In the 1980s the popularity of huge man-made gardens and amusement parks started to take hold in Taiwan, and the ecotourism industry took a huge blow. This was the beginning of Wulai's downward slide.
民國七十年代台灣開始盛行大型人工花園和遊樂園，打擊了自然風景區的觀光業，烏來也開始沒落。