Daily Times

If scenic railway journeys are your cup of tea, then you should investigate what’s brewing in this department in Taiwan. But no need to trouble yourself with arduous research – just tune in to the latest episode of Channel 5’s documentary series The World’s Most Scenic Railway Journeys, which has the inside track on several of the island’s most eye-catching train trips. This week’s hour-long episode, narrated by Bill Nighy, begins in the port city of Hualien, before heading north to Taiwan’s rugged Pacific coast. The first stop on the journey is the 19-kilometre-long Taroko Gorge, one of Taiwan’s greatest natural attractions. The train journey continues along the coast to Yilan county, a popular destination for cycling and hiking, before reaching Taiwan’s capital, Taipei, to discover the city’s emerging craft brewing industry. Viewers will then be taken on a journey south on the high-speed rail network to Longteng Bridge, which runs alongside the striking ruins of the original nine-span version.