Hualien
Starting Location
Moderate/Strenuous
Physicality
7/10
Adventure Factor
8 Hours
Duration
Prepare yourself for Taiwan’s spectacular Mugua River Gorge! We’ll spend the day swimming in a number of the most pristine blue rivers and waterfalls you’ve ever seen and hiking through epic verdant, green jungle. This is a truly adventurous way to experience the forests, waters and culture that make this part of Taiwan so special.
*NOTE: from November to March we typically don’t run this tour as the water is too chilly for swimming. As a very popular alternative, we highly recommend our fun Hualien Rivers & Valley Experience that visits some of the same beautiful rivers (without the jungle hiking) and ends the day soaking at the Butterfly Valley Hot Springs!
TRIP HIGHLIGHTS
- Take a jungle hike to 4-5 secluded swimming holes in the mesmerizing Emerald Valley
- Enjoy an invigorating shower under Zimu Waterfall
- Visit a traditional Truku tribe Machete Workshop
- Relax at lunch beside gorgeous Liyu Lake
- Sample the areas traditional “Live Shrimp in Special Sauce” if you dare!
- Take an after lunch swim in the refreshing Miyawan River
- Hike up to visit stunning Rainbow Falls (road conditions and time permitting)
With So Much To Explore, Why Wait?!
IMPORTANT NOTES: This adventure includes several significant elevation rises on rocky terrain and requires good physical fitness and decent balance. Those with leg or balance issues, children under the age of 6, and adults over the age of 60, are kindly asked to consider our Hualien Rivers & Valley Experience instead.
DETAILS
| DEPARTURE/RETURN LOCATION | Pick up and drop off at your hostel or hotel in Hualien | ||||
| DEPARTURE TIME | 8 AM. | ||||
| RETURN TIME | Approximately 3:30-4 PM. | ||||
| WEAR/BRING | Comfortable clothing, walking shoes, a swimsuit, a towel, a water bottle, a hat, bug spray, sunscreen and money for food, drinks and/or souvenirs. | ||||
| INCLUDED |
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| NOT INCLUDED |
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This tour operates seasonally and may be forced to cancel due to inclement weather at the discretion of Island Life. Contact us for availability. As always we offer a 100% refund for tours cancelled due to weather. Safety First! Thank you!
BOOK WITH CONFIDENCE
FLEXIBLE PAYMENT
We accept Cash, Credit Card and Paypal
WEATHER GUARANTEE
100% refund on trips cancelled by bad weather
SEND US A MESSAGE, WE LOVE TO HELP!
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Tour Reviews
Like nothing we have seen or experienced before. We had no idea awesome places like this existed in Taiwan. Our guide Manu was friendly and knowledgeable. FUN day. Recommended.
Best…day…ever.
This tour lets you see some beautiful rivers and waterfalls. The water was so clear! Our guide Manu was very knowledgeable and helpful. There were some difficult slopes that were steeper than I expected but he made sure I and our group made it up and down safely. Very attentive guide. Would recommend the tour!.
I’m glad to know that there is much more to Hualien tourism than just Taroko National Park. Ana is a great tour guide and had little tidbits about everywhere we went and Santa was a great driver, providing us with aboriginal history about the surrounding areas. Our group really enjoyed the trip and would definitely recommend Island Life to people visiting Hualien!
Taroko is amazing, but spending a day out hiking in the jungle and swimming in these idyllic rivers was the highlight of our time in Hualien. Our teenage boys were over the moon jumping off rocks and swimming under waterfalls. Even my husband was like a kid in a candy store skipping rocks and doing cannonballs off the rocks! A truly memorable family experience. We went with Ana, but I’m sure everyone at Island Life is just as caring and attentive. Bring swimshirts if you get cold easily though, in March the rivers weren’t exactly warm!
Don’t usually write reviews, but this warrants one. I’ve done waterfall tours in Thailand, Costa Rica and many other places, but nothing quite like this. The water is just this electric blue color. The folks at Island Life definitely found some amazing locations, and unlike Thailand and Costa Rica, there were no big crowds. Also kudos to our guide Simon, very knowledgeable and a great dude to spend a day out with. Highly recommend this tour.
I never could have found these places without Agathe and Island Life. I messaged the day before and happily they offered me a spot on this tour for the next day. So happy I took it! Very, very beautiful places and good swimming.
I did the Mugua river tour with Island Life recently and it was awesome! It’s really about the places they take you, I mean these swimming spots and waterfalls are the most blue water I’ve ever seen and are out in the middle of the jungle. And at several of the spots, we were the only ones there! Our guide Egette (SP?) was a really cool French girl who spoke great English AND perfect Chinese! She really went above and beyond to show everyone a great time. Oh, and if the live shrimp are in season, you HAVE to try them!
Two words for this tour… holy crap. I had no idea Taiwan would be this beautiful. Best experience of our trip to Asia so far. Can’t recommend Island Life enough.
This is possibly the best river experience of our lives. The water in Emerald valley was unlike anything we’d ever seen before! Our guide Egette (sp) was very attentive and made sure people were safe as we made our way from swimming hole to swimming hole. Each one better than the last! The waterfalls were stunning as well. Bring bug spray! I have already told many friends they need to do this if they ever come to Taiwan!
The best day out in the jungle I could have imagined. The water was as blue as any I’ve ever seen and the guys at Island life showed us an excellent time. The lunch was far better than I expected too. Really fun, funny guys.
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