Green Green Grassland (青青草原) and Small Swiss Garden (瑞士小花园), Cing Jing


 When we did our research on Cing Jing, two of the must go tourist attractions were Green Green Grassland (青青草原) and Small Swiss Garden (瑞士小花园). Initially we were in two minds about visiting Green Green Grassland which was part of Cing Jing Farm as we just came from a 1D1N farm stay at the Flying Cow Ranch in Miaoli.

But we later realised that Green Green Grassland turned out to be more of a sheep pasture than an actual farm, where you can find sheep roam freely on the green grassy plains.

Green Green Grassland (青青草原)

We purchased our tickets for Green Green Grassland from our minsu at a discounted rate and they provided free transport up to the entrance.

Mandatory photo at the entrance.

Can you see how misty it was? The temperature was cool at around 16 degrees that morning.

Sophie and her awkward smile

I heard that they have sheep shearing shows happening at the amphitheater and rushed Alexis and Sophie  for it bypassing the castle and hungry sheep that were awaiting tourists to feed them. But it turned out they only had the sheep shearing shows between June to August.

 

We saw people buying sheep feed to get a more up close encounter with the sheep and photo opportunity. But I was not keen for the sheep to pounce on me.

In fact, when I tried to take photos beside the sheep, I was terrified that they would come too close for comfort. A slight bleat was all it took from them to send me squealing off in the opposite direction.

Sophie was also scared of being too close to the sheep and preferred to view them from a distance. And up on daddy’s shoulders was where she felt the safest.

It drizzled on and off the whole morning but the sheep look undisturbed and continued grazing away while the tourists continued to snap pictures of them.

If you plan to go in the months of May and June, it’s a good idea to pack a poncho or rain coat and come comfortably attired with sport shoes as the slopes may be slippery.

We tried to feed the sheep behind the fences but these guys knew that that ain’t food and snubbed us.

According to some friends, Green Green Grassland is described as Taiwan’s version of Switzerland as you get to see an amazing view an altitude of 1,750 metres above sea level. With a picturesque view like that, you definitely don’t want to miss a family photo.

We proceeded to the mountain view pastures for the horse show at Cing Jing farm. The performance change on a regular basis and the troupe performing today are from Mongolia where they learnt to ride horses from as young as five years old.

Although the performers were impressive with their skillful balancing on their horses, riding backwards and all, the act got repetitive after a while and was bordering on getting a little boring.

Nevertheless, it was a good place to take a break from all the walking we did and we were content to rest our legs so we stayed till the end of the show where we bought carrots to feed the horses.

Now if you don’t want to get your fingers munched off by these fellas, you better learn the correct method to hold the carrots. What you want is to place the carrots in the palm of your hand and lift them up to the horse’s mouth.

The feeling of their slobbery tongues was very icky but it doesn’t smell as horses are herbivores.

We continued with more walking and finally reached the 499 step trail which took us to the foot of the lower entrance. Just a word of caution, if you’re bringing kids, be prepared to carry them or have them in a carrier as a pram will be quite a killer. We were so exhausted that we didn’t even bother taking any photos along the way..

Later in the afternoon, Sophie decided that a nap was not on her agenda, so after a quick rest at the minsu we decided to brave the rain (again!), put on our raincoats, and armed ourselves with umbrellas before heading to the nearby Little Swiss Garden which was about 5-8 minutes away from the minsu.

Small Swiss Garden (瑞士小花园)

The Small Swiss Garden is popularly known as “Taiwan’s Little Switzerland”  because the garden gives a Northern European vibe. It is located just next to the Carton King restaurant. As we dined at Carton King the day before, we had complimentary tickets saving us 240NT.

Upon entering the garden, you’ll see cardboard like structures of animals and buildings.

And boy it was some torrent downpour that afternoon.

Despite the wet weather, we decided that the rain will not dampen our holiday spirits although admittedly we did look like silly tourist in the rain. I’m sure the walk around the garden would be more enjoyable without having to carry umbrellas and avoiding puddles, but we brought our own sunshine along.

We spent sometime stuck in the shade when the rain got heavier and heavier with no sign of letting up. But on the other hand, it just leaves you with no choice but to just slow down and enjoy the moment.

The potted garden guardian

 

Sensory spots. Though I accidentally plucked the leaves of instead of just rubbing them. I blame my lousy Chinese for that 😛

 Ducks who pretended they were flamingos!

Here’s a tip if you’re planning to visit both Carton King and Little Swiss Garden, do the former earlier so that you can save on your entrance tickets to Small Swiss Garden.

We probably spent a good whole morning in Green Green Grassland and maybe just under an hour at the Little Swiss Garden. If you’re going there in May or during the rainy seasons, do bring along poncho and umbrellas as it tends to rain a lot more then..

Next stop, we’re going to Hua Lian for Taroko National Park and whale watching.

 

Heading to Taiwan soon? Don’t miss the rest of our Taiwan adventures:

 

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Comments: 42

  1. maureen July 18, 2013 at 9:45 pm Reply

    sophie is soooooooooooo cute! posing with daddy!

    • Susan July 19, 2013 at 12:03 pm Reply

      Haha, she saved her best smiles for daddy. Then again, she also has her awkward smile when she tries too hard to pose.

  2. Zee July 18, 2013 at 10:21 pm Reply

    The places featured here look so gorgeous. Will definitely keep them in mind for the next trip to Taiwan. To be honest, I have never heard of these places!

    • Susan July 19, 2013 at 12:05 pm Reply

      Green Green Grassland is the highlight of Cing Jing. There were other places too like He Huan Shan to catch the sun rise. But we all know it would be quite impossible with kids along. It’s really nice to be surrounded by nature and the weather was so cooling up in Cing Jing.

  3. Adeline July 18, 2013 at 10:32 pm Reply

    Love the photos! So many gorgeous family shots too. Glad you had such a great trip, despite the rain!

    • Susan July 19, 2013 at 12:07 pm Reply

      Yes, the rain was a dampener. But just got to make the best of it. Thankfully it wasn’t very heavy rain, just light and continuous rain.

  4. Jasmine July 19, 2013 at 10:19 am Reply

    Hi,

    Which Minsu did you stay at CingJing? thanks:)

  5. Madeline July 21, 2013 at 11:29 am Reply

    Looks like you guys had a lot of fun! I’m itching for my next overseas trip…. haha

    • Susan July 22, 2013 at 3:32 pm Reply

      Haha, baby moon perhaps Madeline?

  6. […] Cing Jing (Day 4) –  Green Green Grassland and Small Swiss Garden […]

  7. […] spending two days in Cing Jing, the next leg of our Taiwan free and easy Summer adventure was to the easten part of Taiwan to Hua […]

  8. dimply January 12, 2014 at 10:49 am Reply

    Dear Susan, love your blog on the taiwan trip & your little girl is very photogenic! I’m planning my itinerary to taiwan next mth too, with my 5yo girl.. and was wondering if u could help by emailing your itinerary!?! Would greatly appreciate and many thanks in advance! Happy New Year too!

    • Susan January 13, 2014 at 8:46 pm Reply

      Hi,
      I’ve emailed you my Taiwan itinerary as requested. Hope it’s useful for your planning.

  9. gary March 5, 2014 at 12:34 am Reply

    Hi Susan
    Enjoy reading your Wonderful sharings!
    Which Minsu did your family stayed in CingJing and would your recommend it as we are planning to visit there in May. Contact info & How much does it cost?
    Thanks
    Gary

  10. Jessica Tan May 11, 2014 at 9:49 pm Reply

    Hi Susan, could you email me ur taiwan itinerary?

  11. mavis June 5, 2014 at 11:12 am Reply

    Hi susan, which farm stay/ visit u are recommended? Flying cow ranch or cing jing farm? I only plan to stay 2 nights there.

  12. Samie July 13, 2014 at 10:45 pm Reply

    Hi, I find your write up on taiwan very informative. We are planning to visit in Dec with our 3 year old twins. Considering hiring a driver to take us from place to place but cost seems quite high. I’m interested to find out how you moved from place to place without a car/ driver first arranged? Like from cingjing to hualien… How did you manage? And, within the place itself, is it tough to move around when you don’t have your own transport??

  13. […] Green Green Grassland and Small Swiss Garden Cing Jing […]

  14. Khim December 24, 2014 at 12:16 pm Reply

    Hi Susan,

    Can u send me yr taiwan itinerary. Many thanks!

    Also, does it rain alot in flying ciw and qing jing in may?

    We are planning out trip in may.

  15. Sylvia February 10, 2015 at 10:42 am Reply

    Hi Susan,
    Can you send me yr taiwan itinerary?
    I would like to follow yr itinerary. Is it the best time to go there on early April?
    Thanks.

  16. Hong April 13, 2015 at 10:01 pm Reply

    Thanks for the sharing which I can use for my taiwan trip planning.

    • Susan April 21, 2015 at 7:51 am Reply

      Thanks Hong. Glad you find it useful 🙂

  17. Debbie April 21, 2015 at 5:23 pm Reply

    Hi Susan! How’s the temperature like in July for CingJing? Just a jacket will do?

    • Susan January 6, 2016 at 12:21 am Reply

      It’s cool in Cing Jing. When I was there in May, we had to wear long sleeves and jacket as it was also raining. So do bring along an outer wear.

  18. Sofia January 1, 2016 at 5:19 pm Reply

    Hi, if you’ll have to choose Flying Cow or Cing Jing Farm, which one will you choose if you have limited time? Will bring my kids this year (3yo n 6yo). Many thanks!

    • Susan January 6, 2016 at 12:10 am Reply

      Definitely the Flying Cow Ranch as it has more farm animals, which makes it more interesting for young kids. For Cing Jing farm, it’s mainly sheeps, sheeps and more sheeps. But it’s a lot cooler up at the Cing Jing farm 🙂

  19. Kelly April 5, 2016 at 3:52 pm Reply

    Hi. I will be staying in flying cow ranch and hope to proceed to Cing Jing after that. May I know how do you pre book the cab and roughly how much does it cost ?

    • Susan April 13, 2016 at 10:35 pm Reply

      Hi Kelly,
      I hailed the cab from the airport to get to Flying Cow Ranch. The journey took about 1.5 hours and the fare was TWD2000.

      • Kelly April 14, 2016 at 11:28 am Reply

        Hi. Thanks for the reply. How about from flying cow to cing jing ? How do you prebook a cab ? Is through a website ?

  20. Francis April 18, 2016 at 11:54 pm Reply

    Hi Susan,

    Is staying 2 nite over at Ching Jing would be recommended ?

    • Susan April 29, 2016 at 10:26 am Reply

      For us, we only stayed one night as CJ and proceed to Hua Lien after that.

  21. Emily June 27, 2016 at 10:18 am Reply

    Hi susan

    Can you email me your itinerary? Tq!!

  22. Ryan June 28, 2016 at 10:54 am Reply

    Hi Susan! This is indeed a wonderful write up! Do you mind sending me a copy of your itinerary? This is very much appreaciated! 🙂

    Did you engage a driver while in Cingjing? Or is it possible to self walk to most of the attractions? Thanks!

    • Susan June 28, 2016 at 11:25 pm Reply

      Hi Ryan, we had transport from the ming su to CJ Farm. As for the Small Swiss Garden, we walked there from our minsu. I’ve also emailed you my Taiwan itinerary.

  23. ashgray77 August 15, 2016 at 1:49 am Reply

    Hi, read about these attractions in your blog and it is helpful for my upcoming trip with kids. How far is it from Flying Cow Ranch to CJ? thanks.

    • Susan August 17, 2016 at 12:41 pm Reply

      It’s around 2.5 hours depending on traffic conditions.

  24. Michelle August 24, 2016 at 9:09 am Reply

    Dear Susan
    Can send ur itinerary ?

    • Susan October 18, 2016 at 9:22 pm Reply

      Hi Michelle,
      Sorry for the late reply. I’ve sent it across 🙂

  25. Stephanie June 9, 2018 at 1:23 am Reply

    Hi Michelle, nice to e-meet you. I found your blog on Taiwan very informative. Would you please email me your Taiwan itinerary? Thank you so much! If I’d like to spend a night in Taipei for shopping and eating, would you recommend doing it before the Flying Cow ranch or at the end of the trip? Thanks, Stephanie.

    • Susan June 20, 2018 at 1:05 pm Reply

      Hi Stephanie,
      I prefer to keep Taipei for my last leg of the trip as I’m sure I’ll be doing more shopping 🙂 I’ve also emailed you my itinerary for your reference.

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