Hsinchu County

Hsinchu County contains 13 settlements:

• ChupeiThe only city in the county other than Hsinchu itself, and the seat of the county government.

• Baoshan

• BeipuKnown in Taiwan as a center of Hakka culture, especially for production of dongfang meiren tea and its special Hakkanese blends of tea and nuts called lei cha

• Emei

• Guanxi

• Hengshan

• Hukou

• Qionglin

• Xinfeng

• Xinpu

• Zhudong

• JianshiThe main population are indigenous Atayal people.

• WufengThe population is mainly of the indigenous Atayal people and Saisiyat people.

Before the arrival of the Han Chinese, the Hsinchu area was home to Taokas plains aborigines, the Saisiyat, and the Atayal. Presently, the population of Hsinchu County is mostly Hakka people (73% as of 2017). There is also a population of about 20,000 indigineous people, mainly from the Atayal and Saisiyat tribes.

As in most of Taiwan, the most widely-spoken language is Mandarin Chinese. According to the 2010 national census, the languages spoken at home in Hsinchu County are:

Mandarin	Taiwanese	Hakka	Formosan (all)	Others
90.6%	27.7%	56.0%	2.0%	1.1%

Hsinchu County is connected to the Taiwan High-speed Rail network via

Hsinchu station

, in Chupei City.

By rail

Hsinchu county is connected to other parts of Taiwan by the TRA network. This is also a useful way to get between townships. Stations located within Hsinchu County are:

History and culture

• Beipu Old StreetAn old Hakka street featuring stores selling local delicacies.

• Former Residence of Zhang Xueliang

  phone: +886 3 585 6613
  A museum about Zhang Xueliang, the person who declared the Chinese reunification in 1928 after the end of the Northern Expedition by the National Revolutionary Army led by Chiang Kai-shek to unite the Beiyang Government under the Republic of China. The house spans about 150 m2 in area. It is decorated with Zhang's old furniture and more than 500 pictures donated by his two nieces. A bronze statue of him and his wife is displayed outside the front of the historical house.

• Hsin-Pu Upper Fang-Liao Liu Family House

  address: No. 460, Alley 10, Lane 359, Section 2, Yimin Road

• Hukou Old Street

  phone: +886 3 599 3911
  address: Hukoulao Street, Hukou Township

• Jin Guang Fu Hall

  address: No. 6, Zhongzheng Road, Beipu Township
  An old Chinese-style mansion built in 1835.

• Maitreya Bronze StatueA large bronze statue of the bodhisattva Maitreya.

• Neiwan Old Street

  phone: +886 3 593 2001
  address: Guangfu Road, Hengshan Township
  An old street selling a variety of local snacks and delicacies.

• Tapung Old Fort

  phone: +886 3 584 1001
  Constructed in 1912, during the period of Japanese occupation, the fort was built by the then governor to help with the effort to subjugate the local Altai indigenous people.

Museums

• Liu Hsing-chin Comic Museum

  phone: +886 3 584 8019
  A museum about the comics creator Liu Hsing-chin, located in Hengshan Township.

• Old Hukou Catholic Church Museum

  phone: +886 3 569 5963
  address: No. 108, Hukoulao Street, Hukou Township
  A free museum housed in a 1960s Catholic church building.

• Rueylong Museum

  phone: +886 3 592 2521
  address: No. 1, Alley 21, Lane 42, Wenshan Road, Qionglin
  A natural history museum in Qionglin Township.

• Zhudong Timber Industry Exhibition Hall

  phone: +886 3 595 2012
  address: No. 141, Donglin Road, Zhudong Township
  The exhibition hall features the history of timber industry in Taiwan and traditional logging equipment.

Temples

• Baozhong Yimin Temple

  phone: +886 3 588 2238
  address: No. 360, Section 3, Yimin Road, Xinpu Township

• Chaoyin Chan Monastery

  phone: +886 3 587 2267

• Cihtian Temple

  phone: +886 3 580 1575
  address: No. 1, Beipu Street, Beipu Township
  A small temple built in 1835, dedicated to the Bodhisattva Guanyin which was constructed to promote peace with the local aboriginal populations.

• Hukou Sanyuan Temple

  phone: +886 3 569 2667
  address: No. 278, Hukoulao Street, Hukou Township

• Kuanhsi Taihe Temple

  phone: +886 3 587 2216
  address: No. 30號, Datong Road, Guanxi Township

• Lian-Hua Mountain San-sheng Palace

  phone: +886 3 588 2153
  address: No. 488, Sansheng Road, Xinpu Township
  A hillside temple complex that was constructed in 1902.

• Sacred Heart Catholic Church

  phone: +886 3 587 2104
  address: No. 126, Zhengyi Road, Guanxi Township

• Tianen Maitreya Temple

  address: No. 3, Kuaile Road, Emei Township

• Wenchang Shrine

  phone: +886 3 588 6578
  address: No. 7, Lane 202, Chenggong Street, Xinpu Township

• Wuhe TempleA Mazu temple in Yilin county that was constructed in 1796.

Architecture

• Kuanhsi TungAn Bridge

  address: Zhongshan East Road, Guanxi Township

Parks and nature

• Shei-Pa National ParkThe park covers a wide range of ecosystems between 760 meters at the lowest point, the Da-an River Valley (大安溪) and 3,886 meters elevation at the highest point, the top of Xueshan (雪山主峰).

• Dabajian MountainDabajian Mountain is known for its steep grade, beautiful surroundings, and rugged terrain, making it a popular rock climbing mountain. There are many companies in the area that offer rock climbing tours to the mountain.

Theme parks

• Little Ding-Dong Science Theme Park

  phone: +886 3 559 2330
  address: No 199, Kanghe Road, Xinfeng Township
  An outdoor natural science park in Taiwan intended to promote scientific knowledge and creative thinking in children.

• Leofoo Village Theme Park

  phone: +886 3 547 5665
  A theme park and a safari located in Guanxi Township. It features three roller coasters, as well as an old mining railway.

• Green World Ecological FarmA theme park in Beipu Township that focuses on ecological education. Covering 70 hectares, the park includes an educational farm, a house, a zoo, and a botanical garden that occupies about 173 acres and hosts over 2,000 species of plants and animals.

• 6 Garden Restaurant

  phone: +886 932 178 177
  A 2-storey, vine-covered brick building nestled in the hills surrounded by gardens.

Local specialities

Vegetarian

• The V:F Zhubei

  phone: +886 3 658 5997
  address: No. 78, Section 1, Jiafeng South Road, Zhubei City