Houtong: Everything You Need Before Visiting

Q: When is the best time to visit Houtong Cat Village?

The ideal time to explore Houtong Cat Village is from October to March when the weather is cooler and perfect for outdoor activities. This period offers a pleasant climate for wandering around the village and enjoying the company of its feline residents.

Q: How can I get to Houtong from Jiufen?

Houtong is conveniently accessible from Jiufen. You can take a taxi, which takes about 10 minutes and costs around NT 350. Alternatively, you can also start your journey from Houtong Railway Station, which is well-connected via Taiwan Railways.

Q: Are there any good places to eat in Houtong?

Absolutely! Houtong boasts a variety of local cafes and eateries where you can savor delicious Taiwanese dishes. Enjoy your meal while being surrounded by the village's charming cats, making for a unique dining experience.

Q: What should I keep in mind when interacting with the cats in Houtong?

It's important to respect the cats and their environment. Follow the village's guidelines, avoid feeding the cats without permission, and drive slowly to ensure their safety. This helps maintain a harmonious atmosphere for both visitors and the feline residents.

Q: When is the best time to avoid crowds in Houtong Cat Village?

To avoid crowds, it's best to visit Houtong on weekdays and during cooler, cloudy weather. However, if you prefer to see more cats out and about, a warm, sunny day might be ideal.

Q: How can I get to Houtong by train?

Houtong is easily accessible by train, with the Houtong Railway Station featuring delightful cat-themed decorations. Don't forget to snap a photo with the cat box on the platform bench!

Q: What should I know about the village's closing times and souvenir shopping?

Most of Houtong Village closes by 5 p.m., so plan your visit accordingly. If you're looking to buy souvenirs, make sure to do so early to avoid missing out. Also, follow the village's guidelines for interacting with the cats to ensure their well-being and your safety.

Q: Is there a specific season that's best for visiting Houtong Cat Village?

Houtong can be visited year-round, but the best times are during the cooler months of autumn and spring. The weather during these seasons is more pleasant for both humans and cats, making your visit more enjoyable.

Q: How long does it take to travel from Taipei to Houtong by train?

The train journey from Taipei to Houtong takes approximately 40 to 50 minutes. This makes Houtong a convenient option for a day trip or a weekend getaway.

Q: What are some important guidelines to follow when visiting Houtong?

When visiting Houtong, be sure to follow the village's guidelines for interacting with the cats. Avoid bringing dogs, as they may disturb the cats, and always keep the area clean by not placing cat food directly on the ground. This helps ensure a pleasant experience for everyone.

Houtong Tickets & Tours

See all

Taipei Jiufen & Houtong Full-Day Guided Tour

Spring deal

Tours • From Taipei

Taipei Jiufen & Houtong Full-Day Guided Tour

Private tour

English guided

Free cancellation

4.9 / 5

(1.5K) • 10K+ booked

From

HK$ 112

Yehliu Geopark & Jiufen Old Street Full-Day Tour

Klook's choice

Tours • From Taipei

Yehliu Geopark & Jiufen Old Street Full-Day Tour

Hotel pick-up

Free cancellation

Instant confirmation

4.6 / 5

(1.1K) • 20K+ booked

HK$ 176

Taipei Half-Day Private Jiufen & Cat Village Tour

Klook's choice

Tours • From Taipei

Taipei Half-Day Private Jiufen & Cat Village Tour

Private tour

English guided

Private group

4.9 / 5

(35) • 700+ booked

HK$ 772

Tours • From Taipei

Taipei: Private Full-Day Northern Taiwan Tour from Taipei

Hotel pick-up

Private tour

English guided

5.0 / 5

(80) • 1K+ booked

HK$ 786

From Taipei

Shore Excursions Tours From Keelung to Yehliu, Jiufen & Pingxi

Private tour

English guided

Private group

HK$ 975

Tours • From Taipei

Yehliu, Yin & Yang Sea, Shifen, and Jiufen Tour (With Hotel Pick-Up)

Hotel pick-up

English guided

Free cancellation

4.6 / 5

(585) • 10K+ booked

HK$ 193

Yehliu & Jiufen & Shifen Day Tour (Optional Tiaoshi Coast)

Spring deal

Klook's choice

Tours • From Taipei

Yehliu & Jiufen & Shifen Day Tour (Optional Tiaoshi Coast)

Book now for today

English guided

Free cancellation

4.9 / 5

(15.5K) • 100K+ booked

HK$ 171

Tours • From Taipei

Jiufen In-depth Half-Day Tour (Optional morning/afternoon departure / Taipei Main Station meeting point)

Book now for today

English guided

Afternoon departure

4.9 / 5

(282) • 6K+ booked

HK$ 236

Taipei: Yehliu, Jiufen, Shifen & Tiaoshi Coast Day Tour (Departing from Ximen)

Spring deal

Klook's choice

Tours • From Taipei

Taipei: Yehliu, Jiufen, Shifen & Tiaoshi Coast Day Tour (Departing from Ximen)

Hotel pick-up

Private tour

English guided

4.8 / 5

(2.6K) • 30K+ booked

HK$ 251

Jiufen A-Mei Teahouse, Sunset at Heping & Keelung Night Market

Spring deal

Klook's choice

Tours • From Taipei

Jiufen A-Mei Teahouse, Sunset at Heping & Keelung Night Market

Book now for tomorrow

Hotel pick-up

Private tour

4.7 / 5

(866) • 10K+ booked

HK$ 459

Tours • From Taipei

Jiufen, Shifen, Gold Museum, and Jiufen Day Trip by Chartered Car (Hotel Pick-up & Drop-off)

Hotel pick-up

Free cancellation

Instant confirmation

4.6 / 5

(8) • 300+ booked

HK$ 206

Yehliu/Jiufen Old Street/Shifen Old Street Day Tour (Cantonese-speaking Guide)

Spring deal

Klook's choice

Tours • From Taipei

Yehliu/Jiufen Old Street/Shifen Old Street Day Tour (Cantonese-speaking Guide)

Free cancellation

Instant confirmation

4.8 / 5

(226) • 2K+ booked

HK$ 172

Where to stay in Houtong

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Hotels • New Taipei

Windsor's Sunlight Han-Guan

Instant confirmation

4.8 / 5

(175)

From

HK$ 931.7

Hotels • New Taipei

Twilight Stone

Instant confirmation

4.3 / 5

(4)

From

HK$ 955.2

Hotels • New Taipei

Jianan B&B

Instant confirmation

From

HK$ 442.8

Hotels • New Taipei

Kyufun Komachi

Instant confirmation

4.8 / 5

(161)

From

HK$ 485

Hotels • New Taipei

Rose Villa

Instant confirmation

4.7 / 5

(96)

From

HK$ 531.6

Hotels • New Taipei

Mountain inn Jiufen

Instant confirmation

4.4 / 5

(28)

From

HK$ 427.2

HK$ 431.4

Hotels • New Taipei

Twilight House

Instant confirmation

4.8 / 5

(84)

From

HK$ 325.9

HK$ 335.7

Hotels • New Taipei

Jien Mount Villas

Instant confirmation

4.9 / 5

(59)

From

HK$ 1,123.2

HK$ 1,152.1

Hotels • New Taipei

Adagio Jinguashi

Instant confirmation

4.7 / 5

(63)

From

HK$ 728.4

HK$ 735.7

Hotels • New Taipei

Moonlight Home Stay For 2-12 persons

Instant confirmation

From

HK$ 793.6

Hotels • New Taipei

TWO Easy Inn

Instant confirmation

4.8 / 5

(43)

From

HK$ 1,138

HK$ 1,159.2

Hotels • New Taipei

Chien Ching B&B

Instant confirmation

4.2 / 5

(74)

From

HK$ 647

Transport to & from Houtong

Car charters • New Taipei (From Taipei)

Taipei Departure: New Taipei Car Rental with Driver to Jiufen/Shifen/Pingxi/Yehliu/Northern coast

Book now for tomorrow

Free cancellation

Instant confirmation

4.8 / 5

(5.3K) • 30K+ booked

HK$ 641

HK$ 712

Car charters • New Taipei (From Taipei)

Taipei Chartered Day Tour | Yehliu Geopark, Jiufen Old Street, Shifen Waterfall, Pingxi Sky Lanterns | Classic Route with Private Car Transfer

Free cancellation

Instant confirmation

5.0 / 5

(2) • New Activity

From

HK$ 1,020

Retail: HK$ 1,345

Buses • New Taipei

Taipei - Jiufen Old Street Bus Ticket | Taipei Bus

Free cancellation

Instant confirmation

4.6 / 5

(73) • 7K+ booked

HK$ 22

Car charters • New Taipei (From New Taipei)

Private Shuttle Transfer Between Taipei and Jiufen or Shifen

City transfers

Instant confirmation

4.8 / 5

(302) • 5K+ booked

HK$ 74

Restaurants near Houtong

See all

Food & dining • New Taipei

Haiyue Tower Landscape Teahouse - Jiufen

Free cancellation

4.5 / 5

(366) • 20K+ booked

HK$ 98

HK$ 122

Food & dining • New Taipei

Artist Teahouse-Jiufen View

Free cancellation

4.8 / 5

(52) • 2K+ booked

HK$ 158

HK$ 198

Food & dining • New Taipei

A Gan Yi Taro Ball-Jiufen's

Book now for today

Free cancellation

Instant confirmation

4.6 / 5

(165) • 5K+ booked

HK$ 15

Food & dining • New Taipei

SIIDCHA Teahouse-Jiufen View

Free cancellation

4.0 / 5

(6) • 300+ booked

HK$ 129

Retail: HK$ 147

Klook User

2026-09-14 11:56:43

Fantastic 5.0

It was a tiring yet memorable experience for this tour! We just saw how beautiful Taiwan is. Thanks to our tour guide (Vivien Liu) for making it extra fun and even gave us additional knowledge about Taiwan's history and to our driver for keeping us safe during the travel 💗

Taipei Jiufen & Houtong Full-Day Guided Tour

Klook User

2026-05-23 13:16:36

Fantastic 5.0

James was super friendly and kept things fun. good driving, no issues. would book James again - really nice and enthusiastic guy.

Taipei Half-Day Private Jiufen & Cat Village Tour

Klook User

2026-07-09 02:16:05

Fantastic 5.0

Our driver is very good in explaining the history of our iconic destinations and very pleasant to talk to , patient enough with us and I highly recommend this tour it’s the best money well spend for a tour. Thank you Caleb our driver.

Taipei: Private Full-Day Northern Taiwan Tour from Taipei

Cherry *****

2026-09-15 11:38:10

Fantastic 5.0

the shifen water fall is the best , i wish we could have just skipped the cats and spend more tome in shifen water falls but over all its good! the tour guide let me borrow the umbrella

Yehliu Geopark & Jiufen Old Street Full-Day Tour

Santosh ****

2026-07-16 06:18:36

Fantastic 5.0

Wonderful and well-organized tour! Yehliu, Yin & Yang Sea, Shifen, and Jiufen were all beautiful places to visit. Special thanks to our guide Kevin Chang for making the trip so enjoyable. He was friendly, helpful, and shared many interesting facts throughout the journey. Highly recommended, especially with guide Kevin Chang... If you want great photos & videos for social media, definitely choose KEVIN CHANG. He is very skilled at photography & videography and captured lot of of amazing photos & videos for us, He never tires of capturing amazing clicks and voluntarily took a lot of photos. Truly brilliant... Highly recommended...

Yehliu, Yin & Yang Sea, Shifen, and Jiufen Tour (With Hotel Pick-Up)

Klook User

2026-09-24 10:36:38

Fantastic 5.0

Booking this tour on Klook was honestly the best decision! Super convenient and no hassle at all. The itinerary is really good for first timers, so many places to visit. Definitely worth it! And we also got the best tour guide, Tommy! Highly recommend ☺️

Yehliu & Jiufen & Shifen Day Tour (Optional Tiaoshi Coast)

Sherloumay *********

2026-07-21 14:28:45

Fantastic 5.0

I had such a wonderful experience on the Jiufen tour, and a big part of it was because of our amazing tour guide, Franny! She was so friendly, bubbly, and helpful throughout the whole trip. She shared interesting information about Jiufen and made sure everyone was comfortable and enjoying the experience. As a solo traveler, I really appreciated how welcoming and accommodating she was. Thank you, Franny, for making my first Jiufen experience so memorable! I highly recommend this tour, especially if you’re visiting Taiwan for the first time. 💕🇹🇼

Jiufen In-depth Half-Day Tour (Optional morning/afternoon departure / Taipei Main Station meeting point)

Rhea *******

2026-06-09 00:38:04

Fantastic 5.0

I booked Klook for a day tour in Taiwan’s famous tourist spots for my family. Our tour guide is Xiao-Hei and he was PERFECT!! He made sure that the tour experience was great even if there was rain. He took a lot of beautiful pictures and was very kind to us. He was very knowledgeable in every place we went to and even shared the history and facts for each place we went to. We had fun listening to Xiao-Hei because he knew everything about Taiwan and what are the best stores we can buy from. I want to thank Xiao-Hei for giving my family and I the best tour experience since we had first timers in the group. I was impressed by how he did the tour and will surely book klook again for our future travels. I will recommend this to my family and friends! Thank you again Xiao-Hei for an unforgettable experience!!

Taipei: Yehliu, Jiufen, Shifen & Tiaoshi Coast Day Tour (Departing from Ximen)

錢 **

2026-08-29 15:27:15

Fantastic 5.0

On August 22nd, I visited Taipei and took the opportunity to sign up for the Klook Keelung Islet tour, which I'd wanted to do for a long time. I chose the Julong fleet based on a hunch, and their boat was grand, luxurious, and comfortable. On a hot day, we could continuously get ice-cold bottled water. The best part was our guide that day, Sister Xiaorou, who was incredibly nice. She gave a detailed and humorous introduction to Keelung Islet. During our hike, she also acted as a professional photographer, even helping us find special spots for beautiful photos. Through our casual chats, we learned she's a timeless beauty, which left us all amazed. Plus, it was a sunny day on Keelung Islet, so every photo we took captured a beautiful landscape. It's definitely worth a visit!

Keelung Island Landing, Island Tour, Lighthouse Visit

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287K+ visitors

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398K+ visitors

Keelung Miaokou Night Market

313K+ visitors

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20K+ visitors

5M+ visitors

301K+ visitors

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287K+ visitors

Tamsui Fisherman's Wharf

43K+ visitors

Sanxia Old Street

26K+ visitors

Jinguashih

652K+ visitors

Chaojing Park

660K+ visitors

Zhengbin Fishing Port Color House

290K+ visitors

Fort San Domingo

69K+ visitors

When is the best time to visit Houtong Cat Village?

How can I get to Houtong from Jiufen?

Are there any good places to eat in Houtong?

What should I keep in mind when interacting with the cats in Houtong?

When is the best time to avoid crowds in Houtong Cat Village?

How can I get to Houtong by train?

What should I know about the village's closing times and souvenir shopping?

Is there a specific season that's best for visiting Houtong Cat Village?

How long does it take to travel from Taipei to Houtong by train?

What are some important guidelines to follow when visiting Houtong?

Discover the rugged beauty and unique charm of Houtong New Taipei, a destination that offers a blend of Chinese and Japanese influences. From picturesque landscapes to historical sites, this city has something for every traveler. Welcome to Houtong Cat Village, a unique and charming destination in New Taipei City, Taiwan. This village is a haven for cat lovers, where you can immerse yourself in a world filled with feline friends and cat-themed attractions. Discover the whimsical world of Houtong Cat Village, a charming destination nestled in the hills near Taipei. This unique cat-themed village offers a fun and unforgettable experience for cat lovers and curious travelers alike.

Houtong Cat Village, Ruifang District, New Taipei City, Taiwan 224

Remarkable Landmarks and Must-Visit Sights

Chin Pao San Cemetery

Explore the immaculately manicured gardens and modern sculptures at Chin Pao San Cemetery, a resting place for Taiwan's elite with stunning views of the East China Sea.

Teresa Teng Memorial Park

Pay tribute to the legendary Taiwanese singer Teresa Teng at her memorial park, featuring a life-size statue and a unique piano set in the ground where visitors can play her songs.

Yehliu Geopark

Visit the famous Yehliu Geopark in Wanli District, known for its bizarre rock formations carved by wind and water over thousands of years, including the iconic 'Queen's Head'.

Cultural and Historical Significance

Houtong New Taipei is rich in cultural and historical significance, with landmarks like Chin Pao San Cemetery and the Teresa Teng Memorial Park offering insights into Taiwan's heritage. Houtong was once a declining coal mining village until it was revitalized by the presence of cats. Learn about the village's coal mining history and the transformation it underwent to become a cat-themed destination. Houtong Cat Village originated as a coal mining town, with its transformation into a cat paradise starting in 2008. Learn about the village's evolution and the role of cats in its unique charm.

Local Cuisine

Indulge in popular local dishes in Houtong, from traditional Taiwanese cuisine to unique flavors that reflect the city's diverse influences. Sample cat-shaped pineapple cakes and other cat-themed treats at the local shops in Houtong. Don't miss the opportunity to try unique dishes while exploring the village. Indulge in Taiwanese delicacies at food stalls and cafes in the village. Sample traditional dishes and snacks while enjoying the cat-themed ambiance.

Houtong

Houtong Tickets & Tours

Where to stay in Houtong

Transport to & from Houtong

Restaurants near Houtong

Houtong Reviews

Popular places near Houtong

FAQs about Houtong

When is the best time to visit Houtong Cat Village?

How can I get to Houtong from Jiufen?

Are there any good places to eat in Houtong?

What should I keep in mind when interacting with the cats in Houtong?

When is the best time to avoid crowds in Houtong Cat Village?

How can I get to Houtong by train?

What should I know about the village's closing times and souvenir shopping?

Is there a specific season that's best for visiting Houtong Cat Village?

How long does it take to travel from Taipei to Houtong by train?

What are some important guidelines to follow when visiting Houtong?

What to know about Houtong

Remarkable Landmarks and Must-Visit Sights

Chin Pao San Cemetery

Teresa Teng Memorial Park

Yehliu Geopark

Cultural and Historical Significance

Local Cuisine