By Shelley Shan / Staff reporter
Night tours of the iconic Queen’s Head rock formation (女王頭) at Yehliu Geopark (野柳地質公園) are scheduled to begin on June 28, featuring immersive projections designed to enhance the experience.
The Tourism Administration, which has hosted the tours annually since 2018, has promoted them as a flagship tourism event for international visitors.
The rock formation attracts travelers from around the world because of its resemblance to a queen’s head.
Photo courtesy of the Tourism Administration via CNA
The “neck” area of the formation becomes thinner each year due to weathering effects, which some worry could lead to its “decapitation.”
CNN in August 2016 reported that the park’s terrain resembles something from another planet, saying that “this is the closest you’ll get to Mars on Earth.”
The agency has worked with artists and students, and this year, it collaborated with the Administration for Digital Industries to gather ideas from the public on how to enhance the quality of the visual presentation during the tour, such as by combining unique rock formations with light projections.
The park has evolved into a must-see tourist attraction, Tourism Administration Secretary-General Huang I-cheng (黃易成) said.
“The park has drawn tourists from South Korea, Japan, Hong Kong, Macau and Southeast Asia,” Huang said.
It has received numerous accolades, with last year’s tour winning a 2026 German Design Award in the “Excellent Communications Design Event” category and a gold award at the 2025 TITAN Innovation Awards in the “Innovation in Campaign — Event Campaign” category, while the 2023 Yehliu Night Tour event won a MUSE Design Award in “Lighting Design — Landscape Lighting” and the 2024 event won a MUSE Creative Award in the “Event – Public Event” category, demonstrating the quality and innovation of the tours, he said.
Yehliu Geopark is visited by about 1.7 million tourists each year, with 34 percent from South Korea and 23 percent from Japan and Southeast Asia, North Coast and Guanyinshan National Scenic Area Administration Acting Director-General Wu Chien-chih (吳建志) said.
International visitors who purchase tickets for this year’s night tours are eligible for a limited-edition souvenir if they present their passports, Wu said.
In addition to the Queen’s Head, the tour would feature the Cute Princess rock formation (俏皮公主), which resembles a woman with a ponytail.
The tour would be available daily from 6:30pm to 9pm from June 28 to July 12, the Tourism Administration said.
The number of visitors is capped at 3,000 each night, who would be assigned a time to enter the park, at either 6:30pm or 7:30pm.
Tickets are to go on sale at noon on Monday next week. People can visit the Yehliu Night Tours Web site at https://yehliu-nighttours.tw for more information.