Discovering the Matsu Islands
by Derek Arthur
The Matsu Islands lie in the Taiwan Strait, the body of water that separates Taiwan from mainland China. The islands are administrated by Taiwan, some 120 miles to the south, but at their closest point, a mere twenty-minute ferry ride from the coast of mainland China’s Fuzhou province. Because of its location, in the late 1940s, this once quiet cluster of fishing villages was jolted into the front lines during the Chinese Civil War and continued cross-strait tensions, a period of over forty years that reshaped the region's landscape, economy, way of life and even its identity.
The Matsu archipelago have only been open to tourism since 1994 and are still largely unheard of even in many parts of Greater China, which generally includes mainland China, Taiwan, Hong Kong and Macau. However, the islands, rich in natural beauty and teeming with former military strongholds and tunnels offer travelers a unique peek into a less-trekked face of the region, shaped by war and redefining itself in the modern day. Explore the features below to experience a bit of Matsu for yourself.