Upcoming trip to Taipei – Advice welcome on things to do, transport, food and accommodation options

[Dr Ralph]

Not sure whether I've made a rash decision or not, but today I decided to book a return flight to Taipei. Qantas point offer for a classic award booking with China Airlines was just too attractive to ignore and I was very surprised to find direct business class seats available during NSW school holidays. Taxes also very good value.



So I've got a flight from Sydney to Taipei on October 1. Returning to Australia after 10 nights.



Never been here before, so would be very grateful for any information previous travelers have on things like, where to stay in Taipei, where to eat in Taipei, must see places in Taipei, transport in Taipei, etc. Also interested in ideas of what to do for a 2 or 3 night trip somewhere out of Taipei – suggestions of where to go/how to get there, approximate cost etc.



Welcome any and all suggestions – even those that may think that I've made a rash decision. I can still cancel for just a 5000 point QFF penalty.

Any comments on the lounge for China Airlines in Taipei?

Buy some local currency before I get there? Or is it easy to change AUD$ or US$ into local currency when on the ground?

 

[jboy90]

Following with interest

 

[Dr Ralph]

Following with interest

Me too!

 

[cjd600]

You can change for 5000, cancel will cost you 6000

 

[Dr Ralph]

You can change for 5000, cancel will cost you 6000

Hope it doesn't come to that.

 

[cjd600]

Hope it doesn't come to that.

I'm sure it wont!

 

[Dr Ralph]

I'm sure it wont!

I've started to do some reading about what things there are to see and do. Looks like I will be able to fill in 10 days. Still very intetested in others views/suggestions.

Does look like the AUD is doing fairly well there on the cross rates. But hoping that things aren't too expensive as well as having a good currency conversion rate means very little if a big mac or a beer still work out at $20AUD

 

[Hvr]

I was there a few years ago and can only say go and enjoy. Taipei 101 tower is well worth a visit.

Tarako Gorge is an absolute must see. I did a one day tour from Taipei and would've loved to have spent more time there.

https://www.walkmyworld.com.au/posts/things-to-do-taroko-gorge-taiwan

Taroko National Park - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

There are lots of things to see such as:

National Chiang Kai-shek Memorial Hall Chiang Kai-Shek Musuem,

National Palace Museum, National Palace Museum

I found the metro system fairly easy to get around on and can recommend using where ever possible. Not much English amongst the locals but fairly well sign posted in English and with lots of pointing at the signs and looking pathetic I got where ever I wanted to without much trouble.

Have your hotel card with you at all times just in case you get lost.

Look forward to hearing about your adventures there.

 

[whughes3]

Well, I will be in Taipei most of this week, so will be able to provide up-to-date info at the end of that hopefully! I have spent quite a lot of time there over the years but this is my first visit for quite some time. The comments by @Hvr above are certainly a good start. I am staying at Caesar Park Hotel, opposite the main train station, where I have stayed previously; it is pretty good and excellent for transport connections.

 

[AIRwin]

Wow you happened to time your trip during the Golden Week - October 1 is the National Day of the People's Republic of China so there may be crowds of Chinese tourists during their 1 week national holiday... And to top it off, October 10 is the National Day of the Republic of China so you can join in the local festivities then.

 

[kpc]

I had only 1 free day during a work trip so i did the tour below which should give you some idea of what to see:
Ultimate Taipei Day Tour They have longer tours which may be of interest

Shilin night market for dinner is worthwhile. Going up Taipei 101 at dusk for sunset and night view is also worthwhile. Enough English is spoken to get around. Subway is easy and intuitive. Beware of blocked sewer smell = stinky tofu, a local favourite dish!

 

[moffat39]

Dr Ralph we flew China Airlines Brisbane to Vancouver return and had an 18 hour stop over each way. We flew PE on the flights to Vancouver and J on the return flight. As you ask about the lounge I would expect you are travelling in J. We found the seats on the 350 very comfortable in the upright position very comfortable but in the sleeping position not so comfortable for me as I am on the plus size. I can roll over on the SQ seats in J but could only roll over on the CI J seats with difficulty.

Limited choices for the menu but food was good quality. No champagne as you board and only 2 reds and 2 whites. IFE easy to use and good selection.

Hvr has some good suggestions. On the way over we booked a private tour for 8 hours with Taipei Taxi Tour Service which I would recommend. Cost was NT$3500 for the 2 of us (around AUD$160) which was great value for the 2 of us. If you use them ask for Brian. Was surprised that a lot of the attractions such as LongShan Temple, Chiang Kai-Shek Memorial Hall and Martyrs Memorial Hall have no entrance fee.

If you visit 101 try the food court in the shopping centre next door - good value at around AUD $5 to $7.

We also visited the hot springs at Beitou which is around 30 minutes from the city centre.

As to the lounge I think we went to the wrong CI lounge We saw a sign as soon as we came through immigration for CI lounge which was upstairs. Not the best of lounges. On the way to our gate (D4) we saw another lounge between D4 and D2 which looked nicer from the outside.

We would like to return to Taiwan and see more

 

[gapmatt]

I say definitely go to Taiwan! I travel to Taiwan a couple times a year.
China Airline's business class is also very good.

Food and Nature are probably the 2 main points of attraction I'd say.

Definitely visit Taipei 101, you can have lunch up high. There's a choice of Chinese or Western cuisine.
Taroko Gorge is also a must - the views are amazing. I'd advise booking a tour group to take you there.
Take a hike up Elephant Mountain for some nice views of the city and Taipei 101
You could do a short 1-2 night trip at Sun Moon Lake. I'd suggest 1 night.

I'd suggest staying in Xinyi District. Its the major area in Taipei and convenient to department stores and nice restaurants.

Food:
Eat some Pineapple cake from SunnyHills.
Beef noodle soup and milk tea from Chun Shui Tang - must!
Soy bean milk and chinese doughnuts from Fu Hang Dou Jiang
Braised pork on rice - must eat dish. It's a simple cheap dish but very famous. Popular place to go is Jin FEng Lu Rou Fan
Dumplings at Ding Tai Fung - although now available in Mel and Syd.

A google search should pull up the addresses of the above places.

In the evenings, check out the various Night Markets such as ShiLin or Raohe market. It's full of food and its a great atmosphere.

Hope the small quick snippet helps and enjoy the trip

 

[kirawn]

Hi,
i was a first time visitor to Taipei four weeks ago.
Stayed near the main train station.
Used the train to travel in from the airport.
Used both local and express trains.
Cheap and easy to use.
The main station is large and can involve a lot of walking if using different lines.
Interesting to explore the main station with lots of underground shops and restaurants.
Plenty of local restaurants in Xinyi area.,excellent night market also.
Queued with the crowds for pepper cake.
Took a day tour of the city as well as using the trains to get around.
A day tour is well worth it, taking in the sights that others have mentioned.
The city is clean and well laid out.
The people are friendly.
On arrival at the airport Australian passport holders with six months validity on their passport can register to use the E gate through Immigration.
This might be useful as the lines on arrival and departure can be very long.
On arrival i was taken through the diplomatic channel by an obliging officer but on departure I had to wait a considerable time to exit using the normal channels.

 

[Dr Ralph]

Hi,
i was a first time visitor to Taipei four weeks ago.
Stayed near the main train station.
Used the train to travel in from the airport.
Used both local and express trains.
Cheap and easy to use.
The main station is large and can involve a lot of walking if using different lines.
Interesting to explore the main station with lots of underground shops and restaurants.
Plenty of local restaurants in Xinyi area.,excellent night market also.
Queued with the crowds for pepper cake.
Took a day tour of the city as well as using the trains to get around.
A day tour is well worth it, taking in the sights that others have mentioned.
The city is clean and well laid out.
The people are friendly.
On arrival at the airport Australian passport holders with six months validity on their passport can register to use the E gate through Immigration.
This might be useful as the lines on arrival and departure can be very long.
On arrival i was taken through the diplomatic channel by an obliging officer but on departure I had to wait a considerable time to exit using the normal channels.

Thanks @kirawn. What's the name or address of the 'main' train station? Still trying to get my bearings for this new city to me.

 

[tiartrop]

Not rash decision at all, imo, I just came back from Taipei 2 weeks ago Love that place!
October is still rainy reason, so prepare the umbrella. The island is also earthquake prone, if you’re aware… if you’re not experienced with earthquakes might want to read up on what to do.

For first timers in Taipei I’d recommend:
- The night markets, I particularly like Raohe, but Shilin is the most popular one. I’d usually line up for the fried chickens and che lun bing. Try the fruit tea (bubble tea?) too.
- Taipei 101, go up to the observatory. If you don’t want, there’s a Starbucks at lv35 and you can go up there for free, apparently now they require booking, if you don’t speak Mandarin get the hotel concierge to book it.
- Chiang Kai Sek memorial hall, and also Sun Yat Sen memorial if you have time.
- Eslite bookstores, you’ll find some high-quality local artisan products there. One of the branches open 24 hour.
- Ximending shopping district, it gets really packed at night.
- Longshan temple is my favourite, but I heard the others are nice too.
- Din Tai Fung, and try the Xiao Long Bao, of course. The price there is a fraction of the Australian branch. The one at Taipei 101 is usually packed as well the original one near Dongmen station.

If you have more time:
- Taipei Zoo - they have pandas there.
- Maokong gondola, if you can wait a bit opt for the glass bottom one.
- National Palace Museum, see the famous jade cabbage and meat stone. I think you have to take a bus/taxi there and last time I visited there the place was packed!
- Elephant mountain, it’s quite a hike… 400 steps up? You get a nice view of Taipei 101 but skip this if you don’t have much time.
- Taipei Main Station has underground mall, it’s geared more towards young people (a lot of toys).

Stay:
I actually like to stay a bit out of the crowd, but if you need to be right smack in the middle of everything, anywhere in Ximending or Zhongxiao Fuxing is probably where things are happening. Xinyi is a little quieter, but because it’s full of high end shopping malls and restaurants, it doesn’t interest me as much, a friend who goes to Taipei regularly for work prefers this area though, “night life” is happening here.

Transport:
If you’re not travelling alone, Taipei taxi is cheap, 70 ntd starting fare, I think. Taipei Metro is very convenient and clean as well, 16-20 ntd per trip for short distance ones. Taxi from TPE to Taipei is 1200++ ntd. They now have MRT from TPE to Taipei Main Station for 160 ntd one way, though I must say Taipei Main Station is quite confusing to navigate.

For out of Taipei:
- Pingxi - light up lantern in the middle of train tracks
- Jiufen
- Yehliu Geo Park
- Sun and Moon Lake
- Taroko Gorge

Each one will take 1-2 days. I managed to get around Taiwan with my meagre Mandarin, but for the sake of convenience I’d say organise these trips with a local tour agency. Also things are pretty cheap in Taiwan, at least compared to Australia, also people are very nice so they'd help you around.

I hope that helps. Enjoy your holiday there!

 

[Dr Ralph]

Not rash decision at all, imo, I just came back from Taipei 2 weeks ago Love that place!
October is still rainy reason, so prepare the umbrella. The island is also earthquake prone, if you’re aware… if you’re not experienced with earthquakes might want to read up on what to do.

For first timers in Taipei I’d recommend:
- The night markets, I particularly like Raohe, but Shilin is the most popular one. I’d usually line up for the fried chickens and che lun bing. Try the fruit tea (bubble tea?) too.
- Taipei 101, go up to the observatory. If you don’t want, there’s a Starbucks at lv35 and you can go up there for free, apparently now they require booking, if you don’t speak Mandarin get the hotel concierge to book it.
- Chiang Kai Sek memorial hall, and also Sun Yat Sen memorial if you have time.
- Eslite bookstores, you’ll find some high-quality local artisan products there. One of the branches open 24 hour.
- Ximending shopping district, it gets really packed at night.
- Longshan temple is my favourite, but I heard the others are nice too.
- Din Tai Fung, and try the Xiao Long Bao, of course. The price there is a fraction of the Australian branch. The one at Taipei 101 is usually packed as well the original one near Dongmen station.

If you have more time:
- Taipei Zoo - they have pandas there.
- Maokong gondola, if you can wait a bit opt for the glass bottom one.
- National Palace Museum, see the famous jade cabbage and meat stone. I think you have to take a bus/taxi there and last time I visited there the place was packed!
- Elephant mountain, it’s quite a hike… 400 steps up? You get a nice view of Taipei 101 but skip this if you don’t have much time.
- Taipei Main Station has underground mall, it’s geared more towards young people (a lot of toys).

Stay:
I actually like to stay a bit out of the crowd, but if you need to be right smack in the middle of everything, anywhere in Ximending or Zhongxiao Fuxing is probably where things are happening. Xinyi is a little quieter, but because it’s full of high end shopping malls and restaurants, it doesn’t interest me as much, a friend who goes to Taipei regularly for work prefers this area though, “night life” is happening here.

Transport:
If you’re not travelling alone, Taipei taxi is cheap, 70 ntd starting fare, I think. Taipei Metro is very convenient and clean as well, 16-20 ntd per trip for short distance ones. Taxi from TPE to Taipei is 1200++ ntd. They now have MRT from TPE to Taipei Main Station for 160 ntd one way, though I must say Taipei Main Station is quite confusing to navigate.

For out of Taipei:
- Pingxi - light up lantern in the middle of train tracks
- Jiufen
- Yehliu Geo Park
- Sun and Moon Lake
- Taroko Gorge

Each one will take 1-2 days. I managed to get around Taiwan with my meagre Mandarin, but for the sake of convenience I’d say organise these trips with a local tour agency. Also things are pretty cheap in Taiwan, at least compared to Australia, also people are very nice so they'd help you around.

I hope that helps. Enjoy your holiday there!

@tiartrop appreciate the effort you've gone to with your first ever posting. I'm sure other members would welcome exactly these types of contributions in the future. Please don't leave it another 5 years before you post again

 

[yohy?!]

Taiwan is amazing, TPE is the MEL to my SYD (HKG).

Go to as many night markets as you can in Taipei (all on Google maps)

Maokong gondola for afternoon tea in gorgeous mountains (bring aeroguard though)

Zhongshan for more upmarket shopping and restaurants.

Check Timeout website for new restaurants and bars as these change often. YouTube is an excellent resource for vlogger reviews on eating and drinking

Take high speed rail to one or more of the southern cities for a couple of days to get a feel for the more agriculturally focused areas

Enjoy and try and help out some locals practice their English, Taiwanese are lovely people

 

[tizey]

Following with very keen interest - I've got 3 days in Taipei early October on our way home from Japan, flying TPE-MEL on China Airlines.

Perhaps if our paths cross I can buy you a beer. I feel its the least I could do for all your informative posts Dr Ralph.

 

[pagingjoan]

Dr Ralph, you have had some great suggestions already - and a particularly impressive list from tiartrop!
My experience in Taipei is now rather dated, so I will leave the general recommendations to those with more recent visits.
But you might be interested in the Grand Hotel, if you would like something historic and away from the standard offerings.
Links to the home page and to the history here:

The Grand Hotel

www.grand-hotel.org

Grand Hotel (Taipei) - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org