Traversing the mountainous region along the northeast coast of Taiwan, from Nanshenghu in Ilan County in the north to Tienpu in Hualien County in the south, the railway is part of the planned round-the-island system.
北迴鐵路蜿蜒在台灣東北部的崇山峻嶺之間，北起宜蘭南聖湖，連接宜蘭線鐵路；南抵花蓮田浦，和花東鐵路聯軌，全長八一．六公里。