If you want one stop on the coast between Yilan City and Toucheng, make it this one. Zhuangwei Sand Dune Park (壯圍沙丘生態園區) is a free visitor park on Highway 2, built into the dunes by the Northeast and Yilan Coast National Scenic Area. It's quiet, it costs nothing, and it has the best open view of Guishan Island on this stretch of coast. Give it an hour or two, longer if you add the café or a bike ride.
- Hours 09:00 to 17:00, open all year
- Entry Free
- Address No. 18, Lane 196, Section 2, Zhuangbin Road, Zhuangwei (宜蘭縣壯圍鄉壯濱路二段196巷18號), by Highway 2 at the 149.3 km mark
- Phone 03-938-2420
- Getting there G18 Taiwan Tourist Shuttle Zhuangwei Dune Line (Green 18) from Yilan Transfer Station or Yilan Station, about 35 minutes, to the Zhuangwei Sand Dune Park stop (壯圍沙丘生態園區). Kamalan Bus 791 and Kuo-Kuang 1787 and 1788 stop there too.
- Status Open. The Scenic Area reopened it on October 25, 2026, after Typhoon Champi, with clean-up and works still going on (notice updated October 29, 2026).
Check before you go: after Typhoon Champi the Scenic Area closed every site on the coast. It lists Zhuangwei as reopened from October 25, 2026, but says clean-up and engineering work are still going on in the park, so mind your step and keep to the open paths.
What it is
The park opened in 2018 and covers about 4.48 hectares. The Yilan architect Huang Sheng-yuan (黃聲遠) designed it around one idea: clear the hollows so you can see the dunes. The buildings sit low in the sand, with rice fields on the land side and ponds that reflect the sky, edged with screwpine (林投), on the other. Then the dunes roll away toward the sea, and Guishan Island sits on the horizon.
It's the kind of place that works best slowly. Come on a weekday, or late in the afternoon when the light is low over the dunes, and listen to the surf.
What's there
- The visitor center (壯圍遊客中心), with travel advice, leaflets and basic first aid. Ask here about guided tours of the park and the exhibition hall.
- The exhibition hall, Weixiao Village (圍笑聚落館), the building with the best view out to Guishan Island. It has three parts: Sunrise Court (日出埕), with changing exhibitions by local makers; Wave Village (浪花村), a showcase of the 19 townships of the wider northeast coast; and Haijiao Market (海角集), a shop for local products to take home.
- Mangcao Café (芒草Café), upstairs, with brunch from a French-cuisine executive chef. It doesn't publish its hours, so check when you arrive if you plan to eat there.
- The dunes and ponds, which are the point of coming.
- Parking, toilets, and accessible toilets and parking spaces. The outdoor toilets on the ground floor won a bronze in Yilan County's public toilet awards in October 2026. On a long coast day, that matters.
Getting there
The Zhuangwei Dune tourist shuttle is the easy way, but it only runs four times a day, so plan around it.
| Direction | Leaves | At the dunes |
|---|---|---|
| From Yilan Transfer Station | 08:30, 10:30, 13:00, 15:00 | 09:05, 11:05, 13:35, 15:35 |
| From Toucheng Station | 08:30, 10:30, 13:00, 15:00 | 09:07, 11:07, 13:37, 15:37 |
- G18 The fare from Yilan to the dunes is one section: NT$20 cash or NT$15 by EasyCard or iPASS. Riding on past the park toward Toucheng is a second section. A NT$60 day pass is sold at the counters at Yilan Transfer Station and Toucheng. The last bus back to Yilan City passes the park at 15:37, well before it closes.
- BUS Kamalan Bus 791 and Kuo-Kuang 1787 and 1788 also stop at the park, handy if you miss the shuttle.
- CAR It's on Highway 2, the coast road, with a car park. A taxi from Yilan Station is the other way in.
Good to know: the G18 carries on north along the coast to Toucheng, stopping at Toucheng Seashore Forest Park, the Dakeng viewing deck and Wushi Harbor for the Lanyang Museum. Take the 11:05 from the dunes and you can make a whole coast day of it on one NT$60 pass.
Nearby on the coast
- The Yilan Coastal Bikeway (宜蘭濱海自行車道) runs past the park along the shore. The Scenic Area reopened the whole route on October 29, 2026. See bikes and cycling paths.
- Yongzhen Seaside Station (永鎮濱海驛站) and the Dafu sunrise viewing deck (大福觀海旭日平台), both short stops north on the G18, reopened on October 25 and 26, 2026.
- The Lanyang River mouth (蘭陽溪口), near the park, is a protected area for waterbirds.
- Houpi (後埤), the next stop north on the G18, is one of the village communities around the park.
→ Landing on Guishan Island · Toucheng and Wushi Harbor · Two days in Yilan · More things to do
Sources: Northeast and Yilan Coast National Scenic Area, Zhuangwei Sand Dune Park (hours, fee, address, phone, history, buildings, buses); Northeast and Yilan Coast National Scenic Area, Typhoon Champi closures and reopenings (updated October 29, 2026); Northeast and Yilan Coast National Scenic Area news (2026 toilet awards, October 30, 2026); Taiwan Tourist Shuttle, Zhuangwei Dune Line and its timetable (fares, day pass, times). Checked November 2026.