Da Tian Hou Gong
Da Tian Hou Gong
4
What people are saying
OrderintheHouse
By OrderintheHouse
This temple, whilst not on our original tour itinerary, was for us a very pleasing added extra.
Jan 2020
My wife and I enjoyed a 6 night Wendy Wu private tour of Taiwan as part of our 18 day Asian trip to celebrate our 40th wedding anniversary. Our tour took in Taipei, Taroko Gorge, Sun Moon Lake, Tainan and Kaohsiung. The visit to Tainan incorporated a number of religious, cultural and historical attractions and one of these was the Grand Matsu Temple, also known as the Da Tian Hou Gong or Great Queen of Heaven Temple. This temple is just a short 3 minutes walk away from the Chihkan Tower (Fort Provintia) which we had visited earlier. The Grand Matsu Temple, constructed in 1664, was originally the palace of Zhu Shugui, known as the Prince of Ningjing. It was renovated in 1765 and again in 1775, when it assumed its current appearance. It fell into disrepair after a fire in 1818 and was partially rebuilt after damage from an earthquake in 1946. This Grand Matsu Temple was the first official Matsu temple built in Taiwan. For over 300 years the Grand Matsu Temple has become an important cultural and religious centre for Taiwanese people. A telling piece of legendary history occurred here in the Main Hall, when in 1683, the Prince of Ningjing and his five concubines committed suicide following the imminent surrender of his dynasty to the Qing empire. We enjoyed this temple experience. There are five halls that can be visited (the Main Hall, Worship Hall, Sacred Parent’s Hall, San-Bao Hall and the Guanyin Hall). The ones we visited had their own unique set of temple treasures and cultural relics and god statues. The Main Hall has a most magnificent 300 year old statue of Mazu (the Legendary Chinese Sea Goddess) with a golden face, flanked by statues of the lesser gods of Thousand-Miles Eye and Tailwind Ear. She is about four metres tall and is wearing a crown with nine beaded tassels and a splendid royal gown. This Mazu masterpiece takes centre stage as the stand out feature of this temple visit. The three bronzed San-Bao Buddhas in the San-Bao Hall, sitting behind a smiling pink Buddha, were also impressive. In one of the halls there was a most unusually constructed black wooden ceiling with solid wooden cross beams, that caught our eye. The temple is a richly carved wooden building. The main entrance to the temple is very beautiful. There are two most elaborate finely-etched stone dragon columns flanking the centre doors guarded by a male and female lion statue on either side. There are also two side doors and we observed temple etiquette by entering from the left door and leaving from the door on the right, avoiding the centre door which is reserved for the gods. This temple was not on our original tour itinerary. However it contains so much history and magnificent art treasures that it was for us a very pleasing added extra. .

Suggest edits to improve what we show.
Improve this listing
The area
Neighborhood: West Central District/ North District
The West Central District is the most populous and the busiest area. A lot of shops and hotels crowd the district, and the long-standing history results in a variety of street food. In addition to that, this district also has the highest number of temples. This is how it got the name “Tainan’s Pantheon.” Historic buildings are literally ubiquitous. For example, Hayashi Department Store, National Museum of Taiwan Literature, Confucius Temple, Chihkan Tower (formerly Fort Provintia), Sacrificial Rites Martial Temple, Tainan Grand Mazu (name of a goddess) Temple, etc. Recently, the tourism in Tainan has laid emphasis on alleys and lanes. Examples include Fujhong Street specialising in creative handicrafts, as-you-stroll desserts on Jhengsing Street, Shennong Street lined with hundred-year-old ancient houses, Sinyi Street on which the old city gate stands, Sinmei Street where old and new cultures fuse together, and Guohua Street and Baoan Raod famous for all the savoury food. All the traditional and delicious food and flavours are about to burst in your mouth. The North District, on the other hand, is a quiet secret hideaway. Lane 321 on Gongyuan Road used to be a Japanese soldiers’ dormitory. Now a few artists have set up their studios here. There are diversified art styles in each old Japanese-style house. The Garden Night Market on Haian Road is one of the famous night markets in both Tainan and Taiwan, and was the top 12 Facebook check-in location worldwide in 2013.
Detailed Reviews: Reviews order informed by descriptiveness of user-identified themes such as cleanliness, atmosphere, general tips and location information.

4.0
127 reviews
Excellent
35
Very good
61
Average
29
Poor
1
Terrible
1

backpacker31
Boynton Beach, FL5,425 contributions
Oct 2014
I've been in and out of at least 30 temples during my last three weeks in Taiwan - all are quite ornate and offer a similar experience. This temple, however, also known as Matsu Temple not only offered the usual elaborate carvings, paintings and halls filled with incense, but it also provided a tangible history lesson. The fact that this temple was once the home of King Ning Jin and that his bedroom - the rear room (now a shrine to Matsu's parents), was where his five concubines hung themselves (the crossbeam is still there) added an entirely new and most fascinating dimension to this temple.
Written October 15, 2014
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

RonA_Plymouth
Plymouth, UK1,206 contributions
May 2014 • Couples
The temple is in the centre of historical district, it appears to be a bit of a mixture of things which adds to its interest. If you are going to the historical make sure you see this one.
Written May 9, 2014
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Jarko2015
Amsterdam, The Netherlands1,753 contributions
Sep 2016
Definitely a must see and very close to the Chihkan Tower, this free temple is much more interesting than it's fee charging neighbour. Some really spectacular shrines, spread over many small courtyards, leading off the main shrine.
Written September 24, 2016
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

al7jj
Portland, OR177 contributions
Oct 2015 • Family
This is an old and very active temple. Tian Hou is one of the deities in Chinese popular religion, and the temple is very much a site for regular worship.
Written October 7, 2015
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

OrderintheHouse
Brisbane2,800 contributions
Jan 2020
My wife and I enjoyed a 6 night Wendy Wu private tour of Taiwan as part of our 18 day Asian trip to celebrate our 40th wedding anniversary. Our tour took in Taipei, Taroko Gorge, Sun Moon Lake, Tainan and Kaohsiung.

The visit to Tainan incorporated a number of religious, cultural and historical attractions and one of these was the Grand Matsu Temple, also known as the Da Tian Hou Gong or Great Queen of Heaven Temple. This temple is just a short 3 minutes walk away from the Chihkan Tower (Fort Provintia) which we had visited earlier.

The Grand Matsu Temple, constructed in 1664, was originally the palace of Zhu Shugui, known as the Prince of Ningjing. It was renovated in 1765 and again in 1775, when it assumed its current appearance. It fell into disrepair after a fire in 1818 and was partially rebuilt after damage from an earthquake in 1946. This Grand Matsu Temple was the first official Matsu temple built in Taiwan. For over 300 years the Grand Matsu Temple has become an important cultural and religious centre for Taiwanese people. A telling piece of legendary history occurred here in the Main Hall, when in 1683, the Prince of Ningjing and his five concubines committed suicide following the imminent surrender of his dynasty to the Qing empire.

We enjoyed this temple experience. There are five halls that can be visited (the Main Hall, Worship Hall, Sacred Parent’s Hall, San-Bao Hall and the Guanyin Hall). The ones we visited had their own unique set of temple treasures and cultural relics and god statues. The Main Hall has a most magnificent 300 year old statue of Mazu (the Legendary Chinese Sea Goddess) with a golden face, flanked by statues of the lesser gods of Thousand-Miles Eye and Tailwind Ear. She is about four metres tall and is wearing a crown with nine beaded tassels and a splendid royal gown. This Mazu masterpiece takes centre stage as the stand out feature of this temple visit. The three bronzed San-Bao Buddhas in the San-Bao Hall, sitting behind a smiling pink Buddha, were also impressive. In one of the halls there was a most unusually constructed black wooden ceiling with solid wooden cross beams, that caught our eye.

The temple is a richly carved wooden building. The main entrance to the temple is very beautiful. There are two most elaborate finely-etched stone dragon columns flanking the centre doors guarded by a male and female lion statue on either side. There are also two side doors and we observed temple etiquette by entering from the left door and leaving from the door on the right, avoiding the centre door which is reserved for the gods.

This temple was not on our original tour itinerary. However it contains so much history and magnificent art treasures that it was for us a very pleasing added extra.

.
Written June 26, 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Anonymous855
Trabuco Canyon, California1,653 contributions
Apr 2019 • Friends
We enjoyed the humor of the screen and projector showing "Pirates of the Caribbean" in English to anyone who wanted to pause in the parking area in front of the temple. People were sitting on their scooters and on small plastic chairs. I was seriously tempted to join them but I have seen this move so many times.
Written April 19, 2019
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Bowi72
Kriftel, Germany319 contributions
Apr 2019 • Couples
This temple is not to be missed, it is very lively, people are walking in and out to do their daily worships. You can just walk-in and observe what’s happening, as long as you do not disturb the locals. The air is full of incents and there are some really beautifully carved stone-dragon pillars, especially at the entrance. Don’t forget to look at the roof too, it is telling its own story, it is full with little figurines, dragons and phoenixes. There is no admission fee asked for.
Written April 11, 2019
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

James C
Burnaby, Canada1,840 contributions
Jan 2019 • Solo
There are countless temples in this area of Tainan, and this is one of the bigger famous ones. Worth a visit.
Written January 12, 2019
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

tieneit
Penang, MY103 contributions
Dec 2018 • Friends
This is one of the oldest temple worshipping Matsu, Goddess of the sea. There's English translation on the history of the temple and introduction for each deity statues.
Written December 25, 2018
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Bryan H
Portland, OR1,782 contributions
Dec 2018 • Couples
In addition to the usual sights, the day we went a bus load or two of people on a pilgrimage came here for a ceremony that was dramatic and mesmerizing, but I have no idea what was really going on. Lots of flute/trumpet playing, drums inside being hit, and general commotion that kept us mesmerized. I want to go back to this temple later to fully take in all the details. Too much to grasp the first time around, I think. Very active. Later, we heard a lot of firecrackers being set off in front of this temple!
Written December 19, 2018
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Showing results 1-10 of 14
Is this your Tripadvisor listing?
Own or manage this property? Claim your listing for free to respond to reviews, update your profile and much more.
Claim your listing

Da Tian Hou Gong, West Central District

Frequently Asked Questions about Da Tian Hou Gong




Da Tian Hou Gong Information

Excellent Reviews35
Very Good Reviews61
Da Tian Hou Gong Photos148