Kaohsiung Day Trip: Pier-2 Art Center + Cijin Ferry (with Luggage, Transport & Ferry Fares)

Short answer: the easiest half- or full-day route in Kaohsiung is the waterfront line — Pier-2 Art Center → Gushan ferry → Cijin’s old street & beach. All three sit at the western end of the MRT Orange Line, so you can do the whole loop on foot plus one short ferry, no car needed. The only thing that’ll slow you down is the big suitcase you’re still carrying from the station — so step one is to put it down.

Before you start: drop the big bag

If you’ve just arrived (off the HSR at Zuoying, or into town at Kaohsiung Station), don’t drag a suitcase onto a crowded ferry and along Cijin’s old street. There’s no large left-luggage facility out at Pier-2 or Cijin, and hauling a 28-inch case onto the boat and across sand makes for a miserable day.

lalalocker has real storage points in Kaohsiung, including at Kaohsiung Railway Station and Zuoying HSR Station (as of 2026-07, roughly NT$150/day for a large item and NT$70/day for a small one, with NT$10,000 insurance per bag; check the live page for current prices and exact spots). Since the route runs from Kaohsiung Station out toward Sizihwan and back, storing at Kaohsiung Station on the way out — and collecting on the way home — fits the loop perfectly.

For exact storage points, opening hours and today’s price, see the live page: luggage storage near Kaohsiung Station.

The route at a glance (half a day to a full day)

Store your bags at Kaohsiung Station →
MRT to Pier-2 Art Center (Yanchengpu, O2) — wander the old warehouses, catch an exhibition, take photos →
Walk to the Gushan ferry pier (Sizihwan, O1, Exit 1) and ferry across to Cijin →
Cijin — seafood, cycling, the lighthouse and the beach →
Ferry back to Gushan, MRT back to Kaohsiung Station and collect your bags.

Want more? Sizihwan itself (the old British Consulate, the seaside at NSYSU) is on the same station, so it’s easy to add if you have time.

Getting around: MRT + light rail

Kaohsiung Station is R11 on the Red Line. To reach Pier-2 / Sizihwan, transfer to the Orange Line at Formosa Boulevard and head west:

Yanchengpu (O2) — a short walk to the Pier-2 warehouses.
Sizihwan (O1) — Exit 1 puts you right at the Gushan ferry pier (for Cijin) and the Hamasen old quarter.

The Circular Light Rail also runs along the waterfront and stops right by Pier-2 — C12 Pier-2 Dayi, C13 Pier-2 Penglai and C14 Hamasen — which is handy for hopping between the warehouse clusters (source: KRTC light rail station guide). The circular line reached full-loop operation on 1 January 2024.

For fares, the MRT single-journey price is shown on the fare chart above each station’s ticket machine; the easiest option is to tap in and out with an iPASS / EasyCard, or buy a single-journey token at the station. See the KRTC official site for current fares.

Pier-2 Art Center: do you need a ticket? What time does it close?

The outdoor district is free. Pier-2 is a set of old warehouses turned into an art zone; the outdoor public art, murals, railway tracks and riverside are all free to walk and photograph.

Outdoor hours: Mon–Thu 10:00–18:00; Fri–Sun and national holidays 10:00–20:00 (as of 2026-07, per the Pier-2 official site).
Indoor exhibitions: some warehouse shows are ticketed, sold at the C5 (Dayong) and C7 (Dayi) desks, with sales ending at 17:00 on weekdays / 19:00 on weekends and holidays; prices depend on the current show — see the official ticket page.
Pier-2 Tower: NT$10 per entry (coin-operated), open Mon–Thu 10:00–17:30 and Fri–Sun and holidays 10:00–19:30 (as of 2026-07, same source).

Pier-2 is easy to walk — but if you’re still towing a suitcase, the gravel paths and rail tracks between warehouses are a pain, which is exactly why dropping the bag at Kaohsiung Station first makes such a difference.

Riding the Gushan ferry to Cijin

From Sizihwan / Hamasen, walk to the Gushan ferry pier and ride across the harbour to Cijin. The ferry is a working local commuter service — frequent, cheap, and a proper blast of sea air.

Payment: cash, or tap an iPASS, EasyCard, iCash or Cijin Card (source: Kaohsiung City Ferry, Gushan–Cijin route).
Fare: per the operator’s official notice, the full-fare and motorcycle cash ticket are NT$30 each (a discounted cash rate the operator has posted since January 2021 — reconfirm the current fare on the official page before you go). Concession, student and bicycle fares, plus the daily timetable, are on the official fares & schedule page.
Bikes and scooters board too: the ferry takes bicycles and motorcycles, so a popular move is to rent a bike on Cijin and ride it onto the boat.

Ferry frequency and first/last sailings shift by season and by peak/off-peak, so this guide doesn’t quote fixed times — check the official page or the pier notice board.

Cijin: old street, beach, lighthouse

Across the water is Cijin, a long, narrow sandbar where the sights are close together and easy to cover on foot or by bike:

Cijin Old Street — right by the ferry pier, a lane of seafood restaurants and street food; it’s why most people come.
Cijin Beach — sand and sea views, classic at sunset.
Cihou Lighthouse & Cihou Fort — a white hilltop lighthouse and a Qing-era fort with harbour views.
Rainbow Church and other coastal photo spots along the shore.

Opening hours for the heritage sites (lighthouse, fort) change from time to time, so check the latest on the official Kaohsiung Travel site before you go. When you’re done, take the ferry back to Gushan the way you came.

How to shape the day

Half-day: store bags at Kaohsiung Station → Pier-2 → ferry to Cijin for seafood → back to collect your bags.
Full day: add Sizihwan (British Consulate, NSYSU seaside) and a bike loop around Cijin, then catch sunset at Cijin or Sizihwan before heading back.

Either way, dropping the luggage first is what keeps the day easy.

FAQ

Q: What do I do with a big suitcase on a Kaohsiung day trip? A: Store it at Kaohsiung Station or Zuoying HSR before you set off — Pier-2, the ferry and Cijin are no place for a large case. lalalocker has real storage points near both, so you collect on the way back. See luggage storage near Kaohsiung Station.

Q: How do I ride the Cijin ferry, and how much is it? A: Board at the Gushan ferry pier (by Sizihwan MRT). Pay cash or tap iPASS/EasyCard; per the official notice the full-fare and motorcycle cash ticket are NT$30 each (a discounted rate since 2021 — confirm on the official site). Other fares and the timetable are on the official page.

Q: Does Pier-2 Art Center charge admission? A: The outdoor district is free. Some indoor exhibitions are ticketed (desks at C5 / C7). Outdoor hours are 10:00–18:00 on weekdays and 10:00–20:00 on weekends/holidays (as of 2026-07, official site).

Q: How do I get from Pier-2 to the Cijin ferry? A: From Pier-2 (Yanchengpu, O2) walk along the waterfront to the Gushan ferry pier beside Sizihwan Station (O1), or take the light rail to Hamasen (C14) and walk over. It’s a short hop.

Q: Can I take a bike or scooter on the ferry? A: Yes — the Gushan–Cijin ferry allows bicycles and motorcycles (each has its own fare, see the official page), so cycling around Cijin is easy.

Q: Should I plan Sizihwan separately? A: Sizihwan is the same MRT station (O1) as the ferry, so the British Consulate and the NSYSU seaside slot in easily if you have the time.