Smalleye Backpacker

Western Taiwan


Mixed and all-female dorms in a 100-year-old house that also runs photography exhibitions and tours. The metallic beds are creaky but comfortable and you'll get to meet friends and ask knowledgeable locals about Lukang's history and culture. There are coin-operated laundry facilities and a communal fridge. Note that the stairs are steep as this is a very old house.


Lonely Planet's must-see attractions

Nearby Western Taiwan attractions

1. Half-Sided Well

0.07 MILES

This now-filled well sits half inside the wall of a residence and half outside. The arrangement is a remnant of humbler days when not everyone could…

2. Sanshan Guowang Temple

0.07 MILES

A small temple originally raised by Hakka migrants who treated it as both a place of worship and a compatriots' association. The resident gods are three…

3. Lukang Old Street

0.07 MILES

Lukang's old commercial hub, Yaolin and Butou Sts, is now a protected heritage zone. The narrow, century-old lanes are worth checking out for their red…

4. City God Temple

0.15 MILES

Lukang's City God Temple has roots in Fujian's Quanzhou and was probably built in the mid-18th century. Paying your respects here is believed to be…

5. Mazu Temple

0.2 MILES

This holy structure was renovated in 1936, a high period in Taiwan's temple arts. The woodcarvings are particularly fine in the front hall, and the high…

6. Lukang Folk Arts Museum

0.26 MILES

The handsome building of this museum was designed by a Japanese architect (who also designed the Presidential Office Building in Taipei) and built in 1919…

7. Weiling Temple

0.27 MILES

Enshrined here is a deified folk hero of the Ming dynasty – General Liu, known for his valour in fighting the Manchus. When a statue of the general was…

8. Nine Turns Lane

0.28 MILES

Don't bother counting the turns as you wend your way past some of the oldest and most charming residences in Lukang on Nine Turns Lane. The number nine…