阿里山國家風景區位於臺灣嘉義縣東部，是由交通部觀光局規劃與管理的一座國家級風景特定區，設立於2001年。其範圍涵蓋了位於阿里山鄉、仍由林務局經營管理的阿里山國家森林遊樂區，並且擴大至附近的梅山鄉、竹崎鄉和番路鄉一帶的知名風景區[1]。
阿里山實際上並不是一座山的名稱，只是特定範圍的統稱，正確說法應是「阿里山區」，地理上屬於阿里山山脈主山脈的一部份，東鄰玉山山脈，北接雪山山脈。某些資料指稱阿里山又名塔山，標高2,484公尺，實則不然：塔山為「阿里山區」之最高峰，標高2,663公尺。阿里山區的林相豐富，從亞熱帶的闊葉林到寒帶的針葉林都有。800公尺以下丘陵為熱帶林相，主要由相思樹、構樹構成。800～1,000公尺是以樟樹、楓樹、楠樹和殼斗科植物為主的暖帶林相。1,800～3,000公尺左右的林相為溫帶林，紅檜、臺灣扁柏、台灣肖楠、鐵杉及華山松稱為阿里山五木在此大量生長，阿里山的千年檜木群是目前臺灣最密集的巨木群。3,000～3,500公尺主要是臺灣冷杉，呈現寒帶林的林相[1]。阿里山國家森林遊樂區位於嘉義縣阿里山鄉東北部，即阿里山森林鐵路終點一帶，是由林務局規劃管理的一座國家森林遊樂區，也就是傳統上「阿里山風景區」的所在地。 區內自然景觀極為豐富，日出、雲海、晚霞、神木與鐵道並列為「阿里山五奇」，而「阿里山雲海」更是台灣八景之一[3]。但在原阿里山神木傾倒後，林務局改以阿里山神木群取代之。此外尚有沼平公園、姐妹潭、祝山等景點。阿里山森林鐵路為台灣迄今僅有的兩條仍處於營運狀態的高山森林鐵路之一（另一條是太平山森林鐵路），完工於1914年，興建時主要用途是輸送阿里山林場產出之木材。1963年林場砍伐業務結束後，客運與觀光成為該鐵路的主要功能。 其路線包括一條起點為嘉義市嘉義車站、終點為嘉義縣阿里山鄉阿里山車站的主線，以及眾多遍布於阿里山區的木材搬運支線所構成。今日開放客運的部分，包括主線、一條早期搬運支線「眠月線」（921震災中損毀，至今仍在維修中）及一條為方便遊客觀賞日出而修築的「祝山線」。 為方便旅客前往參觀水山巨木（新神木），林務局又修復了水山支線，但至今仍未營運，目前沿線作為遊客步道使用。
座標 Coordination
N24 59.756 E121 32.108
Alishan is 415 square kilometres (41,500 ha) in area. Notable characteristics include mountain wilderness, four villages, waterfalls, high altitude tea plantations, the Alishan Forest Railway, and a number of hiking trails. The area is popular with tourists and mountain climbers. Alishan, itself has become one of the major landmarks associated with Taiwan. The area is famous for its production of high mountain tea and wasabi.[citation needed] Alishan is well known for its sunrises, and on a suitable morning one can observe the sun come up on a sea of clouds in the area between Alishan and Yüshan. Alishan, along with Taroko Gorge and Sun Moon Lake, is one of Taiwan's most popular scenic attractions. The Alishan area was originally settled by the Tsou tribe of the Taiwanese aborigines; the name derives from the aboriginal word Jarissang. Ethnic Han Chinese settlers first settled on the plains near modern-day Chiayi as early as the late Ming Dynasty (around the mid-17th century), but did not move into the mountains until the late 18th century, establishing the towns of Ruili (瑞里), Ruifeng (瑞峰), Xiding (隙頂), and Fenqihu (奮起湖). The resulting armed clashes between the settlers and the aborigines pushed the aborigines even further into the mountains.[citation needed] Following the cession of Taiwan to Japan at the end of the First Sino-Japanese War, Japanese expeditions to the area found large quantities of cypress (檜木, or hinoki in Japanese). This led to the development of the logging industry in the area and the export of local cypress and Taiwania wood. A series of narrow-gauge railways were built in the area during this time to facilitate the transportation of lumber from the mountains to the plains below, part of which continues to operate as the Alishan Forest Railway. Several new villages also began to sprout up along the railway lines. It was also during this time that the first tourists began to visit the area. Plans were even drawn up to incorporate the area into the new Niitaka (New Highest) Arisan National Park (新高阿里山国立公園).[citation needed] With the exhaustion of forest resources by the 1970s, domestic and international tourism overtook logging to become the primary economic activity in the area. The tourism industry continued to expand with the completion of the Alishan highway in the 1980s, displacing the railroad as the primary mode of transportation up the mountain. To combat the problems associated with the growing crowds of tourists and the expanding tea and wasabi plantations, the area was declared a national scenic area in 2001.[citation needed] On 1 December 2014, fire broke out at Alishan spreading over more than 5 hectares of land. The area affected was located near Tapang No. 3 Bridge. The fire was believed to happen due to dry ground which was vulnerable to fire because of the absence of rain in the area for months.[1] Fenqihu (奮起湖) is a small town of low wooden buildings built into the mountainside at 1,400 meters, midpoint of the Alishan Forest Railway. It is famous for natural rock formations, mountain streams, forests, and the ruins of a Shinto temple in the vicinity, as well as for its production of high altitude food products such as bamboo shoots and aiyu jelly (愛玉). The local box lunches (奮起湖便當, Fenqihu bento) are known across Taiwan and are sold from stalls at the train station and from Fenqihu Hotel on the Fenqihu Old Street[2] Fenqihu is currently the terminal end of the Alishan Forest Railway line from Chiayi to Alishan,[3] since the railway was heavily damaged by Typhoon Morakot in 2009 and only the Chiayi to Fenqihu portion was reopened in 2014.[4]
cited from wiki, 交通部觀光局