Sightseeing Fun at the “White Giant Tower” – The Maritime and Port Bureau Opens Shapedi and Green Island Lighthouses for Public Visits

▲ The Maritime and Port Bureau has opened Shapedi and Green Island lighthouses for visits, bringing the total number of publicly accessible lighthouses in Taiwan to eight. The image shows the western view of Green Island Lighthouse (Photo / fromWikipedia)

Tourism Center / Comprehensive Report

To revitalize assets, develop tourism, and provide the public with cultural, leisurely, and low-carbon travel services, the Maritime and Port Bureau announced that starting September 10, the public can visit two lighthouses—Shapedi and Green Island—for sightseeing.

Originally under the jurisdiction of the Customs Administration, Ministry of Finance, Taiwan’s current 35 lighthouses were transferred to the management of the Maritime and Port Bureau, Ministry of Transportation and Communications on January 1 this year. The bureau has since committed to promoting the beauty of lighthouses among the people and creating new travel routes across Taiwan. In addition to the six lighthouses already open to the public—San Diego Cape in New Taipei City, Kaohsiung, Eluanbi, Yiwengdao, Dongyin, and Dongjyu—the Maritime and Port Bureau will open Shapedi Lighthouse in Guanyin Township, Taoyuan County, and Green Island Lighthouse starting September 10. This brings the total number of lighthouses open for interior visits to eight.

▲ Shapedi Lighthouse, the second tallest lighthouse in Taiwan, is designated as a local historical monument by Taoyuan County Government and holds significant historical value. (Photo / fromWikipedia)

Standing on thecoast of Guanyin Township, Taoyuan County, Shapedi Lighthouse is the second tallest lighthouse in Taiwan and was once the westernmost lighthouse in the country.Designed by the Japanese in 1896, the structure adopts what is known in Japanese as “brick-and-stone construction” using a double-layered brick and stone seismic design. Its white, circular tower is finely crafted with a unique shape reminiscent of European architecture. During World War II, it suffered severe damage from Allied aircraft strafing but was later restored after Taiwan’s retrocession. After a century of careful maintenance, it remains well-preserved and was designated as a local historical monument by Taoyuan County Government in 2002, becoming a major scenic attraction along the Taoyuan coast.

Originally named “Huoshao Island Lighthouse,” Green Island Lighthouse is located at the northwest tip of Green Island.In 1938, the then world’s largest luxury cruise ship, the SS President Hoover, ran aground in thick fog while traveling from Keelung to the Philippines near Gongguan waters off Green Island. Local residents of Green Island rushed to rescue the crew and passengers, accommodating them in their homes. This heroic act received widespread international acclaim, and in gratitude, the U.S. government donated funds through the Red Cross to begin constructing this “Pearl of Green Island” in 1939. The lighthouse was destroyed during air raids in World War II, and the current white lighthouse was rebuilt by the Nationalist Government in 1948.

In addition to increasing the number of open lighthouses to eight, the Maritime and Port Bureau also stated that it plans to gradually open five more lighthouses—Fangyuan, Gaomei, Fugui Cape, Bitou Cape, and Qilai Cape—within the next three years. The goal is to increase the number of publicly accessible lighthouses scattered across various islands and capes to 18 by 2017, allowing the public to come and appreciate the beauty of Taiwan’s lighthouses.