Top Things to do in Lukang
The 7 Best Budget-friendly Things to do in Lukang, Changhua
Discover the best top things to do in Lukang, Taiwan including Lugang Longshan Temple, Lukang, Lugang Old Street, Tianhou Temple, Lukang Xinzu Temple, Taiwan Glass Gallery, Lukang Gentlemen Lane-Molu Lane.
Restaurants in Lukang
1. Lugang Longshan Temple
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 167 reviews
Reviewed By OrderintheHouse
For our 40th wedding anniversary my wife and I enjoyed an 18 day Asian tour from 28 December 2019 to 14 January 2020 visiting in order Hong Kong, Macau, Taiwan, Laos and Singapore. Our 6 night private tour of Taiwan was arranged through Wendy Wu Tours and we visited Taipei, Taroko Gorge, Sun Moon Lake, Tainan and Kaohsiung. On the last day of our tour we travelled from Kaohsiung (Taiwan’s third largest city and its largest port) back to the capital Taipei, where we spent our last evening before leaving for Laos. It was a 350 kilometre journey to Taipei but mostly we travelled with ease on an excellent highway. On the way we visited the charming town of Lukang (formerly known as Lugang) at the halfway point and visited the rather impressive Lukang Longshan Temple, described by the Ministry of Interior Affairs as the best preserved Qing dynasty (1644 to 1912) building in Taiwan. What makes a visit to the Longshan Temple so special is its amazing octagonal caisson, also referred to as a caisson ceiling, or spider web ceiling, located in the front hall of the temple. It is quite a stunning masterpiece and brilliantly constructed during the temple’s reconstruction in 1831. This makes it the oldest caisson of its type in Taiwan. What is particularly impressive is that this wood structure was precisely calculated, and craftsmen managed to sustain the whole ceiling without using a single nail. There were seats provided on the floor at the edge of the caisson, so we spent some time just looking up in total awe and wonderment at the ability and immense talent of these early craftsman in being able to create such a ceiling of pure intricate beauty and all without today’s computer models. The front hall of Longshan Temple is called the Five Portal Hall because of the five pairs of entry doors along its front side featuring colourful God paintings, the work of Lukang’s renowned religious artist Guo Shin-lin (1902 – 1973). These paintings were pleasing to the eye. In between each pair of doors there are wooden panels with very nicely designed lattice work. The centre pair of doors feature paintings of the two principal door guardians of Buddhism. A feature of note at the entrance to the worship hall is the pair of dragon columns supporting the structure and reinstalled during the 1852 renovation of the temple. On each column is featured a dragon in high relief with its tail circling up each column. Inside this hall can be seen a number of very colourful and ornate Buddhist images including some spectacular ceiling lights. There is an information sign in the temple courtyard which gives this temple the highest possible accolade in the eyes of the Taiwan public. It lists the Long-shan Temple, Lukang as one of “The Top 100 Religious Scenes of Taiwan “, encompassing a hundred iconic religious sites and activities that were chosen via public vote and announced by the Ministry of the Interior on 22 November 2013. After visiting this attraction we could understand how the Taiwanese people value this temple so highly. My wife and I, as visitors to Lukang, were equally impressed.
2. Lukang
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 139 reviews
Openspace13 is two buildings with 3 rooms and 3 sets of restroom, especially for backpacker to live in. the location is in the central of Lukang town, convenient for sightseeing by walking 10 mins, and easy to find the free parking lot along the sporting place nearby. you can find us after step off the final stop of bus from Taichung / Changhua. We wish to offer you the comfortable dorm at Lukang.
Reviewed By FoodMonsterTravels - Berlin, Germany
This is a great place to experience what the ancient Chinese culture must have felt like: An historical old town, many traditional artisan workshops and lots of old temples - a wonderful place to spend a day or two andjust stroll around.
3. Lugang Old Street
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 333 reviews
Reviewed By OrderintheHouse
From 28 December 2019 through to 14 January 2020 my wife and I celebrated our 40th wedding anniversary on an 18 day Asian tour enjoying short visits to Hong Kong, Macau, Taiwan, Laos and Singapore. Our 6 night private tour of Taiwan arranged through Wendy Wu Tours had hotel stays in Taipei, Taroko Gorge, Sun Moon Lake, Tainan and Kaohsiung. On the last day of our tour we travelled on the west of the island from Kaohsiung (Taiwan’s third largest city and its largest port) back to the capital Taipei; a 350 kilometre easy drive on an excellent highway. On the way we visited the charming old town of Lukang (formerly known as Lugang) at the halfway point. Lukang was one of the really surprise stops on our tour boasting some really wonderful attractions. Our itinerary took us to two excellent temples – Xinzu Temple and Long-shan Temple and to get to both of these we enjoyed a very pleasant stroll along the Lukang Old Street. Lukang Old Street is essentially the narrow, curved, red-tiled lanes of today's Putou, Yaolin, and Dayou streets. Both sides of the street are lined with old-style, renovated shop buildings featuring interesting room layouts and old-style exteriors. There are many shops selling well made handicrafts and lots of street food vendors selling a wide range of novel, local food specialties. We enjoyed our walk passing the many shops and by keeping our eyes opened we were rewarded with some pleasant unexpected surprises. We were fascinated by one shop which had very salty dried cod roe for sale. There were around 70 of these in orderly rows on a rather crudely assembled but effective wooden table. They were elongated heart shaped and parted down the middle by a defined line and brightly coloured orange. Another store was selling a range of candies and biscuits and yet another was offering an eye catching display of what my research for this review has determined to be Tanghulu. Tanghulu, I discovered, is a traditional Chinese cuisine made by stringing wild fruits with bamboo sticks and dipping them with maltose and tasting sweet and sour. The red and wild mountain plants are arranged on bamboo sticks according to their size, and they are covered with crystal clear sugar. They make for a very colourful and tempting display. Finally my wife, who is an ardent cat lover had to take a photo in the store that had its ginger and white cat cheekily making its home in its own cat basket amongst a range of toys for sale. Visitors to Lukang should not miss the opportunity to take a stroll down the Lukang Old Street and share in its unique, old charm. I understand that it can get very crowded on weekends, which is not surprising, given the immense atmosphere of the place. How fortunate then that we were here on a weekday (Monday) when very few people were around. This was a memorable experience.
4. Tianhou Temple
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 186 reviews
Reviewed By 619jeffry - Essendon, Australia
This temple is some 400 years old. It is dedicated to Mazu, the goddess to whom fishermen and sailors pray when they are in peril on the sea. Mazu was a young woman who had miraculous powers to quell storms, for which she was deified. She is held in awe by the people of Taiwan, there are several Tianho Temples on the island. Try and see a temple festival if you can, Lukang is an ancient port, it is important site for the worship of Mazu. Mazu is considered to be both a Taoist and Buddhist deity.
5. Lukang Xinzu Temple
Overall Ratings
4.0 based on 25 reviews
Reviewed By DavidASU - Union City, United States
Revisited here to thank Mazu protecting us as what we prayed for last year. Believe or not, we totally mistaken thought this is the other Temple which is more we’ll known. We drove there and shockingly found out it’s totally different. This temple is located in the Old Street and was built by Chanlong Emperor. Actually, we like this better because it’s not that business atmosphere. We worshiped and will be back next year again!
