Sun Moon Lake Ropeway, Taiwan

Right in the centre of Taiwan is one of the most beautiful lakes we have seen in the world. Sun Moon Lake is certainly a tourist hot spot in Taiwan that you should not miss when you visit.

The moment you arrive at Sun Moon Lake you really do forget that you are in Taiwan, a heavily populated and built up country. Life slows down, the temperature is cooler and the people are in holiday mode.

We missed out on seeing quite a few attractions during our time at Sun Moon Lake so we recommend you spend at least two full days here. We were traveling around Taiwan and did not have as much time as we would have liked. As I write this, I am also suggesting to Andrew that we return to Taiwan so that we can experience everything we have missed!

Without further adieu, here is what we experienced when we visited Sun Moon Lake, smack bang in the middle of Taiwan. What a glorious place!

To get to Sun Moon Lake, check out our previous post that we wrote about catching the bus from Taichung Train Station. We also wrote about how to get from Taipei to Taichung here. There are buses that leave Taipei that head to Sun Moon Lake directly, but you will need to do your own research on that option.

Our first tourist stop for the day was for the Sun Moon Lake Ropeway. The Ropeway is just a fancy name for a cable car. We have been lucky enough to have experienced Langkawi's cable car and Taipei's cable car, and thoroughly enjoy them.

To get to the Sun Moon Lake Ropeway, you will need to either ride a bike, walk or catch a ride on the Round-The-Lake Bus. The bus is very easy to catch and can be caught out front of the Ita Thao Visitors Centre. It will cost you about NTD $33 each for the ride and you can pay by either cash or by using your Easycard.

The Sun Moon Lake Ropeway is open the following days and times:
Monday to Friday – Ticketing – 10:00am to 3:30pm. Ropeway – 10:30am to 4:00pm
Weekends & Holidays – Ticketing – 9:30am to 4:00pm. Ropeway – 10:00am to 4:00pm
Closed on the first Wednesday of the month for maintenance.

The Sun Moon Lake Ropeway costs:
Adult / Student / Children – Round Ticket – NTD $250. One Way Ticket – NTD $240.
Elderly / Kid / Disabled –  Round Ticket – NTD $200. One Way Ticket – NTD $190.

You can also buy tickets to the Formosan Aboriginal Cultural Village here as the cable car takes you right to the cultural village. Unfortunately for us, the lady talked us out of visiting the Cultural Village as she thought we wouldn't have enough time to experience everything the village had to offer. We could have visited but it would have been extremely rushed!

For future reference, the Formosan Aboriginal Cultural Village is open the following days & times:
Monday to Friday – Ticketing – 10:00am to 3:30pm. Village – 9:00am to 5:00pm
Weekends & Holidays – Ticketing – 9:30am to 4:00pm. Village – 8:30am to 5:30pm

The Formosan Aboriginal Cultural Village costs:
Adult: NTD $780, Student: NTD $680, Primary: NTD $580, K.P.E.D: NTD $390

I really wish we had visited the Formosan Aboriginal Cultural Village… Next Time!

By the way, if you are organised, you can buy special “Sun Moon Lake Passes” that give you discounted prices to get to Sun Moon Lake and visiting places while you are there. For example:

Taichung – Sun Moon Lake (round trip ticket) + Formosan Aboriginal Cultural Village Ticket – NTD $990 (Full Price – NTD $1614)

For more information about the above pass and others that you can purchase, please see this website. Andrew and I wish we had of found this website sooner! These passes can be purchased at either the Taichung HSR Station or at the Sun Moon Lake Service Station for Boat & Bus.

Back to the Sun Moon Lake Ropeway! What a beautiful view from above!

The Sun Moon Lake Ropeway was worth the price. The view from above was lovely and the cable cars were clean, looked safe and comfortable.

When we come back to Taiwan, we will certainly be taking the Ropeway again (and going to the cultural village).