14 Family-friendly Attractions in Kenting, Taiwan over 3 days

Continuing our adventures from Tainan and Kaohsiung, our final leg of our Taiwan holiday brought us to Kenting, which is at the southern tip of the island. Before going to Kenting, I have long heard about its beaches, pristine blue sea and stunning views.

All of them are true.

We stayed for 3 nights in Kenting and frankly, I don't think any one of us would have complained if we had stayed on for 3 more nights. Yes, there are many things to do in Kenting, from the beautiful beaches and unique rock formations to animal experiences (hello, cute deer!). But above all of those, we really loved the vibes the seaside city exude.

And a huge chunk of that also had to do with our fabulous 3-storey minsu.

Its exterior may look like any other normal house but inside, it was a completely different world.

Can I just say, out of all our HomeAway vacation rental homes we stay in - we have currently stayed in homes in 6 different cities - this was our fave of the lot. Especially with all the cute wall murals, which made the home feel so whimsical and homey!

The wifey and Ale were particularly enamoured with the 3 bedrooms.

Best of all, there is a washing machine AND a BBQ pit on the third floor too.

Clean underwear and roasted Taiwan sausages, life can't get better than this! Woohoo!

In fact, we did have a BBQ cookout on one of our nights there. Nothing quite like having a BBQ in the Winter wind!

Oh, and it was also one of the nights that the boys learnt how to play mahjong. 😁

The minsu also came with breakfast every morning - only catch was we had to make our way on our own to the cafe. But at least the food was delish!

So how did we get to Kenting from Kaohsiung? 

We rented a car.

Yes, the Taiwanese drive on the right side of the road while we in Singapore, drive on the left side of the road. Prior to this, I have NEVER driven on the right side of the road so I would be lying if I said I wasn't worried.

But I also believe that there is a first time for everything so I decided to just do it - and I was glad I did because it really is so much more convenient to get around in Kenting since the city does not have a metro system.

If you do not drive, you can take a 2-hour bus ride from Zuoying train station in Kaohsiung. There are also buses and taxis available in Kenting.

And is Kenting a family-friendly place with kid-friendly attractions? You bet it is. Here was what we got up to during our 3 nights there:

National Museum of Marine Biology & Aquarium

Kenting is home to National Museum of Marine Biology & Aquarium, which is the largest marine life museum in Taiwan. We booked our entry though Klook at a discounted rate, and enjoyed fuss-free entry to the attraction.

It has 3 main exhibitions: Coral Kingdom which showcases different coral reef habitats, from shallow waters to deep oceans, Waters of Taiwan which features aquatic animals native to Taiwan, from waters as small as rivers to as vast as the open sea and Waters of the World which covers ancient aquatic animals as well as ocean formation.

Exhibits are educational and exploratory, including a massive kelp forest, shark tunnel and beluga whales.
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Here's a tip if you are visiting with young kids - bring along swimming attires because there're 2 large wading pools (like the one Ale is standing in the first photo) where kids are free to indulge in water play. Or if you prefer to keep dry, there is a huge marine-themed playground within the aquarium too.

Paradise of Deer

We actually didn't plan on visiting Paradise of Deer but we had some free time after we left the Aquarium and thought, why not? Paradise of Deer, as its name implies, is mini zoo with free roaming Formosan sika deer.

The tamer deer are allowed to free to roam about and be fed by the visitors while the fiercer ones are kept in enclosures. If your kids love feeding animals, then this is a great place. The deer are extremely gentle and some are even shy.

The entire area is pretty small, so sometimes when there is a lot of people, you will have many visitors dangling carrot sticks in front of one deer. But overall, great to spend about an hour's of your time. At least we didn't have to travel to Nara. LOL.

As it was a last minute decision, we bought out tickets onsite at the ticketing counter when in fact, tickets would be much cheaper had we gotten them from Klook. Lesson learnt.

Even though we rented a car to drive around in Kenting, we booked a day attractions tour through Klook as well. That's because the tour itinerary covers 10 of Kenting's most popular attractions and I figured it was the best way to see the sights without having to worry about navigation.

The Shared Kenting Sightseeing tour picked us up at 9.30am and dropped us back at our minsu at 6pm. Here was what the tour covered:

Sail Rock

The Sail Rock ( Chuanfanshih, 船帆石)  is a huge piece of coral reef rock standing a few meters of the shore. From a distance, the huge rock looks like a sailboat with its sail raised, hence its name.

Shadao Ecological Reserve

Composed of 98% of seashell sand that contains seashell, coral, and fossils, Shadao is the most beautiful sand beach in Kenting National Park. In addition to being famed for its distinctive seashell beach, do visit the Shadao Shell Sand Exhibition Center located next to Shandao Ecological Reserve, where kids get to touch and feel some of the seashell sand samples found in Kenting National Park.

Eluanbi Lighthouse Park

This lighthouse is perhaps the most photographed in Kenting.

Towering 21.4m, Eluanbi Lighthouse was built during the Qing Dynasty in 1888 with a trench and holes for cannons due to the frequent raids by local aboriginal tribes in the past. This makes it the only armed lighthouse in the world!

The area around the lighthouse is actually one huge park so expect plenty of green spaces for the kids to run amok.

Taiwan Southernmost Point

Well, the name is exactly that. There's nothing much to see here though, only to proclaim that one has been to the southern most point in Taiwan. 🤣

Longpan Park

Lying between Jiae road and the Pacific Ocean, Longpan Park is a spectacular stretch of cliffs which offer astounding views of the waves crashing onto the rocks below. It is EXTREMELY windy here though so watch out for your belongings!

Houbihu Marina

Houbihu is the biggest fishing harbor in Kenting National Park, and has the largest yacht wharf in Taiwan. Local residents and tourists always come for fresh seafood from the fishing boats just retuning with their day's catch. So you can expect to find plenty of eateries selling frsh seafood and sashimi! We had our stopover here for lunch and this bowl of sashimi only cost us S$5!

Maobitou

Located on the western side of peninsula, Maobitou defines the sea border of Taiwan Strait and Bashi Channel. The name “Maobitou” which means “cat’s nose and head” in Mandarin comes from its unique appearance like a crouching cat. Can you see it in the photo above?

Maobitou is also an excellent place to catch magnificent ocean views and watch the waves crash onto the coral seashore.

Baishawan Beach

If you want to laze the day away on a beach in Kenting, Baishawan Beach will be your best choice. Literally translating as “White Sand Bay,” it has got everything you need: ocean, sand for lounging and nearby shops for food and drinks.

Best of all, it is not overly crowded. Beach umbrellas and floating devices are available for rent, water activities and a few snack stalls onsite whenever it’s sunny during weekends and holidays.

House of A-Jia

If you have watched the movie, Cape No. 7 (海角七號), you will be familar with this house which is the home of the protagonist Ah-Jia. The home of A-Jia has now become a major tourist attraction even after almost a decade since the movie was released. In the movie, Ah-Jia’s room is at the second storey of this house, and admission tickets can be bought for a small fee.

Chuhuo Natural Fire

Our last stop of the day tour brought us to Chuhuo special scenic area. Here, there are many fissures on the ground which emits natural gas and ignites on its own – you can actually see flames sprouting from the ground.

I'm told that the best time to visit this area is in the spring and winter dry seasons as during rainy seasons, the fire will be extinguished.

Kenting Street Night Market

Come nightfall, Kenting Street transforms into a 2km-long night market with food stalls on both sides of the road. The main difference here compared to other night markets in Taiwan is the road is still open to traffic so do remember to keep the kids close to you and look out for traffic before crossing over to the other side!

The number of food stalls here is mind-boggling... erm, just see what we had for dinner for one of the days. 😅

Magic Cafe (魔幻咖啡)
No. 80, Nanhe Road, Fangshan Township, Pingtung County, Taiwan 941

Now this was a surprise find. I was driving back to Kaohsiung on our last day in Taiwan to catch our Scoot flight back to Singapore but we had some time to kill. So along the highway before leaving Kenting, this quaint little cafe by the beach caught our eye so we made a stop to chill.

Nothing can be more laid back than having a slice of pizza and sipping a glass of iced chocolate in front of the beach.

Oh, and it's Instagram heaven too. 🤣

And speaking of Instagram, who can do without data roaming when travelling overseas these days??? Not me. Having seamless Wi-Fi throughout the trip certainly helps... especially if I'm uploading photos and videos on social media! So yes, I'm thankful for my portable router from Changi Recommends which offered instant connectivity from #ChangiWiFi.

And that concludes our 10-night holiday in Tainan, Kaohsiung and Kenting. 😍

BONUS! If you are planning to book any tours or attractions through Klook, you can enjoy $5 off your first booking on Klook (min. spend $50) when you enter the promocode CHEEKIE5! Code is valid till 31 Dec 2019.