Yilan

Yilan is a green plain between mountains and the Pacific, and Taipei's favourite hot-spring escape. It suits families and slow travellers adding one easy overnight to a Taipei trip. April to October adds whale- and dolphin-watching to the menu.

• Soak in Jiaoxi's clear, odourless hot springs — free foot baths in the town park, private hotel baths for a small fee
• Cruise from Wushi Harbour around Turtle Island, watching for dolphins — about NT$1,000-1,300 ($30-$40)
• Walk the tiered Wufengqi Waterfall trail
• Kumquat everything — Yilan grows most of Taiwan's crop; try the candied version

Buses from Taipei run through the Hsuehshan Tunnel to Jiaoxi and Yilan city in about an hour, for around NT$140 ($4.50). Trains along the coast take about 1.5 hours. That makes Yilan the easiest overnight escape from Taipei — leave after breakfast, soak by lunch.

The classic plan is one night in Jiaoxi: hot springs and the night market in the evening, then Wufengqi Waterfall or a Turtle Island cruise the next morning. Book cruises a day or two ahead in summer, and note that rough seas cancel boats at short notice — keep the waterfall as your backup plan.

Heading further, the same rail line continues down the east coast to Hualien and Taroko Gorge, so Yilan works as the first stop on an east-coast run. See the Taiwan guide for how it fits a full loop.