TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — As the season draws near its peak, a travel agency has selected five hot spots in Taiwan for cherry blossom viewing.
They include Wuling Farm in Taichung City, Alishan in Chiayi County, Formosan Aboriginal Culture Village in Nantou County, Mountain View Resort in Hsinchu County, and Smangus also in Hsinchu County.
Before the COVID-19 pandemic, many Taiwanese went to Japan and South Korea to view cherry blossoms in the spring. As it is not practical this year, Lion Travel Service Co has recommended destinations closer to home.
The 2021 Wuling Farm Cherry Blossom Festival will take place from Feb. 12 to March 1. The farm is a favorite cherry blossom viewing destination for many Taiwanese, as it boasts views of 21,000 cherry blossom trees of more than 10 different varieties along a three-kilometer path.
Lion Travel said that hundreds of thousands of anthophiles, or flower lovers, are attracted to the farm during the peak season every year. This year, only guests staying at the farms, tour groups, or people arriving by public transportation are allowed to enter.
Cherry blossom trees on Alishan, including Taiwan cherry, Yoshin, and the double–flowered tree, will bloom in March and April, when a great number of flower chasers flock to the mountains.
Formosan Aboriginal Culture Village has been certified by a Japanese cherry blossom organization as a choice destination outside Japan to appreciate the beloved flowers, according to Lion Travel.
Mountain View Resort and Smangus in Hsinchu County are also worth a visit for their wild cherry blossoms, the agency added.
Cherry blossoms at Formosan Aboriginal Culture Village (Lion Travel Service Co photo)