Liuqiu island: a sea turtles heaven

Taiwan is often seen as a purely industrial nation. This is still true today, and has been an ecological nightmare a few decades ago. Many beaches were turned into polluted and hazardous wastelands by careless factory owners and corrupt, short-sighted politicians. Just walk around Guanyin in Taoyuan county and talk to the locals… they may share some crazy memories.

But new generations of Taiwanese have a radically different behaviour towards the environment. Nature and sports became very popular with younger generations. And in some places like Liuqiu island, initiatives were taken to preserve the natural wealth. For instance, local 7/11 convenience stores have those metallic bottles at disposal. You borrow them for free, simply by registering your phone number in an application. There are many free water refill points on the island, so that you don’t have to buy bottled water during your stay. No more plastic trash… that’s just great !

Moreover most of the water surrounding the island are a protected area. No fishing, no dumping… And it works, as the island is home to about 400 turtles. The biggest problem so far is connected to the growing popularity of Liuqiu. A few years ago only a handful of scuba diving shops operated here. They are now a lot. And tourism hits records high as well. The high season sees the total population of the island being multiplied by more than 5, reaching over 55 000 people. This creates lots of problems… mainly pollution through garbage creation and risks of close contact with the turtles. Such contacts, or even simply harassing the turtles is severely punished, and strictly enforced.

As far as I can say, turtles seem to enjoy these policies… they are everywhere, even in shallow waters, close to the beaches. If you can dive a little bit further and deeper you will enjoy them without feeling like in a station at rush hour. And it is really gorgeous. The turtles are not afraid of humans at all, and will let you come close, very close…

So, is Liuqiu worth it ? I would say yes, although I hated some crowded beaches. Too many people come here for those “discover scuba diving” sessions, staying close to the shore in shallow waters. Sometimes there are so many of them that not loosing your own buddies when starting a shore dive is a real challenge. But as you swim further and deeper, you’ll soon find peace and tranquillity ant that’s when Liuqiu reveals all its underwater beauty and charms. A pure delight.