It is Taiwan's largest county by area, yet due to its mountainous terrain, has one of the lowest populations in the country.

Most of its population resides in the Huadong Valley, which runs north to south between the Central and Hai'an mountain ranges.

[citation needed] Much of modern-day Hualien County was populated by the Sakizaya people before the arrival of the Spanish, Dutch, and Han Chinese under Qing annexation.

As of February 2023, Hualien's organic cultivation area was 3,175 hectares (7,850 acres), the largest of any county in the country.

[2] Modern-day Hualien City was originally called Kilai (Chinese: 奇萊; Pe̍h-ōe-jī: Kî-lâi), after the Sakizaya Taiwanese indigenous peoples' settlement.

Picking up the sounds of native words, these settlers called the area Turumoan (多羅滿; To-lô-boán).

Qing dynasty records give the name of the region as Huilan (洄瀾; Hoê-liân; 'eddies') due to the whirling of waters in the delta.

Today the Hualien area serves as the key population center on the east coast it is one of the five main 'life circle' regions in Taiwan, together with Taipei, Taichung, Tainan and Kaohsiung.

On 2 April 2021, a Taroko Express derailed at the north entrance of Qingshui Tunnel after striking an unattended flatbed truck that had fallen onto the tracks.

Subtropical plains, with a mean width around 3–6 km (1.9–3.7 mi), dominate the valleys between both mountain ranges.

Due to the inhospitable nature of the surrounding mountainous terrain, Hualien people reside mostly on the alluvial fans of the Huatung Valley plains.

Its late development means that many aboriginal cultures such as Amis, Atayal, Bunun, Truku, Sakizaya, and Kavalan are well-preserved.

According to a 2015 survey on national happiness index, Hualien County was rated as the happiest place to live in Taiwan among other 20 counties and cities due to strong levels of satisfaction with work-life balance, living condition, education, environmental quality and the performance of the local government.

Because of its captivating scenic view, fresh air, fine weather, and plenty of well-maintained bike trails, Hualien County is a destination for cyclist enthusiasts and marathon runners.

Due to its power plant, Hoping is also the location of a deep water bulk cargo port.

Other natural areas include the Liyu Lake, Shihtiping, Mugua River Gorge, Walami Trail, Niushan Huting, East Rift Valley, Rareseed Ranch, Lintianshan Forestry Culture Park, and Qixingtan Beach.