Meet Mikan 蜜柑, Kaohsiung’s cutest station cat. Mikan has a huge social following, her own range of cute kitty merchandise and makes regular appearances at a Kaohsiung Metro KRTC station (KRTC stands for Kaohsiung Rapid Transit Corporation).
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A stray cat adopted by Kaohsiung station staff, Mikan the cat’s fanbase is growing all the time and hundreds flock to Ciaotou Sugar Refiner Kaohsiung Metro station every time she appears (often in costume). The station is even cat-themed, plus a bakery next door sells cat shaped steamed buns.
Most recently in early 2025, Kaohsiung’s KRTC have signed a major Mikan merchandising and branding deal which is set to cat-apult (sorry) Mikan to global stardom, making Mikan big in Japan!
We recently went to one of Mikan’s regular in-person…we mean in-cat appearances, and also visited the popular Mikan Cat gift-shop at Zuoying station. Mikan celebrates her 5th birthday in 2025 so there are lots of anniversary events planned!
From what you can buy (including Mikan jam) to how to find out about her appearances, here is our guide to Mikan 蜜柑, Kaohsiung’s station cat with her own feline fan-base.
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Who is Mikan the cat 蜜柑?
Kaohsiung’s cutest ‘working’ cat, Mikan was a stray Kaohsiung kitty who was born on 4 April 2020, found and adopted by the staff at Ciaotou Sugar Refinery KRTC Station.
Mikan became a regular fixture at the station and became an Honorary Station Mister Cat.
Videos of her exploring Kaohsiung’s stations and wearing cat costumes then become viral.
KRTC Mikan now has over 185k Instagram followers (more than our Taiwanderers Instagram that is for sure!) and pops up everywhere, from gorgeous gifts to gachapon toys, t-shirts to trams (yes, Mikan has even had a Kaohsiung LRT tram branded with her likeness once) – what a star!
As she is a cute ball of ginger fluff, she was named Mikan, the Japanese phrase for an orange.
At Ciaotou Sugar Refinery Station, such is Mikan’s popularity, you’ll find her paw prints on the platforms, cat-themed post boxes and items plus even a Mikan sticker machine (there are bigger Mikan gift-shops at other Kaohsiung MRT stations – more on this later).
So famous, she has even met Taiwan’s President and Kaohsiung’s Mayor – now that is one sure fine celebr-kitty!
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Mikan’s monthly appearances and home station
As well as regular updates, photos and videos on Mikan’s official Instagram account, Mikan usually makes a once a month appearance at her adopted home, Ciaotou Sugar Refinery Station MRT station in Kaohsiung.
Her monthly appearance date is listed on the bio of the KRTC Mikan 蜜柑 Instagram page. She usually appears on a weekend for several hours.
We were lucky enough to coincide our latest 2025 Kaohsiung visit with one of Mikan’s monthly appearances – it was amazing to see so many people had turned up to see Mikan, armed with cameras.
No wonder Mikan chose to stay in the ticketing office the whole time, wrapped up in a Mikan branded blanket (of course)!
Mikan seemed nonplussed (or should that be nonpussed?) by all the people and spent most of her time cat-napping.
Away from the crowds, Mikan lives at the station and is generally away from the public eye, having her own quiet ‘working space’ and often being photographed for social media.
Incidentally, we recommend a visit to the old The Qiaotou Sugar Factory near Mikan’s MRT station.
Opened in 1901 and ceased production in 1999, you can freely wander around the grounds and former works. It is now a historical park with lots to see including coi carp ponds, old railway carriages & interesting galleries & museums (all free to visit).
There is even a delicious steamed bun stall 橋頭太成肉包 糖廠店 (next to the Ciaotou Sugar Refinery Station MRT station) that sells cat shaped buns and treats! Find it here on Google Maps >
Try this – Kaohsiung tours and day-trips with Klook, Viator or Get Your Guide
Mikan merchandise / gift shop
Cute Kawaii merchandise is nothing new and unsurprisingly, Mikan the Cat 蜜柑 has a huge range of cartoon themed merchandise; some of the gifts feature photos whilst other products have a cartoon version of Mikan.
We finally made the ‘pilgrimage’ to the Mikan gift shop in early 2025 to get our ‘paws’ on some souvenirs. Amazingly, it was one of the busiest gift shops we’ve seen in Taiwan so Mikan must have lots of fans.
There is a massive range of Mikan merchandise to buy, with over 100 branded souvenirs to choose from. The main Mikan gift-shop is at Zuoying MRT station (just below Kaohsiung’s Zuoying HSR station).
We spotted everything from gachapon toys to jars of jam, back-scratchers to bags! Maybe they should launch a Mikan suitcase so you buy more and bring it home easily?
There is also a second Kaohsiung KRTC gift-shop with Mikan merchandise immediately next to the famous Dome of Light installation at Formosa Boulevard MRT. If you are in Kaohsiung for a few days, we’d also recommend adding the Dome of Light to your Kaohsiung itinerary.
Check the opening times and locations of both KRTC / Mikan gift shops here >
You might like – Our guide to the best gifts and souvenirs to buy in Taiwan >
Mikan goes global
Mikan is very much a cash-cow…sorry…cash-cat for Kaohsiung and in 2024, the Mikan gift shop alone sold over NT$10 million of gifts and souvenirs.
90% of Mikan’s fan-base is from Taiwan but an increasing amount of tourists from overseas have been visiting Mikan and her gift shop (especially from Japan and Hong Kong).
2025 is set to be Mikan’s biggest year yet with a new branding deal just signed which will see more Mikan products launched in Taiwan plus in Japan. Maybe Mikan will visit the Land of the Rising Sun soon?
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Other Kaohsiung station cats
Mikan isn’t the only ‘working’ station cat in Kaohsiung. In 2025, New Zuoying HSR station in Kaohsiung unveiled a new cat play area home to three stray cats that have been adopted by station staff.
The cats, including Shrimal the black cat have their own play area at the First North Entrance, just meters away from the main concourse at New Zuoying Station (which is also from where the Taiwan Sanrio Train departs in Kaohsiung).
Travellers can watch the cats at play from behind a cordon – when we visited, all three cats were having a fun time, with several of the station staff entertaining them with toys.
Read our guide to the Zuoying Station cats in Kaohsiung here >
You might like – Our guide to Houtong Cat Village, near Taipei on the Pingxi Line
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