A scenic, history-rich hillside above Jiufen where Taiwan’s biggest gold and copper mines once ran under Japanese rule. Its Gold Ecological Park and Gold Museum tell the mining story – including a 220 kg gold bar you can touch – with mountain views and a calmer pace than the old-street crowds.
A scenic, history-rich hillside above Jiufen where Taiwan’s biggest gold and copper mines once ran under Japanese rule. Its Gold Ecological Park and Gold Museum tell the mining story – including a 220 kg gold bar you can touch – with mountain views and a calmer pace than the old-street crowds.
Updated June 14, 2026
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Quick facts資訊
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Gold Museum
Highlights亮點Jiufen is famous, but it can feel crowded. Jinguashi gives you the bigger story and a calmer mood: the mining history, hillside views, and a sense of place that makes the whole Ruifang-area day trip feel more meaningful.
If you like combining ‘pretty’ with ‘why is this here?’, this is the stop that delivers – the gold and copper that built this hillside, the Japanese-era industry, and the quiet that returned once the seams ran dry.
Jinguashi was the site of some of Imperial Japan’s most productive mines. By 1937 its gold output ranked among Japan’s largest, and its copper production – over 7,000 tons in 1936 – led all of Taiwan. The operation sprawled across roughly 18 square kilometres of hillside. The minerals are long depleted, but the infrastructure, tunnels and workers’ town remain, now preserved as a heritage park.
The Gold Ecological Park opened in October 2004, with the Gold Museum at its heart. The signature exhibit is a 220-kilogram bar of 99.9% pure gold, once recognised as the world’s largest – and you can reach through an opening to touch it. Around it, the museum lays out the geology, machinery and human story of the mines, while the surrounding park preserves Japanese-era buildings and viewpoints.
Use Jiufen as your atmosphere stop and Jinguashi as your context stop. Keep a time buffer for weather; hills can be foggy and conditions change fast.
The usual route from Taipei is Taiwan Railway to Ruifang Station, then a local bus that climbs to Jiufen and on to Jinguashi and the Gold Museum. Direct buses also run from the Taipei area on weekends. The museum keeps slightly longer hours on weekends and holidays, but note it closes on the first Monday of each month.
Quick answers to common planning questions.
Official pages and references for planning details.
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Opened in 2004 in the old mining town of Jinguashi, this open-air “ecology museum” tells the story of the region’s gold and copper boom. Highlights include a 220kg solid-gold ingot you can actually touch, the Benshan Fifth Tunnel where you can step underground, and restored Japanese-era buildings — real context for any Jiufen-area day trip.
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Tip: hours, prices, and seasonal schedules can change. When something matters (like a museum ticket or a special exhibition), check the official listing before you go.