets can be bought online in advance.
Google Translate's camera mode translates Traditional Chinese menus on the spot; download the offline pack. LINE is Taiwan's main chat app — hotels and tour companies reply on LINE.
Taiwan Arrival Card (TWAC) — before arrival. Kenting National Park — hours, tickets and notices. Central Weather Administration — typhoons, wind and waves.
Kenting to KHH on the 9117B takes ~2.5–3 hours; for Taoyuan, the 9189 to Zuoying takes ~2 h 20 min plus ~1.5–2 hours on the HSR. Plan to reach the airport 3 hours before an international flight and book bus seats ahead at weekends and holidays.
At the airport, before customs, show your passport, receipts and goods at the tax-refund kiosk or counter. Spend the EasyCard balance in a shop or keep it for your next trip.
AI answer: double-check anything beyond our researched facts with an official source.
Free (snacks NT$50–200)
Daily ≈18:00–24:00
Every evening Kenting's main road fills with stalls, grilled seafood, fruit drinks, souvenir shops and bars. A 10-minute walk away is Little Bay beach in front of the Caesar Park hotel, good for a swim with children.
The white-sand bay where Life of Pi was filmed — one of Kenting's cleanest and calmest beaches. Lovely at sunset; lifeguards and parasol hire in summer.
A long, wide sandy beach and the hub for jet skis, banana boats and kayaks. On the 9189 bus route from Kenting Main Street. Agree water-sports prices first; crowded at weekends.
The white lighthouse of 1883, nicknamed 'the Light of East Asia', with coral-limestone trails and sea viewpoints. Taiwan's southernmost-point marker is nearby.
Limestone cliffs dropping straight into the Pacific above a wide grassland — Kenting's best spot for sunrise and stargazing. Few railings and strong wind, so keep children close.
A coral rock shaped like a crouching cat's head where the Taiwan Strait meets the Bashi Channel. The short trail over eroded coral reef is easy for children.
An 18 m coral rock rising from the sea just offshore — a sailing ship from afar, said to look like Nixon's head up close. Snorkel off the little beach to see fish.
Kenting National Forest Recreation Area★ 4.4 (20,000)
NatureNT$150 (weekdays NT$100)8:00–17:00
Tropical forest on raised coral reef: banyan roots, limestone caves, the 'One-Line Sky' gorge and a lookout tower. Shady and good for walking with children; bring mosquito repellent.
Quiet trails through coral rock, meadows and forest; early mornings bring Formosan sika deer, macaques and butterflies. Next to the forest recreation area; go early before the afternoon sun.
The harbour fish stalls serve cheap, fresh sashimi from the morning catch. Glass-bottom boats and snorkelling and diving trips leave from here — coral and sea turtles.
Strangely wave-carved rock terraces and a small waterfall on the Pacific-facing east coast. In windy winter weather the sea is rough — stay back from the edge. Surfers gather on nearby beaches.
