If you can get a landing permit, go. Guishan Island (龜山島), Turtle Island, is the trip in Yilan we'd most want a friend to make, and the permit is the hard part, not the trip itself. It's a volcanic island about 10 km off the coast of Toucheng: small, about 2.85 square kilometers, but with sea cliffs, a lake, cold springs and steaming vents. It was a military zone for decades. Today the Northeast and Yilan Coast National Scenic Area runs it as an eco-tourism site and caps how many people land each day. Every boat leaves from Wushi Harbor (烏石港) in Toucheng.
- Season Landings March 1 to November 30; closed to landings in winter
- Hours 09:00 to 17:00 (first landing 09:00, last landing 15:00); 08:30 to 17:30 from June to September
- Closed Wednesdays to sightseeing visitors (that day is kept for approved schools, educational and research groups), and in bad weather or rough seas
- Permit Required; book online 11 to 20 days ahead, 1,800 people a day. Overseas tourists can apply on the day at Wushi Harbor instead
- Fees NT$100 per person (NT$40 cleaning plus NT$60 facilities), plus the boat
- Getting there Boats from Wushi Harbor, Toucheng; bus from Toucheng Station
Status on November 2, 2026
Check before you go: on November 2, 2026, the scenic area's permit site showed landings open. The day before, November 1, it had suspended landings because of large tidal swings, and closures like that come at short notice. The 2026 season ends on November 30. After that the island is closed to landings for the winter, and under the scenic area's rules it reopens on March 1, 2027. Check the Guishan Island permit site, which also shows the CWA wave warnings, the day before you go.
The landing permit
Rules checked November 2026. This is where people get caught out, so read it before you plan the day. The rules were last amended in May 2024, and there are two routes. Which one is yours depends on whether you live in Taiwan or are visiting.
If you live in Taiwan: book online
Everyone living in Taiwan books online, and that includes foreign residents with an ARC or a work permit. A foreign passport doesn't change that.
- Where: the Guishan Island landing application site (龜山島登島申請), online only, between 08:00 and 22:00.
- When: 11 to 20 days before your landing day. Then, in the same window, log back in with your application number and confirm your group size. Skip that step and the booking is cancelled automatically.
- How many: 1,800 people a day, in four time slots of 450. You pick one slot. A group can be up to 45 people.
- On the day: bring photo ID for the coast guard check at the harbor. Your application number is valid only for you and your slot.
- The boat is separate. The permit lets you land, but you still book a licensed boat yourself. The scenic area lists the licensed boats and their phone numbers on the boat information page.
If you're visiting Taiwan from overseas: apply on the day
You have an easier route. The landing rules make an exception for international tourists, meaning people who have come to Taiwan to travel: you apply on the landing day itself, at the scenic area's service counter at Wushi Harbor, with your passport or other supporting documents. You don't book online, and you aren't counted in the daily limit of 1,800. Keep your passport with you for the coast guard's ID check before you land.
That's what the rules say. How it works on the ground we haven't confirmed: the counter's hours, how long the application takes, and whether a boat will have a seat for you that day. The exception covers the permit, not the boat. So don't just turn up and hope. Call one of the licensed boat operators a few days ahead, tell them you're an overseas tourist applying at the counter on the day, and arrange the boat and time with them. The scenic area asks overseas visitors to confirm the boat schedule before planning a landing, too. → Booking boat trips and tours
Good to know: the same-day route is for overseas tourists only. If you hold an ARC or a work permit, you're a resident under these rules, so book online 11 to 20 days ahead.
Wednesdays
Closed: Guishan Island is closed to ordinary sightseeing visitors every Wednesday, overseas tourists included. The rules allow 500 people on Wednesdays, but those places are only for approved schools, educational groups and research groups, who apply in writing at least 15 days ahead. It isn't a public tourist quota, so plan your landing for another day.
What you see on the island
You walk with a licensed guide, and the open area is small enough to see in one visit:
- Putuo Temple (普陀巖), the islanders' old temple, and a Guanyin statue riding a dragon by the lake.
- Guiwei Lake (龜尾湖), with a path around it past a cold spring and a natural grove of Chinese fan palms.
- The old military tunnels, cool even in summer, ending at an abandoned gun position over the sea.
- The site of the island's old primary school, from when people lived here.
The 401 Highland climb
If you're fit and can plan ahead, add the climb. The island's top is 398 meters, plus a 3-meter bunker, hence the name 401 Highland (401高地). The path is about 1,300 meters of stone steps, 1,706 of them, through low-altitude native forest, and it takes a little over an hour to go up. From the top you get a 360-degree view over the turtle's head and tail and back to the coast.
- You need a landing permit first, then a separate 401 Highland application, 11 to 19 days ahead, on the same site.
- Only 100 people a day go up (within the 1,800), in the morning slots only, and the group goes up and comes down together.
- Register at the checkpoint before you start, and report back to the visitor center at the set time.
Whale and dolphin watching
No permit? Take a whale-watching boat instead. A trip that doesn't land needs no landing permit, and most boats also circle the island, so you still see the milky blue water over the undersea hot springs, the sulfur steam and the shifting gravel "tail". Go between April and the end of September, the best season. The waters around the island are one of Taiwan's three big fishing grounds, and 17 species of whales and dolphins have been counted here, mainly spinner and bottlenose dolphins, pygmy killer whales and false killer whales. Boats leave from Wushi Harbor.
Getting to Wushi Harbor
- TRA Train to Toucheng Station, then:
- G18 The Taiwan Tourist Shuttle Zhuangwei Dune Line (Green 18), between Toucheng Station and Yilan Transfer Station; get off at Wushi Harbor Transfer Station (烏石港轉運站).
- 131 Kamalan Tourist Shuttle 131, from Jiaoxi Station to Wai'ao; get off at Wushi Harbor Transfer Station.
- 1877 From Taipei: Kuo-Kuang 1877 from Yuanshan Transfer Station runs to Wushi Harbor Transfer Station. See buses from Taipei.
Make a day of it: the Lanyang Museum is right next to the harbor, and Wai'ao is just up the coast.
→ More things to do · Toucheng · Best time to visit
Sources: Northeast and Yilan Coast National Scenic Area: Guishan Island landing site and closure notice, landing application rules (amended May 2024, including the international-tourist exception and Wednesdays), landing fees, overseas visitors, exploring the island, 401 Highland, whales and transport, licensed boats; Taiwan News on the 2025 season and Wednesdays. Checked November 2026.