Most people who think of national parks in Asia picture Japan’s Mount Fuji or South Korea’s Seoraksan. Fewer realise that Taiwan — a geographically compact island measuring just 394 kilometres from north to south — contains nine officially designated national parks spanning everything from active volcanic craters and marble gorges to offshore coral atolls and tidal wetlands. Together, they cover roughly 8.6% of Taiwan’s total land area, and they represent one of the most diverse concentrations of protected landscape in Asia.

This guide covers each of the nine parks: where they are, what makes them distinctive, and how to think about visiting them.