We’ll also run free shuttle buses between the trailheads and the venue. Advance booking is required. For times and reservation details, see the “Shuttle Bus Schedule” section below.

A 602m peak in Miaoli County, central Taiwan, where this year’s Yamatomichi Hiking Festival will be held. This approachable day hike is known for its dramatic red-brown cliffs and rugged badland scenery.

A. Mt. Huoyan Loop Route
• A. Route: Mt. Huoyan Trailhead → South Mt. Huoyan → Small Canyon → Grand Canyon → Mt. Huoyan Summit (triangulation point) → Tudigong (Earth God) → Mt. Huoyan Parking Lot (6.4km / approx. 3.5 hours)
• Getting there: From Taipei Main Station, take the Taiwan High Speed Rail to Taichung Station. Transfer via the adjoining Xinwuri Station to a Taiwan Railways train for Tai’an Station, then take a taxi to the Mt. Huoyan Trailhead (approx. 2 hours 15 minutes total). Taxi reservations: 0931-432-499
• To the festival: Mt. Huoyan Trailhead → festival venue (shuttle bus / approx. 30 minutes)

B. Sanyi to Mt. Huoyan Route
• Route: Sanyi Station → Ciji Mountain Tea Garden → Mt. Huoyan → South Mt. Huoyan → Mt. Huoyan Trailhead (14 km / approx. 6–7 hours)
• Getting there: From Taipei Main Station, take a Taiwan Railways train to Sanyi Station. Alternatively, take the Taiwan High Speed Rail to Miaoli Station, walk a few minutes to the adjoining Fengfu Station, then transfer to a Taiwan Railways train for Sanyi Station. Please note that the High Speed Rail Miaoli Station and Taiwan Railways Miaoli Station are about 5 km apart (approx. 15 minutes by car).
• To the festival: Mt. Huoyan Trailhead → festival venue (shuttle bus / approx. 30 minutes)

Like Mt. Huoyan, this 1,437m mountain is located in Miaoli County. Its many rocky ridges make for a varied and exciting hike. Characterized by its towering, sheer rock walls, the foot of Mt. Hushan is also the source of the hot spring waters that feed Tai’an Hot Springs.

• Route: Mt. Niaozui Trailhead → Mt. Niaozui Summit (triangulation point) → Tai’an Hot Springs Parking Lot (6.5km / approx. 4.5 hours)
• Getting there: From Taipei Main Station, take the Taiwan High Speed Rail to Miaoli Station. Take THSR Shuttle Bus 101B to Shei-Pa National Park Headquarters, then a taxi to Tai’an Hot Springs Parking Lot / Mt. Niaozui Trailhead (approx. 3 hours total).
• To the festival: Tai’an Hot Springs Parking Lot → festival venue (shuttle bus / approx. 45 minutes). After the hike, you can enjoy a soak in the public baths at Tai’an Jingguang Villa.

Starting from Tai’an Hot Springs, this out-and-back hike crosses the Shuiyun Suspension Bridge before climbing to the summit.

Known for its dramatic, towering rock walls, Mt. Hushan is also home to the source of the waters that feed Tai’an Hot Springs.

• Route: Tai’an Hot Springs Parking Lot → Shuiyun Suspension Bridge → Mt. Hushan Summit → Shuiyun Suspension Bridge → Tai’an Hot Springs Parking Lot (9km / approx. 5 hours)
• Getting there: From Taipei Main Station, take the Taiwan High Speed Rail to Miaoli Station. Take THSR Shuttle Bus 101B to Shei-Pa National Park Headquarters, then a taxi to Tai’an Hot Springs Parking Lot / trailhead (approx. 3 hours total).
• To the festival: Tai’an Hot Springs Parking Lot → festival venue (shuttle bus / approx. 45 minutes)

This demanding traverse links Mt. Hushan, Mt. Jiali, and Mt. Tenglong, with around 10 hours on the trail each day. Choose between a two-day route or a three-day route with an additional night before walking out on Day 3.

2 Days / 1 Night

A challenging route for fit, experienced hikers, with more than 2,000m of elevation gain.

• Day 1: Tai’an Hot Springs Parking Lot → Shuiyun Suspension Bridge → Mt. Hushan Summit → 2,054m Peak → Dujuan Ridge → Mt. Jiali Summit → Fengmei Creek Campsite (13.8km / approx. 10 hours)
• Day 2: Fengmei Creek Campsite → Mt. Jiali Summit → Dujuan Ridge → 2,054m Peak → Mt. Tenglong Summit → Mt. Tenglong Trailhead → Shangdao Road → Tai’an Hot Springs Parking Lot (16.3km / approx. 10 hours)

3 Days / 2 Nights (Day 1 follows the same route as the two-day plan)

• Day 2: Fengmei Creek Campsite → Mt. Jiali Summit → Dujuan Ridge → 2,054m Peak → Mt. Tenglong Summit → Mt. Tenglong Trailhead → camping area below the trailhead (overnight) (16.3km / approx. 10 hours)
• Day 3: Camping area → Shangdao Road → Tai’an Hot Springs Parking Lot (approx. 2 hours on foot along a forestry road)

For Both Routes

• Campsites: Both plans camp at Fengmei Creek Campsite on Day 1, near Rescue Marker No. 6 on the Mt. Jiali East Route. No reservation is required; sites are available on a first-come, first-served basis. There is space for approximately 20 solo tents and a nearby water source. For the three-day plan, the camping area below Mt. Tenglong Trailhead on Day 2 requires advance booking and payment.
• Caution: The first 300m of the descents from Mt. Jiali to Fengmei Creek Campsite and from the 2,054m Peak toward Mt. Tenglong involve difficult downclimbing.
• Getting there / To the festival: Same as Mt. Hushan (starts and finishes at Tai’an Hot Springs; approx. 45 minutes by shuttle bus to the festival venue)

This historic trail runs for approximately 9 km and leads directly to the festival venue, which takes its name from the route. Once used to transport goods such as tea and camphor, the trail follows mostly gentle ridgelines and is relatively flat and easy to walk, making it an approachable way to include a hike on your way to the venue.

• Route: Laoguandao North Entrance → Shuiliudong Road Junction → Shimen Inn → Memorial to the Fallen Porters → Laoguandao Leisure Farm (9 km / approx. 5 hours)
• Access: Take the Taiwan High Speed Rail from Taipei Station to Miaoli Station, then take a taxi to Nanhu Elementary School / Laoguandao North Entrance (approx. 2–2.5 hours total).

On weekdays, local bus services are available from TRA Miaoli Station. As these services do not operate on weekends, taking a taxi from Miaoli Station is recommended.

This 380 km trail network, with a 220 km main route, includes Laoguandao as one of its sections. It links historic trails and farm roads once used to transport camphor and tea, as well as for trade and exchange between Indigenous and Hakka communities. Rich in history, the Raknus Selu Trail is one of Taiwan’s seven national greenways.

• Route: Longtan, Taoyuan → Hsinchu → Miaoli → Dongshi, Taichung (380 km total / 220 km main route)
• Access: Take Taiwan Railways from Taipei Station to Zhongli Station, then take Taoyuan Bus 5050 or 5055 to the Sankeng bus stop. From there, walk along Yongfu Road to Sankeng Old Street and the northern trailhead of the Raknus Selu Trail (approx. 2–2.5 hours total).

A roughly 150km journey from Taoyuan International Airport to the Yamatomichi Hiking Festival, powered entirely by your own legs. Ride south along Taiwan’s west coast, spending the night in Baishatun, home to the sacred Mazu pilgrimage site of Baishatun Gongtian Temple.

• Day 1: Dayuan Station (Taoyuan Airport MRT) → Baishatun Gongtian Temple (approx. 100km / 8 hours including breaks)
• Day 2: Baishatun Gongtian Temple → Lao Guan Dao Leisure Farm (approx. 50km / 5 hours including breaks)
• Route: Taoyuan → Hsinchu → Miaoli → Lao Guan Dao
• Accommodation: Please arrange your own accommodation anywhere along the route for Day 1. Options include the pilgrim lodge at Baishatun Gongtian Temple (from NT$200 per person; reservations by phone at 037-791472 / Chinese only) and NO.37 BAISHATUN (online reservations available through Airbnb and Booking.com).
• Note: Approximately 150km and 13 hours in total. It is possible to complete the route in a single day, but it will be a very demanding ride (approximately 9 hours from Taipei).

Our good friends at Circles, a bike shop in Nagoya, are inviting everyone to ride to Yamatomichi Festival with their “BIKE to Yamatomichi Festival” initiative.

Inspired by Wataru Takada’s classic folk song “Jitensha ni Notte” (“On My Bicycle”), the idea is simple: make the journey your own. Choose your route, take a few detours, challenge yourself if you feel like it, and enjoy the ride, with a little camping along the way.

There’s no organized group ride or set route. Just hop on your bike and make cycling part of your journey to the festival, however you like!

Once you arrive, find a member of the Circles crew and let them know you came by bike. Show them a photo of your bike or a snapshot from your ride, and you’ll receive a special commemorative gift.

Details on where to find the Circles crew will be shared on their Instagram and website. We’d also love to see your adventures, so share your photos with #BIKEto山道祭!

Please note that there is no dedicated bicycle parking at the venue. Bikes should be kept at your own campsite.

Past BIKE to Yamatomichi Festival events

Curious about previous rides? Check out these articles from Circles.

• BIKE to Yamatomichi Festival (Iwate, 2019)
• BIKE to Yamatomichi Festival 2023 – From the Mouth of the Yoshino River to Its Source

If you’re joining Yamatomichi Festival in Taiwan from Japan, you’ll need to bring your bike by air. Circles plans to share a guide on their website covering how to prepare your bike for air travel and tips for packing. Depending on the airline and route, it may also be possible to check your bike in using a bike travel bag rather than a hard case, so it’s worth finding a setup that keeps your bike protected while still being easy to travel with.

Bicycle transport fees and regulations vary by airline, so please check the details directly with your airline before traveling.

Free shuttle buses will run between the trailheads, Miaoli High Speed Rail Station, and the festival venue. Booking instructions are provided in the order confirmation email sent after purchasing your festival ticket.

• Bus stops:
  Please refer to the pins on the map above for the exact boarding locations.
• Identifying your bus:
  Each bus will display a sign with the Yamatomichi Hiking Festival logo and its destination in a clearly visible location, such as the front of the bus. Please check the sign before boarding.

At the Bonbu live performance, dancers will join the circle and show everyone the moves as you go. But you’ll have even more fun if you learn a few of them beforehand—and you might just win a few hearts along the way.

Below are videos of Yamatomichi staff practicing in advance in 2021 under the guidance of Bonbu. They cover some of the songs planned for Yamatomichi Festival 2026, including “Donpan Bushi,” “Hakkou Bon Uta,” and “Les Champs-Élysées.”

Have a look, learn a few moves before the festival, and help us make the dance circle even bigger on the day!

For the Amis people living between the mountains and sea around Taitung on Taiwan’s east coast, singing and dancing are part of everyday life. The group takes its name from the kakeng, a bamboo bell traditionally played at Amis weddings to announce good news. Bamboo becomes flutes, wood becomes drums, and breath becomes song. Playing more than 30 kinds of bamboo and wooden instruments—including mouth harps, bamboo drums, nose flutes, and xylophones—the group combines their sounds with songs passed down through generations, creating rhythms that seem to rise from the earth itself.

At the heart of their performances is joining hands, forming a circle, and singing and dancing together. They won’t simply perform for us: they’ll also teach us a song and invite everyone to join the dance. Coming together hand in hand and moving in a circle feels deeply connected to the bon odori tradition we have long celebrated in Japan. Hikers from Taiwan, Japan, and beyond will meet in the same circle, even when we speak different languages—the perfect way to begin this year’s festival.¥

The Amis Kakeng Musical Group is a traditional Amis ensemble based in Taitung. In 1994, founder and director Sawtoy Saytay came across one of the few surviving written records of traditional Amis instruments. Through years of fieldwork, he searched for and gathered instruments that were in danger of disappearing, eventually forming the group in 1999. Since 2006, the ensemble has been based at the Amis Folk Center in Taitung, where it works to preserve Amis music, create new work, and foster cultural exchange. Since 2003, the group has performed across five continents, including appearances at the National Theatre Okinawa in 2005 and Expo 2005 Aichi, as well as performances in the United States, France, Germany, Canada, Australia, and at the 2024 Festival of Pacific Arts and Culture in Hawaiʻi.

In 2024, Takuya spent two months walking across Taiwan with a morin khuur, kalimba, and art supplies on his back. Along the way, he encountered an Indigenous festival where people sang and danced together in circles—an experience that left a deep impression on him. Now he returns to Taiwan to play once again in a place shaped by those encounters, sharing his music with the people and community that became part of his journey. His performance will sit alongside the Amis songs and dances featured at the festival, bringing another part of that Taiwan journey full circle.

Come say hello to the team, check out the gear, and enjoy some shopping!

• Yamatomichi products (festival-exclusive Pewter color)
  • 5-Pocket Wide Pants
  • 5-Pocket Shorts
  • Taslan Coach Jacket
• Other items
  • samplus Nalgene Bottle
  • samplus Stickers
  • Yamatomichi Hiking Festival Tenugui Towel

Alongside designs created by our Yamatomichi Repair Team, we’ve added new motifs based on artist Naomi Kazama’s artwork for this year’s Yamatomichi Festival. You can choose the colors and placement together with our team, so start thinking about your design!