Fengshui holds that an auspicious location balances the influences of four celestial animals, the "Dark Turtle," the "Cerulean Dragon," the "White Tiger" and the "Vermillion Bird." Further, these animals must be represented in the landscape at the cardinal directions. Hengchun's builders chose to locate the town atop Santai Hill at the tail end of the Central Mountain Range.
根據《恆春縣志》所載，當年督辦築城者對堪輿頗有研究，選定的縣城位於三台山，是中央山脈餘脈的尾端，作為玄武主山。