A county of contrasts — from a sea of clouds on Alishan, down through tea hills and the Chianan rice plain, to the oyster flats of the coast.
一個充滿反差的縣:從阿里山的雲海,順著茶山與嘉南稻田而下,直到海岸的蚵田。
Chiayi County stretches from the Taiwan Strait all the way up to the 2,000-metre peaks of Alishan. Its western half lies on the Chianan Plain (嘉南平原), Taiwan's largest, the rice-and-sugarcane belt of the island's southwest. For centuries this land was fertile but unreliable — drought one year, flood the next. That changed under Japanese rule, when the engineer Hatta Yoichi (八田與一) designed the vast Chianan Irrigation system in the 1920s. (The Wushantou Reservoir itself sits across the line in today's Tainan, but its canals watered the Chiayi plain.) That single feat of engineering is the deepest reason the lowlands look the way they do today.
嘉義縣西起台灣海峽,東至海拔兩千公尺的阿里山群峰。西半部坐落在全台最大的嘉南平原上,是西南部的稻米與甘蔗之鄉。這片土地數百年來雖肥沃,卻易旱易澇、收成不穩。直到日治時期,工程師八田與一於 1920 年代設計了龐大的嘉南大圳,情況才徹底改變。(烏山頭水庫本體位於今日台南境內,但其圳路灌溉了嘉義平原。)這項工程,正是嘉義平原今貌最深層的原因。
The mountainous east tells a different story. The high forests of Alishan were the ancestral home of the Indigenous Tsou people (鄒族), who still live in villages such as Dabang and Tefuye. When the Japanese found Alishan's vast stands of ancient red cypress, they built the remarkable Alishan Forest Railway (begun in 1906) — a narrow-gauge line of switchbacks, tunnels and wooden bridges — to haul timber down to the plain. The same railway now carries visitors up to watch the sunrise.
東部山區則訴說另一個故事。阿里山的高山森林,是原住民鄒族世代的家園,他們至今仍居住在達邦、特富野等部落。日本人發現阿里山遍布千年紅檜後,興建了了不起的阿里山森林鐵路(1906 年動工)——一條有之字形折返、隧道與木橋的窄軌鐵道——把木材運往山下。如今同一條鐵路載著遊客上山看日出。
In the modern era the county reinvented itself once more. When Chiayi City became an independent city, the county needed a new seat, and the small town of Taibao (太保) was raised to a county-administered city. Its fortunes rose further when the High Speed Rail opened its Chiayi station there in 2007, and when the Southern Branch of the National Palace Museum opened nearby in 2015 — deliberately placed in the south to share Taiwan's cultural treasures beyond Taipei.
進入現代,嘉義縣又一次重塑自己。當嘉義市獨立設市後,縣府需要新所在地,小鎮太保因而升格為縣轄市。2007 年高鐵嘉義站在此啟用、2015 年故宮南院又在附近開館——刻意設於南部,讓台灣的文化珍寶不再只集中於台北——太保的發展更上層樓。
A narrow-gauge railway begun in 1906 to carry cypress logs is now one of the world's most famous mountain lines, with Z-shaped switchbacks, over 50 tunnels and dozens of wooden bridges. At dawn, visitors ride up to watch the sun rise over a glowing sea of clouds — Alishan's signature image.
The original "Sacred Tree" was a red cypress more than 3,000 years old, revered by the Tsou. Weakened by age and rain, it finally toppled in 1997; its great trunk now lies by the trail as a memorial, surrounded by a boardwalk among other ancient cypresses.
A mountain railway town at about 1,400 m, the midpoint of the Alishan line. Because trains historically stopped here around midday, a railway bento (lunchbox) culture grew up; today the old street is famous for these wooden-tub bentos, well-preserved wooden houses and aiyu jelly.
Opened in Taibao in 2015 on a 20-hectare site, this museum focuses on Asian art and culture — Buddhist art, ceramics, textiles and tea. Its sweeping curved architecture, gardens and lake make it a destination in its own right, just minutes from the HSR station.
In the coastal port of Budai stands a blue-glass landmark shaped like a giant high-heeled shoe, built in 2016 from 320 glass panels. It is not a real church: it commemorates local victims of "blackfoot disease," an arsenic-poisoning illness that once afflicted this coast.
A 1,500-hectare wetland in Dongshi, formed when sugar-company farmland subsided and seawater moved in. It now hosts over 200 bird species, including wintering black-faced spoonbills, with boardwalks and birdwatching hides.
Opened in Meishan in 2017, this 281-metre pedestrian suspension bridge sits about 1,000 m above sea level — the highest scenic suspension bridge in Taiwan — with views over tea hills and, on clear days, the plain below. Nearby winds the famous Taiping "36 Bends" road.
A pair of historic bridges in Fanlu, built in 1937 to mark the birthdays of the Japanese emperor and empress; their names combine into "tianchang-dijiu" (天長地久, "everlasting"). Because of the romantic phrase, couples now visit hoping for lasting love.
Strung along the scenic road up Meishan and Zhuqi, villages such as Shizhuo, Ruili and Ruifeng produce some of Taiwan's most prized high-mountain oolong at 1,000–1,600 m. They are popular for tea homestays, firefly nights and misty tea-trail walks.
Dongshi is Taiwan's top oyster-producing township, sheltered by the shifting Waisanding Sandbar offshore. The Fisherman's Wharf is a favourite spot for sunset, fresh seafood and family fun, and a gateway to boat trips out toward the sandbar.
Chiayi County's living culture rises from the high forest: the Tsou people who have always lived there, and the tea that now shapes whole mountain communities.
The Tsou are the Indigenous people of the Alishan highlands, centred on the villages of Dabang and Tefuye. Their most sacred ceremony is the Mayasvi (瑪雅斯比／戰祭), a solemn rite honouring the war god and ancestral spirits, held around February and alternating between the two villages. It is a living ritual governed by tribal law — not a tourist show. The Tsou hold deep knowledge of the mountain forest, including the harvesting of wild aiyu.
Alishan tea is a benchmark of Taiwanese high-mountain oolong, grown at 1,000–1,600 m. Frequent fog and large day-night temperature swings slow the leaves' growth, producing tea prized for a mellow sweetness, floral aroma and long finish. Tea shapes whole communities in Meishan and Zhuqi — picking, withering, rolling, roasting — and tea tourism is now central to the mountain economy.
In 1931 the baseball team of the Kagi (Chiayi) Agriculture & Forestry School — a mixed team of Han, Indigenous and Japanese players coached by Kondo Hyotaro — went all the way to the final of Japan's national Koshien tournament, finishing runner-up. The "KANO" story helped make baseball Taiwan's national sport and remains a shared pride for the whole greater-Chiayi area.
The Japanese engineer behind the Chianan Irrigation system of the 1920s, which turned the unreliable Chianan Plain — including the Chiayi lowlands — into reliable, multi-crop farmland. His waterworks are the reason the western half of the county is a true rice barn, and he is still honoured across southern Taiwan.
The Tsou's most sacred ceremony, held around February in Dabang or Tefuye (the two villages take turns hosting), honouring the war god and ancestors. A solemn living ritual — not a performance for tourists.
From mid-March to early April, Alishan holds Taiwan's largest planting of Yoshino cherries — around 18,000 trees — with the last two weeks of March usually the peak. Darker pink Taiwan cherries open a little earlier.
From about April to June, fireflies light up the forests and tea villages such as Fenqihu and Ruili. The Alishan area is said to host roughly a third of all Taiwan's fireflies.
The Dongshi–Budai coast holds seasonal seafood and oyster events tied to the fishing harvest, when the freshest catch comes straight off the boats to the harbourside grills.
Chiayi County's table runs from the high tea slopes down to the oyster flats — with a few surprises in between.
The county's signature drink: mellow, fragrant oolong from misty slopes 1,000–1,600 m high.
Meishan・Zhuqi 梅山・竹崎A nostalgic wooden-tub lunchbox of rice topped with pork chop, chicken drumstick, braised egg and pickles — born of the railway's midday stops.
Fenqihu 奮起湖A cooling jelly made from the seeds of a fig vine native to Taiwan's mountains, traditionally said to have been discovered in Chiayi's Dapu Township.
Alishan・Dapu 阿里山・大埔Dongshi is Taiwan's leading oyster township; plump oysters from plankton-rich waters fill omelettes, soups and grilled-oyster feasts.
Dongshi 東石A fishing-port town where the harbour market serves ultra-fresh fish, shrimp and shellfish straight off the boats.
Budai 布袋Minxiong is famous for tender stock-simmered goose, often sliced and served with cabbage fried in goose fat — a beloved drive-out meal.
Minxiong 民雄The cool, damp highlands have long grown fresh wasabi, a Japanese-era crop now sold to visitors and used in mountain cooking.
Alishan 阿里山Taiwan's iconic shredded-turkey rice is best known in neighbouring Chiayi City, but it is a beloved dish across the whole greater-Chiayi area.
Greater Chiayi 大嘉義Forest railway, sunrise, sea of clouds and 3,000-year-old sacred trees.
Mellow, fragrant oolong grown on the misty Meishan and Zhuqi slopes.
The Indigenous people of Alishan and their sacred Mayasvi war festival.
The rice-and-sugarcane plain made reliable by Hatta Yoichi's irrigation.
Dongshi oysters, Budai fishing and salt heritage, and the Aogu wetlands.
The HSR Chiayi station and the Southern Branch of the Palace Museum.
Introduce Chiayi County to a visitor — tap 🔊 to hear each sentence. 用英文向訪客介紹嘉義縣,點 🔊 聽聽看。
Campuses in Chiayi County that already have a bilingual site in the hub. ｜本縣已建置雙語校網的學校。
Sources · 資料來源:交通部觀光署、阿里山國家風景區管理處、嘉義縣政府、文化部、維基百科等公開資料整理。