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Travel guide
Taipei
4 days · 8 things to do
Best time to go: October to December, and March to April
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Welcome
Taipei, in a few days
A capital of 2.5 million in a basin ringed by volcanic mountains, Taipei has a 508-metre tower, the tallest in the world from 2004 to 2010, and a museum holding some 700,000 pieces of the Chinese imperial collection. Its night markets stay open until midnight.
- Day by day
- D1 Day 1 2 things
- D2 Day 2 2 things
- D3 Day 3 2 things
- D4 Day 4 2 things
- Worth sorting before you go
- Words that help
- The practical page
- Packing checklist
The trip
Day by day
Map of the sights (numbers follow the suggested order). It prints with the base map.
D1
Day 1
2 things to do · at your own pace
- Morning · Taipei 101 · about 1 hFive hundred and eight metres and 101 floors, the tallest building in the world until 2010, its eight flared sections recalling bamboo.
- Afternoon · Elephant Mountain free · about 1 hTwenty minutes of concrete steps from Xiangshan metro station up through subtropical forest to the rocks where Taipei 101 stands dead ahead.
🛏️ Where to sleep · amba Taipei Ximending€110 a night
D2
Day 2
2 things to do · at your own pace
- Morning · Chiang Kai-shek Memorial Hall free · about 1 hA 76-metre white octagonal hall with a blue roof, finished in 1980, reached by 89 steps, his age at death by the traditional Chinese count.
- Afternoon · Longshan Temple free · about 45 minFounded in 1738 in Wanhua, the oldest district, and rebuilt after 1945, with over a hundred deities, from Guanyin to Mazu.
🛏️ Where to sleep · Hotel Papa Whale€100 a night
D3
Day 3
2 things to do · at your own pace
- Morning · Shilin Night Market free · about 1 h 30Taipei's largest night market: fried chicken cutlets, oyster omelettes, sausage in sticky rice and stinky tofu, eaten standing or on stools.
- Afternoon · National Palace Museum · 2 to 3 hNearly 700,000 pieces of the imperial collection, moved out of the Forbidden City in 1933 and shipped to Taiwan in 1948 and 1949.
🛏️ Where to sleep · amba Taipei Zhongshan€120 a night
D4
Day 4
2 things to do · at your own pace
- Morning · Beitou hot springs · about 1 h 30A hot spring district developed by the Japanese from 1896, on its own metro branch, with a steaming Thermal Valley.
- Afternoon · Jiufen Old Street free · about 1 h 30A former gold-mining village on the hillside above the sea, north-east of Taipei, mined from the 1890s to the 1970s.
🛏️ Where to sleep · Caesar Park Taipei€140 a night
Before you go
Worth sorting before you go
📶 eSIM data
Online the moment you land, no roaming bill.
Get one · Holafly
Online the moment you land, no roaming bill.
Get one · Holafly
🛡️ Travel insurance
Health, luggage, cancellation.
Cover it · Ekta
Health, luggage, cancellation.
Cover it · Ekta
💳 Fee-free card
Pay at the real rate, with no exchange markup.
Open one · Revolut
Pay at the real rate, with no exchange markup.
Open one · Revolut
🚐 Airport transfer
A private car at a fixed price from the moment you land.
Book it · GetTransfer
A private car at a fixed price from the moment you land.
Book it · GetTransfer
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Good to know
Flavours & local habits
🍽️ Worth tasting
- Beef noodle soup: braised beef in a dark, spiced broth, the dish Taipei argues about most.
- Xiaolongbao: steamed soup dumplings, bitten carefully because of the hot broth inside.
- Bubble tea: milk tea with tapioca pearls, invented in Taiwan in the 1980s.
- Gua bao: a folded steamed bun around braised pork belly, peanut powder and coriander.
- Night market food: sausages, oyster omelette and stinky tofu, which tastes far milder than it smells.
⚠️ Best avoided
- Get an EasyCard on arrival: it pays for the metro, buses, local trains and convenience stores.
- Typhoons can hit in summer and early autumn: keep a spare day and watch the forecast.
- Keep your voice down in temples, and queue in line for the metro, where people wait either side of the doors.
- Carry small notes and coins for the night markets, where cards are rarely taken.
- Check the Taroko trail status before you go: many paths are still closed after the 2024 earthquake.
Getting by
Words that help
English ↔ Mandarin
| English | Mandarin |
|---|---|
| Hello | 你好 (nǐ hǎo) |
| Thank you | 谢谢 (xièxie) |
| Please | 请 (qǐng) |
| Yes | 是 (shì) |
| No | 不是 (bù shì) |
| Excuse me | 对不起 (duìbuqǐ) |
| Goodbye | 再见 (zàijiàn) |
| Do you speak English? | 你会说英语吗 (nǐ huì shuō yīngyǔ ma) |
| I don't understand | 我不懂 (wǒ bù dǒng) |
| How much is it? | 多少钱 (duōshǎo qián) |
| Where are the toilets? | 厕所在哪里 (cèsuǒ zài nǎlǐ) |
| The bill, please | 买单 (mǎidān) |
| Help! | 救命！ (jiùmìng!) |
| Cheers! | 干杯！ (gānbēi!) |
The essentials
The practical page
CurrencyNew Taiwan dollar (TWD)
BudgetAbout €95 a day, mid-range
Best seasonOctober to December, and March to April
PlugA/B · 110V
Tap waterBoil it first, or drink bottled
TippingNot customary; restaurants often add a 10% service charge
Emergency110 / 119
EntryVisa-free for 90 days for EU, UK, US, Canadian and Australian passports, valid for at least six months on arrival, with an onward or return ticket. Fill in the online Taiwan Arrival Card in the three days before you land.
HealthNo vaccinations required. Keep tetanus, diphtheria and polio up to date; hepatitis A is worth considering if you eat well away from the tourist trail.
Scan to open this guide online, always up to date.
https://offwegooo.com/en/guides/taipei
Don't forget
Packing checklist
Have a good trip.
Guide made on offwegooo.com · Photos via Pexels · Details are indicative, check before you leave.