← Back to Naruwan Galaxy Hotel

The sound of a piano in a room full of luggage

Four Experiments in Leisure

The Deep Sea Dip. We bet the mineral-rich waters at Naruwan Galaxy Hotel would reset our souls; it was a resounding success, the brine-scented coolness scrubbing away three years of city grime like a physical weight lifting from our shoulders. We floated in a suspended state, the water feeling thick and silken against our skin, as if the ocean were trying to reclaim us.

The Great Bicycle Fail. We attempted to conquer the coast, but after forty minutes of sticky, humid air and the frantic, metallic clicking of gear-shifting, we realized we'd cycled in one giant, expensive circle. "Are we actually lost, or is the world just looping?" I asked, staring at the same leaning palm tree for the third time. A total, glorious failure.

The Hibiscus Coffee Gamble. We tried the breakfast brew, which tasted like a flower having a mid-life crisis; we spent an hour roasting the flavor while the savory steam from our seafood porridge vanished into the crisp morning air. It was an unexpected highlight, turning a simple meal into a comedy routine.

The Switch Showdown. We cleared the mahogany side table of its welcome treats to make room for a Nintendo Switch borrowed from the front desk; the neon blue light and the rhythmic, plastic clicking of buttons turned us back into ten-year-olds. We forgot the luxury of the room, focused only on the digital battle, resulting in a pure, unadulterated success.

The Emotional Ledger

The bicycle trip was a joke, but the disaster was the win. The deep sea pool was the highlight; its salt-heavy density made our thoughts feel small. We visit Naruwan Galaxy Hotel for the permission to be useless together under a bruised plum sky.

September stars looked like salt on black velvet.

  • Try the seafood porridge at 7am before the lobby gets loud.
  • Rent the bikes and intentionally get lost near the railway trail.

Nearby Food & Attractions

Qilixiang Pan-fried Buns

Qi-Li-Xiang Pan-Fried Buns is a thirty-plus-year snack institution tucked in Lane 385 of Zheng-Qi Road in Taitung City. The signature is a fist-sized pan-fried bun with a crisp golden base and a soft, generously filled interior, made even better with the house sweet-chilli sauce. Braised snacks round out the menu, prices are gentle — a single bun is just NT$25 — and queues are common. The plain shop on the corner of Zheng-Qi and Nan-Jing roads does both eat-in and takeaway.

66 Eat

Nanbei Dumpling House

Nan-Bei Dumpling House at 117 He-Ping Street in Taitung City has been around for more than forty years. Its oversized steamed dumplings — thin-skinned, bouncy and packed with juicy filling — are the headline act, joined by boiled dumplings, fried noodles, stir-fries and homestyle plates. Orders are taken on handwritten slips, sauces are self-serve, and spice fans should ask for the house peeled-chilli condiment. The two-storey room is often packed; lunch runs 11 a.m. to 2 p.m., dinner 5 to 8:30 p.m., with an average spend of about NT$400 per head.

52 Eat

Kazier Mahi-Mahi Specialty

Ka-Zi-Er Dorado Specialties at 115 Da-Tong Road in Cheng-Gong Township, Taitung, is a creative snack shop built around the local dolphinfish (gui-tou-dao). The kitchen folds the firm, white fish into classic Taiwanese dishes — dorado braised-pork rice, oyster omelette, fish-paste soup, fried fish cutlets and dumplings — for an affordable, distinctly local menu. Décor mixes old Taiwan with indigenous motifs, and the shop's packed rooms, mentions on the Taiwan Lu-Rou-Fan Festival list and frequent food-show features make it a Cheng-Gong must-try.

83 Eat

Banyan Tree Rice Noodles

Under-the-Banyan Rice Noodles on Section 1, Zhong-Hua Road in Taitung City has been slinging bowls for more than fifty years. The signature rice-thread noodles come with house chilli oil, golden kimchi, crispy fried dorado and other small plates that locals and tourists love. The roomy interior turns over queues quickly at peak hours; there is no air-conditioning, but the clean broth and old-school flavour more than make up for it — a Taitung essential.

70 Eat