Cats have turned the place into a tourist destination. They welcome you at railway station, play with you during your stay, and accompany you to cafes

Cat-lovers are built differently. Unlike dog owners, they have to put up with their pet cat’s changing moods 24/7. Sometimes they come to you purring and brushing their head on your feet. At other times, these fluffy animals turn adorably malicious, hitting you with their paws and scratching you with their claws. Despite this, if you can’t stop gushing over them, then you are a true-blue cat lover. If yes, then you would be delighted to know that there’s a hidden ‘cat’ village in Taiwan where you can play and feed as many cats as you want.

Recently, a Singapore-based digital creator who goes by the name Squashy visited Taiwan’s secret gem, the Houtong Cat Village, situated just an hour away from Taiwan’s capital, Taipei. The village is home to hundreds of stray cats, roaming freely, unafraid of the tourists. How cool is that?

What to do at Houtong Cat Village

The video opened to the digital creator arriving at the Houtong Cat Village. The moment he got out of the train station, he was greeted by a cat. The charming village, surrounded by hills, offers serenity, while the cats and kittens that approach you with their stealthy steps can fill your heart with glee.



The house walls located inside the village are beautifully decorated with colourful murals and illustrations of cats. There are several cat paths and jumping platforms hung on the walls and at multiple corners in the village for the felines to enter and play. Since all the cats here are very friendly, you are also allowed to pet, play and feed them with cat food.

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More about Houtong Cat Village

Almost every structure in this village, be it an outdoor handwashing station, a metallic bridge overlooking the pristine landscape, or a simple water fountain, is either cat-shaped or cat-themed. There’s also a goofy statue featuring a sitting cat. After you are done petting these adorable animals, you can also visit the cafes lined up along the pathways and treat yourself to some light meals and beverages. Cats will accompany you here as well.

The Houtong Cat Village was previously a coal-mining town during the Japanese colonial period in the 1920s. But after the coal mining industry declined, the village soon became deserted, with only a few people residing. Cut to 2008, a local resident who was also a cat lover encouraged locals to adopt stray cats, paving the way for the Houtong cat phenomenon and ultimately putting Houtong back on the Taiwan map. The Houtong cats are mostly strays and they have been sterilised and vaccinated.