Satellite: Sentinel-2 cloudless 2016 by EOX (CC BY 4.0). Outline and points © OpenStreetMap contributors / Natural Earth. North up.
In numbers
45.8km²
Area
45km
Coastline
185m
Highest point
5,202
People
29°C
Warmest sea
July
402km
To the mainland
When to go to Orchid Island
Best for the beach from December to April.
The sea is warmest in July (29 °C) and coolest in February (24 °C). You can swim comfortably all year (21 °C or more).
Averages 1991–2020. Sea: NOAA OISST, the water within 35 km of the coast. Air, rain and sun: NASA POWER. Best months weigh warm afternoons (23–30 °C), sea of 24 °C or more and few wet days.
Volcanic island in the Pacific Ocean part of Taiwan
Orchid Island is an island in Taiwan. It covers 45.8 km², with 45 km of coastline. Its highest point rises to 185 m. About 5,202 people live on it. The nearest mainland is 402 km away.
Getting there
- Lanyu Airport (KYD)airport on the island, with scheduled flightsCar hire in TaitungDiscover Cars · Affiliate link↗
- FerriesOrchid Island - Green Island
- 402 km from the mainlanddistance to the nearest continental coast
- From December to Aprilbest months to go (from 30 years of averages)
Plan the trip
Ferries, stays and things to do
Some links above are affiliate links: if you book through them we may earn a commission, at no extra cost to you. It never changes what the data on this page says.
On the island
What you find on Orchid Island.
- 1beaches
- 5viewpointsWindy rock and 4 more
- 2lighthousesLanyu Lighthouse
- 1ferry terminals
- 3marinas
- 14named peaksHongtoushan, Xiangaishan, Shasheshan and 11 more
- 1waterfallsLidunala Waterfall
- 5ruins and archaeological sites
- 2dive centresTung Lung Scuba Diving
- 5waymarked walking routes
- 2campsites
- 53hotels, guesthouses and apartments
- 29restaurants, cafés and bars
Counted in OpenStreetMap, the map anyone can edit, inside the island's outline. A low number may only mean nobody has mapped it yet.
Cross-checked with our atlases
Orchid Island in our other atlases
Everything Coastya, Peakyas, Lakeyas and Cascadyas know about what lies inside Orchid Island, each with its own numbers.
14mountainsPeakyas
14 mountains
on Peakyas, the mountain atlas
- Hongtou Shan
- Cao Shan
- Tai Shan
- Lingduan
- Qingshui Shan
- Aoben Ling
- Qiwei
- Dasen Shan
6 more on PeakyasOpen Peakyas ↗
The shape of the land.
On average the island stands 186 m above the sea. 55 % of it is below 200 m.
- 22 %0–50 m
- 32 %50–200 m
- 45 %200–500 m
- <1 %500–1,000 m
Share of the island's area in each altitude band, from the Copernicus DEM (30 m, read at 30–240 m on large islands).
Size, for real
Next to islands you may know.
5 km
All outlines drawn to the same scale (Natural Earth and OpenStreetMap).
Month by month
The weather on the island.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Afternoon high (°C) | 23 | 23 | 24 | 26 | 28 | 29 | 29 | 29 | 29 | 27 | 26 | 24 |
| Night low (°C) | 21 | 22 | 23 | 25 | 27 | 28 | 28 | 28 | 28 | 26 | 25 | 22 |
| Sea (°C) | 25 | 24 | 25 | 26 | 28 | 29 | 29 | 29 | 28 | 28 | 26 | 25 |
| Rain (mm) | 42 | 35 | 42 | 55 | 174 | 258 | 299 | 407 | 266 | 105 | 78 | 56 |
| Wet days | 12 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 19 | 24 | 24 | 27 | 22 | 16 | 14 | 14 |
| Sun h/day | 2.3 | 3.1 | 3.2 | 4.2 | 5.6 | 7.2 | 8.2 | 6.9 | 6.0 | 5.4 | 3.5 | 2.3 |
| Wind (km/h) | 31 | 28 | 26 | 23 | 22 | 23 | 22 | 23 | 24 | 32 | 33 | 35 |
Averages 1991–2020 for the ~55 km NASA POWER cell over the island; the sea from NOAA OISST.
Recent years
Warmer and cooler years at sea.
Each month's sea temperature compared with its 1991–2020 average, in degrees.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | +0.6 | +1.4 | +0.8 | +0.4 | +0.5 | +0.9 | +0.6 | +0.5 | +0.8 | +0.6 | +0.8 | +0.1 |
| 2021 | −0.7 | −0.3 | +0.9 | +0.5 | +0.9 | +0.6 | +0.1 | +0.2 | +0.9 | +0.6 | +0.6 | +1.2 |
| 2022 | +1.1 | +0.7 | +0.9 | +0.5 | +0.5 | +0.7 | +0.6 | +1.1 | +0.8 | +0.4 | +1.0 | +1.4 |
| 2023 | +1.2 | +1.2 | +0.3 | +0.3 | −0.2 | ±0.0 | +0.2 | +0.1 | ±0.0 | +0.4 | +0.5 | +0.8 |
| 2024 | +0.5 | +0.6 | +0.2 | +1.7 | +1.2 | +1.1 | +1.1 | +1.1 | +1.2 | +1.0 | +0.2 | +0.2 |
| 2025 | −0.3 | ±0.0 | +0.7 | +0.6 | +0.7 | +0.4 | −0.2 | +0.1 | +0.6 | +1.0 | +0.8 | +1.2 |
+1 warmer than usual −1 cooler than usual
Photos
Seen by visitors.
Nearby
More islands nearby.
Green Island
Taiwan15 km²86 m68 km away
Taiwan IslandTaiwan35,883 km²3,952 m199 km away
Batan Island
Philippines71 km²1,009 m187 km away
Babuyan IslandPhilippines73 km²1,080 m284 km away
Yonaguni
Japan29 km²231 m306 km away
Calayan IslandPhilippines193 km²389 m302 km away
Iriomote IslandJapan290 km²470 m345 km away
Ishigaki IslandJapan223 km²529 m377 km awayAbout these numbers
| Names, area, population | Wikidata (Q701647) · CC0 |
|---|---|
| Outline | © OpenStreetMap contributors · ODbL |
| Sea temperature | NOAA OISST v2.1 · 1991–2020 |
| Climate | NASA POWER · 1991–2020 |
| Relief, 3D model | Copernicus DEM GLO-30 · © DLR e.V., © Airbus Defence and Space GmbH, Copernicus/ESA |
| Beaches, ports, lighthouses, trails | © OpenStreetMap contributors · ODbL |
| Towns | GeoNames · CC BY 4.0 |
| Images | EOX Sentinel-2 cloudless 2016 · CC BY 4.0; Wikimedia Commons |
| Beaches, mountains, lakes and waterfalls | Peakyas — Wikidata · CC0; © OpenStreetMap contributors · ODbL; GeoNames · CC BY 4.0 |
Every figure is an average, an estimate or a count from a public dataset. Licences and methods: data sources.
The family
Do you prefer beaches, lakes, mountains, waterfalls, islands, rivers or canyons?
Same idea, other landscapes: field atlases built on open data, month by month, in seven languages.
beaches
Find your beach: sea temperature, sun and swimming month by month.Visit 
lakes
Every lake on Earth: water temperature, ice, depth and the shore.Coming soonVisit mountains
Every summit in 3D: summit weather, the 0 °C line, huts and trails.Visit 
waterfalls
Every waterfall: height, flow month by month and when it roars.Coming soonVisit 
islands
Every island from the sea up: size, sea temperature, ferries and 3D.You are here
rivers
Every river from source to sea: the journey, the flow and the basin in numbers.Visit 
canyons
Every canyon cut to scale: depth to the floor, rim and floor temperatures, trails and viewpoints.Visit