Taipei City Government

The Tamsui River waterfront in Dadaocheng was one of the key centers of Taipei’s early commercial development, and the community’s classical temple architecture and traditional culture make it a must-visit destination for many tourists visiting Taipei. Adding further to its attractions is a new Taipei landmark only recently completed, the Dihua Sports Park Cross-Dike Viewing Platform (迪化運動公園跨堤景觀平臺), a large-scale facility with a special design.

The platform looks out over the Tamsui River banks and stretches from Dihua Sports Park to Huanhe North Road (環河北路), connecting with Dunhuang Wharf (敦煌碼頭). The platform copies the approach taken by the city with the large-scale cross-dike platform at the Taipei City Hakka Cultural Park. Walk along the sports park’s rose-pattern promenade and look up at the threestory platform landscape. White is the primary color, punctuated with special semi-circular hanging cables, and the circular entrance arch symbolizes the old Taipei walled city. Its protruding riverside location has made it a prominent new Taipei-entryway landmark.

The platform ties together a string of key city attractions, including the Taipei Confucius Temple (臺北孔廟), Dalongdong Baoan Temple (大龍峒保安宮), Dalong Street Night Market (大龍街夜市), Taipei Expo Park (花博公園), and Taipei Fine Arts Museum (臺北市立美術館). It also provides panoramic views over the Tamsui River and its riverside-park areas. Yao Wen-cheng (姚文成), head of the Dihua Sewage Treatment Plant (迪化污水處理廠), states that the viewing platform can accommodate approximately 3,000 people, and that it has family water-play facilities as well as a stage area where outdoor performances, shows, and various other activities will be periodically put on for the enjoyment of visitors. At night the platform’s circular arch is lit up in radiant purplish-red, the glass screens continually change color, reflected in the nearby surface waters, to add extra scenic value. As one can well imagine, this is an especially good spot for sweethearts when night falls.

One lazy afternoon soon, take a breezy bike ride to the viewing platform and take in one of its outdoor shows, then revel in the lovely nightly sunset show over the river, enjoying leisurely living, the Taipei way!