If you ask which coastline in Taiwan is the most beautiful, most people will name the Qingshui Cliffs on the east coast. But at the southern tip of the island, on the eastern side of Kenting National Park, there is a place that is just as dramatic and far quieter — Longpan Park. It sits on a coastal plateau, and from the cliff edge you look straight down onto the Pacific, with the coastline running open and empty in both directions. It is five minutes by car from the well-known Eluanbi Lighthouse, and most visitors drive right past it — even though the national park lists it among its top ten attractions.
How to get to Longpan Park
Longpan Park lies on the coast east of Eluanbi, the southernmost point of Taiwan, on the stretch of the Hengchun Peninsula between Eluanbi and Fongchueisha. Kenting is Taiwan’s best-known southern beach resort area, and almost all of the tourism is concentrated on the busy western side — the swimming beaches and the main strip. The eastern side is a different matter: the terrain is rougher, much of it is nature reserve or restricted military land, and there are very few people. It is the more advanced, off-the-beaten-track half of Kenting.
Getting there: there is no bus stop at Longpan Park, so in practice you need your own vehicle — a rental car or a scooter. (The park’s own transport page covers how to reach the Kenting area from Kaohsiung.) If you are coming round the island by rail, the nearest railhead to the Hengchun Peninsula is Fangliao, on the South-Link Line. From the Eluanbi Lighthouse, head north on Provincial Highway 26 — the Jia-Oh Highway — for about 3.5 kilometres, roughly five minutes; you pass a radar station and you are there. There is a simple roadside car park, but there is no large sign or road marker anywhere along the way. You have to know in advance that this car park is the entrance, or you will drive straight past it.
From the car park, take the wooden boardwalk through the low coastal scrub. After about 20 metres — one minute of walking — the coastline opens up in front of you. The scenic payoff comes with minimal effort: a few steps from the car and you are at the viewpoint, which makes it accessible for families with children or older adults.
The collapsing cliffs
Longpan sits on a plateau of coral limestone that was pushed up out of the sea by tectonic uplift. Rainwater has been dissolving that limestone from above for a long time, leaving crumbled ridges, red soil and cavities under the surface. Along the eastern edge of the plateau, waves undercut the rock and gravity does the rest: blocks fracture, break away and tumble down to the base of the cliff. The result is what geologists here call a collapsing cliff — flat grassland on top, ending abruptly in a near-vertical drop into the ocean.
This kind of landform — grassland running to the edge and then simply stopping — is almost impossible to find anywhere else in Taiwan. It reminded me of the Seven Sisters on the south coast of England, where green downland breaks off into sea cliffs in the same way. Longpan is Taiwan’s version: the Pacific below, the open grassland of the Eluanbi plateau above, and Mt. Dajian, the landmark peak of Kenting, rising in the distance.
Longpan is also one of Kenting’s best-known spots for stargazing and sunrise. On New Year’s Eve the grassland fills up with people waiting for the first light of the year. It is also a good place to watch the sunset — the national park publishes sunrise and sunset times by month, which is worth checking before you plan an early start.
The Longpan grassland road
North of Longpan, the Jia-Oh Highway runs dead straight along the coast, cutting across the grassland on top of the plateau. Driving it feels a little like driving along the coast in Hokkaido. It is one of Taiwan’s better-known scenic stretches of road, and worth continuing north for a few extra minutes.
The landmark: Eluanbi radar station
The most obvious landmark near Longpan is a pair of large white radar domes on the high ground — the Eluanbi radar station, a military installation covering the sea and airspace south of Taiwan. The compound sits right beside the road and the radar domes are so large that they are hard to miss. It is an active military site, so you can photograph it from a distance but not approach it.
Practical notes
- No shade at all. This is open grassland with nowhere to hide from the sun at midday in summer. Wear sun protection and bring plenty of water.
- It is windy. The grassland is exposed and the wind blows across it almost constantly — hold on to hats and lens caps.
- The cliff edge is unfenced. Be careful if you are taking photos near the drop.
- Watch your footing. This is rain-eroded limestone, with cavities and fissures under the surface. Holes are sometimes hidden by grass, so look where you are going if you leave the boardwalk.
- If you want to walk further. Most people only photograph the cliff edge near the boardwalk and leave after 10–15 minutes. If you want more, you can follow the coast south to another cliff, with the radar station opposite, or head north across the grassland. In cooler weather it makes for a nice bit of low-key exploring.
- In an emergency. Kenting National Park publishes emergency contacts and safety information in English.
Worth the five-minute detour
Longpan Park is easy to reach and requires very little walking, and what you get is a stretch of collapsing-cliff coastline you will not find anywhere else in Taiwan — with hardly anyone else around. If you have made it to the southern tip of the island, do not skip this for the sake of five minutes’ driving. You can pair it with the rest of Kenting’s east coast in the same trip.
