Visit Taipei's Backyard - Yangmingshan

Known as the "backyard" of the Greater Taipei Metropolitan Area, in addition to boasting beautiful scenery, Yangmingshan is one of Taiwan’s four major hot springs area. Yangmingshan is part of Beitou’s Datun Volcanic Area and most of the springs are white sulfur springs, though there are also yellow sulfur springs as well. There are four main areas in Yangmingshan where visitors can have a soak, including the main hot spring area, Lengshuikeng, Macao and Gengziping. Due to frequent volcanic activity, each area’s hot springs contain different entrained minerals. The different mineral content and water temperatures give each hot spring area contrasting qualities. For example, the hot springs in Lengshuikeng are milky white, and the temperature there is lower than that of other hot springs in Yangmingshan. This is where Lengshuikeng gets its name which means "cold water puddle," though some people also call it "milk lake." The hot springs at Macao reach 70–75°C and the springs at Gengziping Spring can reach 99°C.

Yangmingshan’s Caoshan Pavilion is the place where Chiang Kai-shek and his wife Song Meiling lived prior to the completion of their official residence at Shilin, so it is known as Taiwan’s first presidential residence. The Caoshan Pavilion was originally built for the then Japanese Crown Prince Yuren. When the Kuomintang came to Taiwan in 1949, it became the official residence of the then president of the Republic of China. Chiang Kai-shek very much liked the philosopher Wang Yangming, which is why he renamed the area around the Caoshan Pavilion as Yangmingshan. Later, the official residence moved to Shilin, and the Caoshan Pavilion became the place where Chiang Kai-shek escaped from the summer heat and received visiting VIPs. A few years ago the Caoshan Pavilion suffered a fire, so what can be seen now is a modern reconstruction of the original site. This new version incorporates elements of art and food, and is designed as a place of beauty with a very elegant and pleasant interior and exterior including the halls of Meilu, Yinhe and Cuiying, and Daya.

Yangmingshan is one of Taiwan’s famous sites for viewing the cherry blossoms; it was the first place in Taiwan where the Japanese introduced the flowering cherry. From January to March each year, the various flowering cherry varietals explode in a riot of color together with rhododendrons, wild peony, giant blooming taro, and sage. The whole mountain of Yangmingshan is dotted with the colors of romance. Yangmingshan has the greatest amount of flowering cherry blossoms in Taiwan. Descending the mountain from the Shilin official residence to East Tianmu Road, to Shan Road, and then Yangming Park and the Flower Experience Center, everywhere you look you will see blossoms, blossoms, and more blossoms. In the 42 alleys of Pingjing Street, row upon row of residential fences are covered with cherry blossoms and form a beautiful blossom covered sight. Many varieties of cherry blossom including Yoshino Sakura, Showa Sakura, Yae Sakura, and Oshima Sakura can be seen at Yangmingshan.

Malaysian singer Penny Tai once sang "I want to go alone to see the flowering taro of Yangming Mountain." Flowering Taro, also known as the calla lily, is one of the great symbols of Yangmingshan. March to May is the season when the Taiwanese calla lily is in bloom. At that time, Yangmingshan’s Bamboo Lake plays host to a grand season of flowers. In addition to seeing the large white and green flowering taro, you can also go and pick flowers yourself.

The two-hectare "Miaobang Calla Lily Garden" is the most popular Calla Lily Garden at the Bamboo Lake. It has the largest area and the largest output of white calla lilies. In order to provide the best environment for viewing flowers, the park also has many other special plants for visitors to enjoy. The many types of flowering trees, especially the eighty maple trees—the red of the maples contrasting with the white of the flowers—are a sight to behold, and attract many tourists to come visit, look at the flowers, pick them and take pictures.

Xiaoyoukeng is a volcanic fumarole located inside Yangmingshan Park, at the northwest corner of Qixing Mountain along the edge of the Qixing Mountain Hiking Trail. The jet holes formed by post-volcanic activity billow white smoke the whole year round, and the air is filled with a sharp sulfur smell, as if you can feel the once active volcano of Yangmingshan breathing in and out. If you look closely around the edges, you will see signs of crusted yellow sulfur. Some of the small ponds are still bubbling with heat! All of these ponds are hot springs but none of them are suitable for soaking in. In addition to looking at the fumarole, Zhuzi Mountain, Dagu Mountain, Qixing Mountain and Xiaoguanyin Mountain are all visible from the observation deck. The landscape is not bad at all!

Qingtiangang, located at Yangmingshan’s Qixing Mountain has pleasant pastoral scenery. The wide open views and green grass are especially nice when you want to escape the sultry heat of Taipei in the summer. Although the altitude of Qingtiangang is only 864 meters above sea level, the average temperature is 6 degrees lower than that of Taipei. Furthermore, the mountain gets good breezes that smell of lovely things like grass and flowers, making it a good place to spend one's free time. Qingtiangang is said to be a place that is beloved by people from the ages of eight up through eighty. Children can come here to see cattle and sheep, parents can bring their children to picnic or fly kites, young couples can lie on the lawn and chat, whereas older people like to go walking about the mountain and hiking. It is especially recommended to come here in the autumn, as the blooming wild flowers and grasses wave in the wind and draw a picture-perfect scene of the season.

The Lengshuikeng Hot Springs are located in the recreation area of Yangmingshan’s Lengshuikeng. The spring water naturally emerges from the rifts in Qixing Mountain at about 40°C. Lengshuikeng (which means "cold water pit") gets its name because the water temperature is much lower than that of the nearby hot springs (which are all about 90–100°C). Lengshuikeng’s springs are weak acid or neutral bicarbonate springs with a pH between 6 and 7. There is a public hot spring bath at Lengshuikeng, one indoor male bath and one indoor female bath (both are naked baths), and a free outdoor foot bath for visitors to experience the fun of a hot springs bath.

Yangmingshan National Park, to the north of Taipei, is famous for its natural beauty, natural valleys, hot springs, waterfalls and forests. It is known as "the Backyard of the Greater Taipei Metropolitan Area." Yangmingshan is also a great place to enjoy night views overlooking Taipei. Soap operas often have scenes which take place on bridges looking down from Yangmingshan onto the city. Because it is so close to the valley where Taipei is located and because the angle of the mountain is so steep, it is possible to get truly amazing and romantic views of Taipei from atop the mountain. There are also a number of restaurants with scenic overlooks such as "The Top" and “Sleepless." These restaurants have very exotic environments and offer everything from Taiwanese style cooking to Western food and barbecue, so that you can enjoy delicious night views of Taipei along with some delicious food. This is a good place for couples to go on a date.