A super-packed 2-day tour of Tainan covering three popular routes with all the must-visit attractions and delicious food!

Two days and one night in Tainan is actually a bit rushed, and there are just so many Tainan snacks that you can't possibly try them all. That’s why, within a limited timeframe, visiting the best sights and tasting the tastiest street food makes this a true highlights tour of Tainan!
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Here's the food map

Rent a scooter from Shanghao Motorcycle Rental → check in at the homestay → visit Fu Sheng Hao Bowl Rice Noodles | Jun... (text cut off) → explore Anping Old Street → visit Chihkan Towers → go to Shuangsian Black Tea → eat Tsaotian E Mein (Oyster Vermicelli) → try Yifeng Winter Melon Tea → enjoy Qiu Family Small Squid Rice Vermicelli → have Fugi Meatballs → taste Sun Brand Ice Cream → take the train from Tainan Station to Shalun Station → take the 18:15 high-speed rail back to Taipei → arrive in Taipei at 20:00.

Breakfast at Ah Tang’s Savory Porridge → visit Xiyu Outpost → explore Sicao Mangrove Tunnel → visit Lintian Department Store → drink tea at Shuangquan → eat Tsaotian E Mein → sip Yifeng Winter Melon Tea → try Qiu Family Small Squid Rice Vermicelli → enjoy Fugi Meatballs → have Sun Brand ice cream → take the train from Tainan Station to Shalun Station → take the 18:15 high-speed rail back to Taipei → arrive in Taipei at 20:00.

08:00 — Take HeXin Bus
12:20 — Rent a scooter from Shanghao (no need to sign a ticket)
Address: No. 176, Qianfeng Road, East District, Tainan City

But we really recommend not going out of your way to rent a scooter from Shanghao, especially on Sundays when only very old scooters are left to rent. We had an uneasy ride those two days because the scooters were really old.

Address: Lane 146, Section 1, Lin’an Road, West Central District, Tainan City

After settling in, first satisfy your hunger—the gourmet journey begins!

Address: No. 8, Lane 333, Section 2, Ximen Road, West Central District, Tainan City

Fu | Kang Rabbit Noodles is located near the front street.

Address: No. 16, Bao’an Road

Address: No. 59, Bao’an Road, West Central District, Tainan City

Ah Feng’s rice cakes and Mi Gao (rice cake) shop are on the same street. After eating, start exploring Tainan. Begin with the urban sights—head to the Blue Print cultural park next to Shin Kong Mitsukoshi. Though it’s not very big, it’s small but charming, and will later be expanded into a cultural and creative park.

Address: No. 2, Lane 689, Section 1, Ximen Road, South District, Tainan City
The Blue Print was formerly a judicial dormitory. The building is really old, with the feel of a traditional sanheyuan (courtyard house) from my dad’s hometown. Aside from the front, which has been painted blue and is great for photos, the backyard remains in its original state.

Shiku Cultural Village (open after 18:00, ticket 100 TWD). Originally these two were planned to be visited together, but Chi Mei Museum was just too fun to explore and photograph. So we gave up on Shiku, which charges 399 TWD, and chose to stay at Chi Mei from morning until night.
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Although Sundays are crowded and not great for empty background shots, it’s also closed on Mondays, so we had no choice but to visit on Sunday. You need to book tickets online a month in advance, though. Since we decided to come to Tainan so last-minute, we didn’t have time to reserve any.

But that’s okay. The first floor has an introduction to Chi Mei, and if you look around carefully, you could easily spend a long time there. We spent about an hour just learning why Yen Wen-long wanted to build the museum and how he led Chi Mei to thrive. The grounds are also huge, and we took lots of photos outside.

We were about to leave Chi Mei by scooter when we stopped at a red light. Realizing it was almost dark, we thought it would be a shame not to take photos, so we turned around and went back in for some night shots. Totally worth it!

Chi Mei Museum is truly beautiful—it gave us the feeling of being back in Italy. Our original plan was to go eat at Ah Ming’s Pork Heart Glass Noodles, but the line was too long (about three storefronts long)!

Address: Intersection of Haian Road Section 3 and Hwei Road Section 3, North District, Tainan City

So we headed to Garden Night Market first to grab a bite. But since none of the stalls really wowed us, I won’t write a separate post about it. Still around 80% full, we returned to Ah Ming’s Pork Heart Glass Noodles around 10 PM.

Address: No. 72, Bao’an Road, West Central District, Tainan City
Business hours: 18:00 – 02:00

YA!No more waiting in line!

Incredibly delicious pig’s heart vermicelli and kidney, then back to the homestay to rest.

Breakfast:

Address: No. 728, Section 1, Ximen Rd., Tainan City (at Little West Gate Roundabout)

We only recommend their shrimp rice here — the shrimp rice is really tasty. Since we finished eating around 11 AM, by the time we cycled to Sicao, the boat service there was on a break from 12:00–13:00, so we bought the boat tickets first, then cycled back to Anping and strolled around the Siyouchu Outpost.

Address: No. 196, Gubao St., Anping District, Tainan City

This used to be a place for salt production. It’s called Siyouchu because it’s a great spot to watch the sunset — perfect for an afternoon outing. That’s why it’s named Siyouchu. Its former identity was the Tainan Branch Office of the Taiwan Governor-General’s Monopoly Bureau in Anping, which is now part of the Tobacco and Liquor Monopoly Bureau!

It’s much smaller than I imagined. The more unique thing inside is the display of birthday-colored salt in 366 shades — you can try to find your own birth date. Also, for NT$50 you can crack open a salted egg and eat the boiled egg inside, plus try the salt-flavored ice cream.

Address: No. 360, Dazhong Rd., Annan District, Tainan City (next to Sicao Dazhong Temple)

The Sicao Mangrove Green Tunnel and Sicao Lake Eco Experience Tour lets you leisurely drift through Taijiang on a rubber raft. You can choose between sightseeing boats and rubber rafts — both are NT$200. But on the day we went, no one took the sightseeing boat at all. Probably everyone was heading straight for the Sicao Mangrove Tunnel, and it was really quite fun!

At certain parts of the route, you actually have to lower your head to avoid hitting tree branches. The scenery is really beautiful too. Too bad there were too many people when we went, and we didn’t manage to grab the front seats.

The following official website info is for reference:

Weekdays: Fixed departures at 10:00 AM and 2:30 PM.
Holidays: Ticket sales start at 8:30 AM until 4:30 PM (until sold out).

For general visitors, a minimum of 15 people is required to arrange a departure time.

Weekdays: Fixed departures at 10:45 AM and 3:10 PM.
Holidays: Ticket sales start at 8:30 AM until 5:00 PM.

For general visitors, a minimum of 20 people is required to arrange a departure time.

Address: No. 63, Section 2, Zhongyi Rd., West Central District, Tainan City

It’s the only department store in Taiwan with a shrine on its rooftop. The whole building has a strong creative-cultural vibe and is totally different from other department stores. With its renovations, it feels like you’ve stepped back into the 1940s and 50s — definitely worth a visit!

Before leaving Tainan, we also stuffed ourselves with danzai noodles, Shuangquan black tea, Yifeng winter melon tea, small squid rice noodles, Fook Kee meatballs, and Sun Brand ice treats.
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After all that food, we finally headed back to Taipei feeling fully satisfied. Tainan is not like how it was seven years ago when the only places to go were Anping Fort and Chihkan Tower. Though our two-day-one-night trip was a bit rushed, we managed to visit all the must-sees and eat all the must-tries. Total satisfaction!