TW · Hsinchu · 24.82°N 120.98°E

hsinchu

Rice noodles, wind-dried persimmons and temple-market snacks in Taiwan's windy city.

Best time
March–May and October–November are comfortable for walking, and autumn is persimmon season. July–August is hot and humid; winter's northeast winds make the coast feel much colder.
How long
1 day
Getting there
Fly from KL to Taipei Taoyuan (about 4.5 hours). The airport MRT links to the high-speed rail, which reaches Hsinchu in about 10 minutes from Taoyuan station; a local train then runs into the old city in about 20 minutes.
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TW · Hsinchuhsinchu24.82°N 120.98°Egowherelah.com
Dear group chat,Rice noodles, wind-dried persimmons and temple-market snacks in Taiwan's windy city.— gowherelahTo: whoever’s drivingHsinchuTW, Hsinchu
KLhsinchu
≈ 3,175 km from KL, as the crow flies
This is a photo of a monument in Taiwan identified by the ID

Photo: 曾傳富 · CC BY-SA 4.0

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Photos: Wikimedia Commons, credited on each.

Taiwan's tech city has an old heart around its City God Temple, where the market stalls have fed people for generations. Strong winds off the Taiwan Strait earn it the nickname 'windy city', and they're what dries its rice noodles and persimmons.

Makan

  1. Hsinchu rice noodlesFine, wind-dried rice vermicelli, stir-fried, often with pork.Map ↗
  2. GongwanBouncy pork meatballs in clear soup, the city's other famous snack.Map ↗
  3. Persimmon cakesDried, flattened persimmons, sweet and chewy.Map ↗

Things to do

  1. City God Temple and marketA busy old temple surrounded by snack stalls, the centre of old Hsinchu.Map ↗
  2. East GateThe last gate of the old city wall, beside a landscaped moat.Map ↗
  3. Hsinchu StationTaiwan's oldest railway station still in use, built in 1913.Map ↗
  4. Xinpu persimmon farmsIn October and November, orange persimmons dry on racks in the wind at farms in nearby Xinpu.Map ↗

Good to know

  • Hsinchu HSR Station is in Zhubei, outside the city; the Liujia line links it with Hsinchu Station.
  • For halal food, the nearest cluster is around Longgang Mosque in Zhongli, on the way from the airport, known for Yunnanese Muslim cooking.

Last checked October 2026. Things change, so check opening times, fees and transport before you go.