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Nantou City · Two stops on foot
Bamboo, books and a market afternoon
Allow 2–3 hours, plus the walk from the bus station.
Your planning day: Sun, Nov 1: every stop has published hours
Reading and conversation at Wen Chao. Image: Nantou Wen Chao Independent Bookstore. Editorial use.
Editorial useView source ↗
Why this order
Start with something you could carry: a basket, a bag, a useful object made from bamboo. Nantou’s Bamboo Art Museum holds traditional and contemporary craft; a short walk away, Wen Chao keeps books and coffee inside the market. Give each other a question for the afternoon: which object would you actually take home and use?
Plan it
A 13:30 museum start followed by the bookshop around 14:45 leaves the afternoon loose. Both stops normally overlap Thursday–Sunday afternoons. Museum: Tuesday–Sunday 09:00–17:00, closed Mondays and the county’s listed holiday dates. Bookshop: Thursday 13:30–21:00, Friday 13:30–18:00, Saturday/Sunday 10:00–18:00. Check the selected date before travelling.
From Nantou City bus station, allow about 20 minutes on foot to the museum (1.23 km). The bookstore-to-station return is about 620 metres, roughly 9 minutes. These are walking estimates; the museum is at 135 Jianguo Road, first floor, and the bookshop at 19, Lane 322, Minzu Road.
Stop 1
Nantou Bamboo Art Museum
Give the museum about an hour. Its permanent displays include woven and carved bamboo, farming and fishing implements, and objects used in weddings and daily life. Look at the construction as well as the shape: where does a strip bend, join or carry weight?
Walk from Nantou City bus station to the museum ↗Right now:Tuesday–Sunday 09:00–17:00; closed Mondays and the county’s listed holiday dates.About 1.2km from Nantou City's bus terminal; allow 20 minutes
Stop 2
Wen Chao Independent Bookstore
Walk — About 690 metres, roughly 10 minutes by Google’s walking estimate. Follow Jianguo Road, Minsheng Street and Zhangnan Road Section 2 towards Minzu Road. Allow extra time for crossings and finding the shop inside the market.
Find market entrance 6 beside 源振發, turn left at the first junction and continue to the end. The shelves include Taiwan history, local history, humanities, art and independent publications. Choose a book to show your companion, then talk it over with coffee. Allow another hour, or longer if you are happily occupied.
Walk from the museum to the bookstore ↗Walk from the bookstore back to the bus station ↗Right now:Thursday 13:30–21:00; Friday 13:30–18:00; Saturday–Sunday 10:00–18:00Market entrance 6 beside 源振發; about nine minutes on foot from 南投市客運總站