• Hualien Ocean Park [3]. Hualien's biggest man-made tourist attraction. As well as ferris wheel and cable car, the park contains eight zones that introduce different aspects of ocean and marine life. Kids, in particular, will have great time here but for adventuous travellers or people wanting a more viable experience, there are many places one can go that are much cheaper and provide a better experience of the 'real' Country of Taiwan. Open: Mon-Fri 9AM-5PM, Sat&Sun 8:30-5PM. Admission: adult 890NT$, under 19 790NT$

• Beibin Seashore Park, Nanbin Seashore Park and Meilun Seashore Park. A scenic area of palm trees and landscaped greenery that runs the full length of the city's foreshore. The views over the Pacific Ocean are especially spectacular at sunrise.
• The Abode of Still Thoughts. This small Buddhist temple at the foot of Mount North Jialiwan is the original facility of the world-famous Tzu-zhi Buddhist foundation. In keeping with the foundation's ideals, the temple is very simple, and incorporates a Japanese style garden. Information on Tzu-chi's international activities is also available at the temple.
• Yenpin Prefectural Temple, near Zhongyang Road, sec 4. Established in the Qing Dynasty, this is the oldest temple in Hualien.
• Pine Garden, Zhongmei Road (near the river). A peaceful garden with 63 pine trees.
• Chishingtan, north of Hualien City (follow the bike path from Nanbin Seashore Park). Excellent vistas of the ocean, delicious seafood, friendly people, and a special goat restaurant specializing in goat milk coffee. The beach is popular for swimming, though as the tides and currents are quite dangerous it is important to stay near the coast.
• Hualien County Stone Sculpture Museum[2] at the Hualien County Cultural Center displays both traditional and contemporary stone sculptures. Open daily 9am-5pm. Admission fee: NT$20.

By train

• There are frequent trains from Taipei, and depending on the type of train, the journey can take between three and a half to four and a half hours. The train follows the coast for part of the journey, and the left side of the train offers the best views.

By plane

• Domestic airlines connect Hualien with all of Taiwan's major cities. It a thirty minute flight to Hualien from Taipei's Sungshan Airport.

• The city center is small and easy to negotiate on foot, although scooters are available for rent several places around town for about NT$400 a day.
• Hualien is a small city without an extensive public transport system, and so it is worth considering taking taxis to areas outside the city center. NB: Hualien station is at least a thirty minute walk from the center of town.

• Woven cloth. Hualien is a good place to pick up hand woven cloth in traditional aboriginal designs.
• Muaji (mua-ji) This candy made of sticky rice is a specialty of Hualien.
• Stone Hualien's stone market is near the old bus station on Mingyi Road, and they sell everything from jewelery to tea-pots all carved out of stone.

• Zhu tung fan (竹筒飯) - rice steamed in a bamboo tube is a specialty of the local aborigines.
• Muaji (麻薯) - glutinous rice filled (or sometimes covered) with various flavors, such as peanut, sweet red and green bean paste, sweet sesame paste, coconut or fruit.

Budget

Mid Range

• Tosca Pasta, 95-7 Jung Mei Road: European style restaurant with european prices

Splurge

Hualien has an abundance of tea houses, cafes and bars, and also many stores specializing in locally produced tea.

• Cafe Jade (璞石藝文空間), 8 Ming-li Road (花蓮市明禮路8號) Tel:+886 3 834-5968. A spacious and very pleasant art cafe offering regular live music and art exhibitions. Open:Mon-Thurs 8AM-6Pm Fri-Sun 8AM-10:30PM
• Wang Ji Tea House, 565 Jong-Shan Road (中山路565號).