Taipei Taiwan Tourism (2026) Travel Guide Top Places

Things To Do In Taipei

National Palace Museum

Taipei 101

Chiang Kai-shek Memorial Hall

Ximending

Longshan Temple

Shilin Night Market

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Taipei Tourism

Taipei is Taiwan's capital and the island's centre of gravity, a city of working temples and tea houses wedged between green hills, with a night market on what feels like every other block and Taipei 101 rising out of the middle of it. It is compact, safe and easy to cross on the MRT, which makes it one of the simplest Asian capitals to visit for the first time. Most trips run three to four days, and the hot springs at Beitou and the old streets of Jiufen are both under an hour away.

Taipei spent the 20th century turning from a Qing administrative town into one of Asia's most liveable capitals, and the layers are all still visible. Japanese-era civic buildings sit a few streets from Qing temples, and both sit in the shadow of the glass towers of Xinyi. The city is dense without being overwhelming: the MRT reaches almost everything, stations and street signs are in English, and you can cross town in twenty minutes.

Most of what you come for is outdoors or after dark. Longshan and Bao'an are working temples rather than monuments, with people stopping in before work to leave fruit and draw fortune blocks. The National Palace Museum holds the largest collection of Chinese imperial art anywhere in the world. Shilin, Raohe and Ningxia night markets are where the city eats, and Ximending is where it shops. Taipei 101, 508 metres tall and the tallest building in the world until 2010, has an observation deck near the top and a mall at its foot.

The hills start where the city stops. Elephant Mountain is a twenty-minute climb for the view of Taipei 101 that ends up on everyone's camera roll. Yangmingshan National Park sits inside the city limits, and the hot spring town of Beitou is on the MRT. Jiufen, the Pingxi railway line and the north coast are all comfortable day trips, which is why three or four days in Taipei has a way of turning into a week in northern Taiwan.

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Exchanging Money in Taipei

Bank counters give the best rates in Taipei, and you will find branches around Taipei Main Station, Ximending and Xinyi. Bring US dollars if you plan to change cash, as Indian rupees are not exchangeable here. The simpler route is an ATM: machines inside 7-Eleven and FamilyMart take foreign cards, run around the clock and are rarely more than a block away. Airport exchange desks are convenient but the rates are poor, so change only what you need for the ride into town. Cards work in malls, hotels and chain restaurants, but night markets, temples, small eateries and local buses are cash. Pick up an EasyCard at any MRT station and use it for the metro, buses and convenience stores.

Shopping in Taipei

Shopping in Taipei splits three ways. The night markets come first: Shilin is the biggest, Raohe the most walkable end to end, and Ningxia the one locals rate for food. Ximending is the daytime equivalent, a pedestrianised grid of streetwear, independent labels, record shops and tattoo studios that fills up after school. For malls, Taipei 101 and Bellavita cover the luxury end, the department stores around Taipei Main Station and Zhongxiao Fuxing cover everything else, and Guanghua Digital Plaza is where to go for electronics and camera gear. Yongkang Street is the address for tea, and Dihua Street in Dadaocheng is the old wholesale quarter, still the best place in the city for dried goods, herbs, fabric and tea sets. Market stalls expect a little bargaining. Shops and malls do not.

Nightlife in Taipei

Nightlife in Taipei is excellent. The city has plenty of nightclubs and bars to make your nights out memorable. The club scene is concentrated around Xinyi, near Taipei 101, and along Zhongxiao Dunhua, and venues turn over fairly often, so it is worth checking current listings before you head out. For something quieter, the craft beer bars and live music venues around Da'an and the lanes off Yongkang Street run late, and the night markets stay busy until well past midnight.

History of Taipei

Taipei was first settled by the Ketagalan people. In the 17th and 18th centuries there was a major influx of settlers from the mainland under the Qing dynasty. It became the capital of the province of Taiwan in 1894. The very next year, Japan acquired Taiwan under the Treaty of Shimonoseki, after the first Sino-Japanese war, which is why Japanese influence is still part of the city's character today. Under Japanese rule Taipei was greatly developed. After the Japanese surrender at the end of the Second World War in 1945, the Republic of China took over the administration of Taiwan. At the end of the Chinese Civil War in 1949 the Republic of China government relocated to Taipei and made it the seat of government. Martial law was lifted in 1987, and the Wild Lily student movement of 1990 pushed Taiwan the rest of the way to full democracy. Taipei has been the seat of that democratic government ever since.

Language of Taipei

The official language is Mandarin Chinese, and it is what you will hear in shops, on the MRT and on television. Taiwanese Hokkien, usually just called Taiwanese, is spoken by a large share of the city, particularly by older residents and in markets and temples, and there is a smaller Hakka-speaking community. Taiwan's indigenous languages are taught and used in communities elsewhere on the island. English is taught in schools and is common among younger people, and every MRT station, main road sign and major sight is signed and announced in English, so getting around without any Mandarin is straightforward. Japanese is widely understood in the tourist trade. A few words of Mandarin still go a long way in a night market.

Taipei Customs

A nod and a 'Hello' are perfectly normal greetings in Taiwan, though handshakes are common too, especially in business settings. You'll also notice people smile a lot, and that is because they are very polite. Another thing to be careful about is not to leave your chopsticks upright in your food while eating, as that is how food is offered to the dead. Tipping in Taipei isn't considered necessary or expected. You can always tip your porter at the hotel if you'd like, or the waiter if you find that your service was exceptional.

Religion of Taipei

Taipei's religious life blends Chinese folk religion, Taoism and Buddhism, and the three are not kept apart. Longshan Temple, the most visited in the city, honours deities from all three under one roof, with Guanyin at the centre and Mazu the sea goddess and Yue Lao the god of marriage among the dozens behind her. Bao'an Temple in Datong is quieter and is the one to see if you want the architecture without the crowds. These are working temples rather than monuments: people come before work, leave fruit, throw fortune blocks and burn incense, and visitors are welcome so long as you keep out of the way and do not photograph people at prayer. Taipei also has Christian churches and a small Muslim community, served by the Taipei Grand Mosque on Xinsheng South Road.

Best Time to Visit Taipei

FAQs on Taipei

What are the places near Taipei?

The easiest day trips from Taipei are Jiufen and the Pingxi railway line, about an hour east; Yehliu Geopark and the north coast; Tamsui and Bali at the river mouth; Keelung for its night market; Wulai for hot springs and waterfalls; and Yangmingshan National Park, which is inside the city limits. Taroko Gorge and Sun Moon Lake are further afield and are usually done as overnight trips.

What are the things to do in Taipei?

The top things to do in Taipei are National Palace Museum, Taipei 101, Chiang Kai-shek Memorial Hall, Ximending, Longshan Temple, Sun Yat-sen Memorial Hall. You can see all the places to visit in Taipei here

What are the top hotels in Taipei?

There are 935 in Taipei which can be booked through Holidify. The most popular hotels in Taipei are JM inn, 3 Bedrooms+1 Study room (Near Taipei 101 and MRT), HaHaCat Apartment, LUXURY N HOUSE, Ba Yi, SongShan Luxury Baroque. You can see all the hotels in Taipei here

What is the local food in Taipei?

Food in Taipei is available in all cuisines. Taipei is a very modern city and as such has restaurants catering to all tastes. The island's local cuisine features seafood and poultry in a lot of its dishes. Rice is also eaten a lot here. The influence of Chinese cuisine cannot be denied and plays a major role in the traditional flavours of Taiwanese food in general. Taiwanese sausages are a popular street food here in Taipei which you should definitely try. The gua bao is a snack which usually has pork belly with seasonings stuffed in a soft flat bread. The oyster omelette is one of the city's favourite seafood specialities. Other local specialities include hotpot and beef noodle soup, and vegetarians are well served by Taiwan's long Buddhist tradition, with dedicated vegetarian buffets in most neighbourhoods.

What is the best time to visit Taipei?

March to May and October to November are the best times to visit Taipei. Between them they cover the two halves of the year when the city is comfortable on foot, and walking is how Taipei is best seen. The temples, the riverside paths, the climb up Elephant Mountain and the day trips out to Jiufen and the north coast all need dry, mild weather to be worth the effort. The spring season in Taipei is sunny and yet comfortable for exploring the places during day time. The spring months fall under the peak season and hence the streets and other public places will usually be filled with tourists. May, however, gets a fair share of rainfall. The autumn months are lovely in Taipei too. The weather is warm and pleasant, and from October onwards the rain eases off, which makes it great for outdoor activities. September is still very wet and is the tail of the typhoon season, so October and November are the safer half of autumn. June to September are the wettest months in Taipei and carry the highest chance of a typhoon.

Taipei Travel Guide

"Taiwan’s lively capital with night markets and skyscrapers"