Jiuzhize Hot Spring

To reach Jiuzhize, you will need to drive a car or ride a scooter from Yilan city up the long, forested mountain switchbacks of Provincial Highway 7, eventually entering the pristine Taipingshan National Forest Recreation Area. The air cools drastically as you ascend, and the dense lowland jungle gives way to ancient cedar and cypress forests wrapped in alpine fog. Jiuzhize sits deep in a steep mountain valley where the Duowang River rushes over smooth boulders. On arrival, the sight of massive plumes of white steam roaring out of a giant concrete cooling tower tells you that you have arrived somewhere geologically powerful. The main attraction here is the outdoor multi tiered stone pools, which look like natural rock basins scattered across a manicured mountain terrace. A day pass costs around two hundred and fifty TWD. This is a coed facility, so you must bring a proper swimsuit and a swim cap. Tattoos are fully accepted here because of the outdoor, public park nature of the resort. The water is an extraordinary deep blue color, exceptionally clear, and possesses an incredibly slick, oily texture due to the high concentrations of sodium bicarbonate. It has a mild, clean mineral scent and is kept at a perfect forty-two degrees Celsius. You must bring your own towel and warm clothing for after the bath, as the alpine air cools down quickly. The park gets highly congested with tour buses by noon, so arriving right when it opens at nine in the morning provides a deeply serene experience. Before you soak, purchase a bamboo basket of eggs and sweet corn from the visitor center and head to the geothermal cooking pavilions, where you can boil them yourself in the ninety-five degree volcanic water.