Taipei travel guide
Night markets, temple smoke and hot springs on the MRT
A safe, easy capital where the night markets, beef noodle shops and temples matter as much as Taipei 101. Come from October to December or in March and April, when it is warm but not steamy, and allow four or five days including day trips. Costs are moderate, and many nationalities get up to 90 days visa-free.
Taiwan's capital fills a basin of old lakebed in the island's north, ringed by green volcanic hills and drained by two rivers that meet as the Tamsui. People come for the food above all, from night-market stalls to beef noodle counters. Temples and hot springs follow close behind, all linked by one of Asia's easiest metro systems.
The old city lies to the west. Wanhua grew up around Longshan Temple and the river trade, Dadaocheng still has its Qing and Japanese-era shophouses along Dihua Street, and the Japanese colonial grid around the Presidential Office shows where power sat after 1895. Eastward, Xinyi is all glass towers around the bamboo-stalk silhouette of Taipei 101.
Expect a city that runs on politeness and order. Queues form neatly on MRT platforms, nobody eats on the trains and convenience stores never close. Violent crime is rare, and walking alone through a night market at midnight feels entirely normal.
Weather shapes a visit more than anything. Summer days reach 35C in July with afternoon downpours and the odd typhoon, while winter is cool, grey and drizzly at around 19C. Autumn is the sweet spot.
Plan four or five days: two for the city itself, the rest for Beitou's springs, Yangmingshan's trails and a train out to Jiufen or the Pingxi valley.
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Temples and night markets in the west, memorial halls and towers in the east, and volcanic hills on every edge.
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Best time to visit Taipei
Month by month, so you can pick the weather and the crowds you want.
Highs fall from 28C in October to 21C in December and rain eases in November, so hiking Elephant Mountain is pleasant again.
Plum rains in May and June, then 33C to 35C heat with heavy afternoon rain and typhoon warnings that can close offices and shut the gondola.
Highs near 19C under low cloud; the best time for hot-spring soaks and the Lantern Festival crowds.
The Pingxi Sky Lantern Festival falls on the Lantern Festival, the 15th day of the first lunar month (usually February); trains on the Pingxi branch line are packed, so leave Taipei early.
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Getting there
Taoyuan Airport MRT and the Songshan runway in town
Most international flights land at Taiwan Taoyuan International, about 30 km west of the city. The Taoyuan Airport MRT runs from early morning to late evening, with purple Express trains reaching Taipei Main Station in roughly 38 minutes; the blue Commuter trains stop everywhere and take longer, so wait for the Express. The airport line's terminal sits a few hundred metres' walk from the city MRT platforms at Taipei Main, with an underground passage to Beimen station on the green line. Express buses from both terminals serve Taipei Main and big hotels in about 50 to 70 minutes depending on traffic, and taxis queue outside arrivals. Songshan Airport (TSA) handles shorter regional flights to Japan, Korea and mainland China and sits inside the city on the brown Wenhu MRT line. High-speed rail and conventional trains from the south arrive at Taipei Main.
- Airport MRT Express
- Taoyuan Airport to Taipei Main in about 38 minutes
- Songshan Airport
- Inside the city, on the brown Wenhu line
- Airport express buses
- 50 to 70 minutes to Taipei Main and hotels
- Taiwan High Speed Rail
- Taipei Main to Taichung and Kaohsiung
- Some airlines offer in-town bag check-in at Taipei Main's airport station; ask your airline for its hours.
- Tap an EasyCard on the Airport MRT gates rather than buying single tokens.
Where to stay
Ximending, Zhongshan or Xinyi
Base yourself near an MRT station and the rest takes care of itself. The west side is older and cheaper, the east newer and pricier.
- Zhongzheng (Taipei Main)
- Budget rooms and hostels next to every train line; busy and plain after dark
- Ximending
- Young, loud pedestrian streets and late food, a short walk from Longshan Temple; noisy weekends
- Zhongshan
- Boutique hotels, cafes and quiet lanes on the red and green lines, close to Dadaocheng
- Xinyi
- Upmarket hotels near Taipei 101 and the clubs; the most expensive area and far from the old town
- Ask whether a room has a window; many budget rooms in Ximending do not.
Getting around
Metro Taipei, EasyCard and YouBike
Metro Taipei is the answer to almost every trip. Six colour-coded lines (red Tamsui-Xinyi, blue Bannan, green Songshan-Xindian, orange Zhonghe-Xinlu, brown Wenhu and the yellow Circular) run from about 6am to midnight, with signs in English and announcements in several languages. Load an EasyCard at any station; it also pays for city buses, YouBike, convenience-store purchases and the Maokong Gondola. Eating, drinking and even chewing gum are banned past the gates, and fines are enforced. City buses fill the gaps, especially to Yangmingshan and the National Palace Museum. Taxis are yellow, metered and cheap enough for groups; Uber also works. YouBike 2.0 docks sit outside most stations, and the riverside paths along the Tamsui and Keelung rivers are flat and well signed.
- Metro Taipei
- Six lines, roughly 6am to midnight, pay with EasyCard
- YouBike 2.0
- Docked bikes citywide, unlock with an EasyCard after registering
- Maokong Gondola
- Taipei Zoo station up to the Maokong tea hills
- Stand on the right on escalators; the left lane is kept clear for walkers.
Know before you go
What makes Taipei worth the trip, and what catches visitors out.
Why travelers love it
- Longshan Temple at dusk, when worshippers throw moon blocks and incense smoke drifts under the carved dragon roofs.
- The National Palace Museum, whose jade cabbage and imperial ceramics draw queues; go at opening time.
- Elephant Mountain's stairs, a 20-minute climb from Xiangshan station to the classic view of Taipei 101.
- Beitou's sulphur valley, where the public bathhouse and Thermal Valley are a metro ride from downtown.
- Raohe Street Night Market, a single long lane of pepper buns and herbal pork ribs beside Ciyou Temple.
Good to know
- Typhoon warnings are serious; when the government declares a typhoon day, offices, the gondola and many sights close.
- Rubbish bins are scarce on the streets; convenience stores and MRT stations are where you dispose of litter.
- Pickpockets work the night markets, the one place where you should keep a hand on your bag.
- Lunar New Year shuts many small restaurants for several days, and trains out of Taipei sell out.
Trip fit
BookingMentor editorial ratings out of 5, based on a first-time visitor's experience.
Weather in Taipei, month by month
Taipei's July averages 35°C, and January stays mild at 19°C by day and 14°C at night. August is wettest, with about 237 mm in typhoon season.
Climate figures are approximate long-term averages for Taipei (Central Weather Bureau, via Wikipedia).
Three days from Wanhua's temples to the top of Taipei 101
Three days cover Taipei's core. Spend the first among the temples and shophouses of Wanhua and Dadaocheng, the second at the National Palace Museum and Chiang Kai-shek Memorial Hall, and the third on Elephant Mountain, Taipei 101 and the Maokong tea hills, with a night market every evening.
Day one, the old west. Start at Longshan Temple when the morning chanting begins, then walk the herbal-medicine alley of Bopiliao and on to Ximending for lunch. In the afternoon ride the MRT to Beimen and stroll Dihua Street in Dadaocheng, where dried mushrooms, fabric shops and teahouses fill restored shophouses. Watch sunset from the Dadaocheng Wharf by the river, then eat at Ningxia Night Market.
Day two, the capital of the Republic. Be at the National Palace Museum in Shilin when it opens; three hours is a fair visit. Ride back to Chiang Kai-shek Memorial Hall, where since 2024 the honour guard drills outside on Democracy Boulevard rather than beside the statue, and finish at Dongmen for xiaolongbao on Yongkang Street. Spend the evening in Shilin Night Market or the jazz bars around Zhongshan.
Day three, east and up. Climb Elephant Mountain in the cool of the morning, then cross to Taipei 101 for the observation deck. After lunch take the Maokong Gondola up to the tea hills and sip oolong in a terrace teahouse while the city lights come on below. Flying on to Thailand afterwards? See our Taipei to Bangkok flights or Taipei to Chiang Mai flights.
Beef noodles, pepper buns and the night market circuit
Order beef noodle soup on Taoyuan Street, xiaolongbao near Yongkang Street and lu rou fan in any neighbourhood canteen. Evenings belong to the night markets: Raohe for pepper buns, Ningxia for oyster omelette and Shilin for size and noise. Breakfast shops serve dan bing egg crepes with soy milk from dawn.
Taiwanese cooking grew from southern Fujian, but the soldiers and families who arrived with the Nationalist government in 1949 brought dishes from every Chinese province, so Taipei eats more widely than any other city on the island. Beef noodle soup is the unofficial city dish, braised red or clear, and Taoyuan Street near Ximen is lined with shops serving it. Xiaolongbao are best near Yongkang Street, while lu rou fan (braised pork on rice) is the breakfast and late-night staple of every neighbourhood canteen.
Night markets do the rest. Raohe is compact and known for hujiao bing, pepper buns baked against the walls of a clay oven. Ningxia is small, local and good for oyster omelette and taro balls. Shilin is the biggest and most touristy, with its underground food court and fried chicken cutlets the size of a face. Stinky tofu announces itself from a block away; try it deep fried first.
Bubble tea was invented in Taiwan, and the chains here are everywhere. For something calmer, the tea farms of Maokong serve local tieguanyin oolong, and breakfast shops sell dan bing egg crepes with warm soy milk from dawn.
Lanterns over Pingxi and other escapes from the basin
Plan around rain and the lunar calendar. January is cool and drizzly at about 19C, May and June bring the plum rains, and typhoons arrive mainly from July to September, when highs reach 35C. February has Lunar New Year and the lanterns of Pingxi, and Taipei 101 launches the New Year fireworks.
January highs are around 19C under frequent drizzle, February brings Lunar New Year and then the Lantern Festival, when Pingxi in the hills to the east releases thousands of paper lanterns at the Pingxi Sky Lantern Festival. The smaller lantern releases at Shifen run all year if you miss the date. May and June bring the plum rains, July peaks at 35C, and typhoons come mainly between July and September. On New Year's Eve the fireworks are launched from Taipei 101 itself.
The best day trips are easy by rail or bus. The Pingxi branch line stops at Shifen's waterfall and the old coal villages of Jingtong. Jiufen, a gold-mining town of steep teahouse alleys, sits above the sea near Ruifang station. Tamsui, at the end of the red MRT line, has the red-brick Fort San Domingo and riverside sunsets. Yangmingshan National Park, a bus ride north, has fumaroles, grassland and silvergrass that turns silver in autumn, and Wulai to the south mixes an Atayal village with riverside hot springs.
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How we research our Taipei travel guide
Taipei's entry rules come from the Bureau of Consular Affairs, and its sights from the Taiwan Tourism Administration and the official city website.
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Official website of TaipeiTaiwan Bureau of Consular AffairsTaiwan Tourism Administration
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Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
Quick answers to the questions travelers ask most before visiting Taipei.
Getting there
Yes. The purple Express trains take about 38 minutes and run from early morning until late evening; buses take 50 to 70 minutes depending on traffic.
Most long-haul and Southeast Asian flights use Taoyuan (TPE). Songshan (TSA) sits inside the city on the brown MRT line and handles short hops to Japan, Korea and mainland China.
Yes. It pays for the MRT, city buses, YouBike, the Maokong Gondola and convenience-store purchases, and you can top it up at any station.
Take the red line to Xiangshan station and follow signs to the trailhead; the stepped climb to the main viewpoints takes about 20 minutes.
General
Raohe is compact and easy to walk end to end, Ningxia has the most local feel, and Shilin is the largest. Pick one near your hotel and go after 7pm.
No. Eating, drinking and chewing gum are banned past the ticket gates and on trains, and fines are issued.
Beitou, on a short branch of the red MRT line, has a public outdoor bath, hotel spas and Thermal Valley. Yangmingshan and Wulai are further out.
Metro Taipei is the answer to almost every trip. Six colour-coded lines (red Tamsui-Xinyi, blue Bannan, green Songshan-Xindian, orange Zhonghe-Xinlu, brown Wenhu and the yellow Circular) run from about 6am to midnight, with signs in English and announcements in several languages. Load an EasyCard at any station; it also pays for city buses, YouBike, convenience-store purchases and the Maokong Gondola.
Taipei is best known for:
- Longshan Temple at dusk, when worshippers throw moon blocks and incense smoke drifts under the carved dragon roofs
- The National Palace Museum, whose jade cabbage and imperial ceramics draw queues; go at opening time
- Elephant Mountain's stairs, a 20-minute climb from Xiangshan station to the classic view of Taipei 101
- Beitou's sulphur valley, where the public bathhouse and Thermal Valley are a metro ride from downtown
- Raohe Street Night Market, a single long lane of pepper buns and herbal pork ribs beside Ciyou Temple
What's included
Four or five days. Spend two or three in the city and add separate days for Jiufen or the Pingxi line and for Beitou or Yangmingshan.
Timing & weather
On the Lantern Festival, the 15th day of the first lunar month, usually in February. Trains on the Pingxi line fill up, so travel early in the day.
The city may declare a typhoon day, when offices, schools and some attractions such as the Maokong Gondola close. The MRT usually keeps running; follow official updates and stay indoors.
The best time to visit Taipei is Oct to Dec, Mar to Apr. Highs of 21C to 28C and far less rain than the May to September wet months.
- Best overall: October - December, March - April (Highs fall from 28C in October to 21C in December and rain eases in November, so hiking Elephant Mountain is pleasant again)
- Hot and wet: May - September (Plum rains in May and June, then 33C to 35C heat with heavy afternoon rain and typhoon warnings that can close offices and shut the gondola)
- Cool season: January - February (Highs near 19C under low cloud; the best time for hot-spring soaks and the Lantern Festival crowds)
Visa & documents
Taiwan admits UK, EU, US, Canadian and Australian citizens, among many others, visa-free for up to 90 days. All visitors must submit the online Taiwan Arrival Card (TWAC) within three days before arrival.
Health & safety
Earthquakes and typhoons are bigger risks in Taiwan than crime. Follow typhoon warnings in summer, check trail status after storms, and call 110 for police or 119 for fire and ambulance.
