Great Any Time of Year - Fulong Beach

A few weeks ago, the kids and I spent a cloudy day at Fulong Beach area.  Originally, I thought we would just take the train there and back, but the kids had a great time, and we spent the whole afternoon in the area.

How to get to Fulong Beach:
Take a train to Fulong (福隆) station.  It's easy!  Just go to a train station (Panchiao, Taipei Main, Sungshan, or any others on the line) and ask for a ticket to Fulong Beach.  Or, try out the English-language internet booking service. Even the fastest train will cost you only a little over $100 per seat. It takes about an hour on the faster trains. And this time of year, it's lovely to sit on the train and watch the scenery from the comfort of a cabin.

Taiwan Railway Admin Site is here.

At the Station:

Come out and turn left to enjoy the clean toilets and appreciate the artwork made out of train scraps, by Railway staff.  Walk out to the road, cross it, and walk along the right side of the carpark, until you come to the walkway that will take you South, away from the big bridge on the beach. 

This nature walk is free, enjoyable, and takes you to the Fu Bar!  The Fu Bar is run by a lovely South African couple.  It is totally child-friendly, and has a park right in front so the kids can play while you watch them from the outdoor tables.  The food at the Fu Bar is amazing!  (They open from 12 noon this time of year, on weekends only.  If you are on a mission to visit the restaurant, it's best to call to let them know you are coming during the winter/spring months. Tel: 0955 496 175; 02-2499 1380.)  The artwork in the restaurant is bright and cheery, and you can enjoy Rooibos or a South African beer, too.

View of the Fu Bar from the park.  It's actually only just across a little lane, it's just the angle of the shot making it look so far away.  Isn't the place adorable?

If you ever get away from the bar, you can walk down to watch people fishing, see the temple, hire a bike to ride around, or cross the big carpark to visit the information center.

The information center is a lovely place to take children.  The second floor is dedicated to children.  The day we visited, they had a maze set up with stamps inside.  You get a passport from the front counter and then go find the stamps.  Once you have the set, you can get a little prize (tattoo stickers).  The map is in Chinese but it doesn't matter what order you put the stamps on, so it's a fun little challenge for young children.  The coffee shop out front of the center has quite good coffee if you feel the need.

Now, coming from New Zealand where most beaches I know are still open to the public, I am always saddened to see beaches blocked off by private corporations.  I refuse to pay the $90 per person the hotel/7-11 group ask for entry to the beach area, especially this time of year when we won't be actually entering the water.  I might pay $30 to help with cleaning if they actually do any, but to have that guy refuse to let us enter a beach n a  rainy day in November really didn't make me happy.  So, naturally I will say, skip the beach next to the information center.  But, in reality it's up to you and I know many people do enjoy the sand on that part of the beach.

The weekend we visited, there was a flower festival running up in the mountains.  You can take a bus from the information center directly to the festival.  I think it runs until mid-December.  You can also go on the CaoLing trail, which is absolutely beautiful.  We did that a few years ago with my son in a backpack, but we will have to wait until the kids can walk a bit longer on their own to do it again, now that they are too big to carry.