Taipei is one of the easiest big cities in Asia for a first visit. It is safe, friendly and clean, the metro is superb, English signs are everywhere that matters, and the food alone justifies the flight. The city is also compact enough that you can see a temple, a world-class museum and a night market in a single day, then escape to the mountains or the coast the next. Here is how to shape a first trip.
How many days
Three full days cover the city highlights at a good pace. Four days let you add the classic day trip to Jiufen and Shifen, and five give you time for Beitou and Yangmingshan or a slow afternoon in the teahouses of Maokong. If you are passing through on a longer Taiwan trip, plan at least two days in the capital before heading south.
What to book ahead
Very little sells out weeks ahead, but a few things are worth securing. Taipei 101 Observatory tickets are for a set date and cannot be changed, so buy them once you can see a clear day in the forecast. The National Palace Museum ticket with an audio guide saves time at the entrance. Day tours to Jiufen, Shifen, Beitou and Yangmingshan have limited seats, especially the small-group ones, so book a few days ahead. The Maokong Gondola and Taipei Zoo pass is easy to buy at short notice.
Watch the closing days and the weather
The National Palace Museum is usually closed on Mondays, and the Maokong Gondola has regular maintenance days, usually Mondays, so keep Monday for Longshan Temple, the Chiang Kai-shek Memorial Hall, Elephant Mountain and a night market. Weather shapes everything: summer is hot and humid with afternoon storms and a typhoon season from roughly July to October, while winter brings drizzle and cloud, especially on the northeast coast around Jiufen. Autumn and spring are the most comfortable seasons. Always check that the gondola and the Yehliu coast are open after storms.
Getting in
Most international flights land at Taoyuan International Airport, west of the city. The Airport MRT express train runs to Taipei Main Station in well under an hour, and you can check in for some flights in the station on the way back. Songshan Airport, inside the city on the brown MRT line, handles some regional flights.
Getting around
Buy an EasyCard at any MRT station or convenience store and top it up as you go: it works on the MRT, buses, the Maokong Gondola, YouBike shared bicycles and even for small purchases in convenience stores. The MRT lines are colour-coded and signed in English, trains are frequent, and eating and drinking are banned on the network, so finish your bubble tea first. Taxis are plentiful and fairly priced for short hops. For day trips, trains to Ruifang (for Jiufen and the Pingxi Line) leave from Taipei Main Station, and direct buses run to Jiufen.
Day one: old Taipei
Start at Longshan Temple in the morning, walk to the Bopiliao Historic Block, then take the MRT to the Chiang Kai-shek Memorial Hall and Liberty Square. Have lunch around Yongkang Street, then spend the afternoon in Ximending or Dadaocheng. Finish at a night market.
Day two: museum and markets
Give the morning to the National Palace Museum, with the audio guide and a plan for the jade galleries. In the afternoon, ride to Beitou for the Thermal Valley and a hot-spring soak, then eat your way through Shilin Night Market in the evening.
Day three: Xinyi and the hills
Ride the Maokong Gondola in the morning for tea with a view, then head to Xinyi for Taipei 101 Observatory in the afternoon. Climb Elephant Mountain for sunset and the classic view of the tower, and eat in Xinyi afterwards.
Day four: Jiufen and Shifen
Join a guided day tour to Yehliu, Jiufen and Shifen, or go independently by train and bus. Release a sky lantern over the railway tracks in Shifen, and sip oolong in a Jiufen teahouse looking out to sea.
Money and manners
Taiwan uses the New Taiwan dollar. Cards work in hotels, malls and most restaurants, but night markets and small eateries are often cash only. Tipping is not expected; hotels and some restaurants add a service charge. Mandarin is the main language, and a few words such as xie xie for thank you go a long way. Convenience stores are everywhere and sell everything from SIM cards to hot meals.
