Deeper connections with place create meaningful support for the communities that sustain it.
Story: Charlie Yu
English Translation: Steven Kuan
Photo: Zak Liao
Visitors often describe Taitung as a place defined by “slowness” — slow trains, an unhurried pace, and a steady rhythm that feels increasingly difficult to come by. It’s also a rhythm that is increasingly sought after. In an age of rapid change and constant competition, a balanced quality of life, a grounded sense of wellbeing, and personal fulfillment have become new luxuries.
Yet when locals speak about Taitung’s “slow,” they are rarely referring to speed itself. Rather, they are describing a way of life and a set of values that shape how communities relate to land, culture, and one another. For many, inviting others to experience that way of life is not only a means of preserving it, but also of helping it thrive on their own terms.
It’s with this guiding principle in mind that the Taitung County Government hopes to promote a different approach to development — one that encourages travelers to stay longer and engage more meaningfully with the people, culture, and traditions that make the county unlike anywhere else.
A different path
To preserve its unique qualities while embracing growth, Taitung County has promoted the concept of a “slow economy” as a model for future development. Rather than rejecting growth or deliberately slowing it down, the slow economy encourages communities to consider what they hope to carry forward as they continue to develop.
If the slow economy represents a choice about regional development, its most important element is not industry — it is people. The future of any place ultimately depends on whether there are still people willing to remain. Over the years, many people have returned to Taitung, while others have never chosen to leave.
Some have taken over family fishing businesses, seeking a balance between market realities and sustainable fishing practices. Others have returned to tea farms after witnessing their parents devote decades to cultivating Red Oolong tea, bringing new interpretations to the flavors of the land. Still others have gone back to their Indigenous communities to relearn traditional Paiwan farming, gathering, and hunting practices, translating ancestral wisdom into formats that contemporary audiences can understand.
They may not operate the most efficient business models, nor do they necessarily see themselves as pursuing grand ideals. More often, they simply believe that this land remains worth staying for. These seemingly ordinary decisions, repeated over time, have collectively shaped the Taitung of today.
Many of these individuals also play an important role in helping visitors understand Taitung. Through the Taitung Slow Travel Platform, “Go Slow, Go Taitung,” travelers can encounter the people, knowledge, and traditions that continue to shape life across the county through eco-friendly exploration.
A way of fishing
To understand Taitung’s maritime culture, one might begin with a single marlin.
During the Japanese colonial era, harpoon fishing was introduced to Chenggong Township and became an important local fishing practice. Within today’s highly industrialized fishing systems that prioritize efficiency and volume, traditional harpoon fishing stands in sharp contrast. The catch is limited, while the risks are considerable.
Harpoon fishers stand on narrow platforms at the bow of their boats, gripping a nearly 20-kilogram harpoon. Their feet are secured in a support frame as they scan the ocean surface for the briefest sign of a fish, which, from a distance, is often no larger than the size of a fingertip. Within seconds, they must judge the movement and make a precise throw. Catching fish one at a time is labor-intensive, dangerous, and dependent on years of experience.
Compared with large-scale commercial fishing, harpoon fishing requires greater investments of time, labor, and skill, while offering no guarantee of consistent returns. It continues today not only as a cultural tradition, but also because its highly selective approach reduces bycatch and minimizes waste. The method helps maintain the quality of the fish while placing less pressure on marine ecosystems.
Yet the value of a marlin extends far beyond the moment it is caught at sea.
From the captain and fish brokers to the chefs who eventually prepare it, each participant contributes to the same effort: ensuring that the ocean’s harvest is treated with care. Although such choices may appear inefficient, they preserve the quality of the fish while working in harmony with the sea.
What ultimately arrives on the table is not simply a marlin, but a reflection of how a community chooses to live alongside the ocean.
For travelers, encounters with this tradition offer a glimpse into the values that shape life in Taitung — where patience, skill, and respect for natural rhythms often matter as much as efficiency and output. Similar choices can be found throughout Taitung.
The relationship between tea farmers and the land, fruit growers’ commitment to cultivation methods, and Indigenous youth learning traditional knowledge and life skills may appear to be different stories. In reality, they are all different expressions of the same idea: carrying forward the ways of life that define Taitung.
A way to travel
Travel captivates us because it offers a way of reading a place, allowing us to notice what is often unseen. These stories unfold in fishing harbors, tea plantations, and the everyday lives of Indigenous communities. They are not always immediately visible, yet they reflect ways of living that have been shaped over generations. When travelers choose to stay a little longer, Taitung becomes more than scenery. Food, craftsmanship, agriculture, and culture are no longer just attractions, but pathways to understanding the land itself.
This is where Taitung Slow Travel intervenes as a platform that connects visitors with local experiences, accommodations, food culture, and community-based tourism initiatives.
Rather than focusing solely on attractions, the platform encourages visitors to understand the stories, livelihoods, and values that shape everyday life in Taitung.
This is the deeper meaning behind Taitung Slow Travel. It is not merely a tourism brand, but an expression of the slow economy within the travel sector. Through travel, visitors gain a deeper understanding of how local values are formed, while local ways of life receive tangible support.
A reason to stay
From fishing harbors and tea plantations to Indigenous communities and rural villages, Taitung’s concern has never been tourism numbers alone.
The larger goal is to sustain ways of life that people continue to find meaningful and worth carrying forward.
Interestingly, the same questions facing local communities are increasingly being asked by travelers themselves. In a world shaped by speed and efficiency, many people are searching for stronger human connections, a closer relationship with place, and a different understanding of what constitutes a good life.
Through travel, visitors discover not only the stories of Taitung, but also new perspectives on their own relationship with land, community, and everyday living.
What Taitung Slow Travel hopes to inspire is not simply more arrivals, but deeper relationships.
When communities are willing to share their way of life, and visitors are willing to spend time understanding it, travel becomes more than a temporary encounter. It becomes an ongoing exchange of knowledge, values, and experience.
In this sense, slow travel is not only about seeing a place differently. It is about imagining how places — and the people who inhabit them — can continue to thrive together in the future.
Taitung Slow Travel
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Promotional Video: Taitung Slow Travel – Slow Is the New Gravity
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This article was produced with the support of the Taitung County Government.“
