Taipei runs on night markets and 24-hour convenience stores, with temples, hot springs and hiking trails all reachable by an excellent MRT system. It's an easy, welcoming introduction to Chinese culture outside the mainland, with some of the best dumplings and soup dumplings anywhere.
Good to know
- Get an EasyCard for the MRT, buses and even convenience-store purchases.
- Night markets are cash-only and busiest after 7pm — go hungry and share small plates.
- Typhoon season (Jul–Sep) can disrupt flights and day trips with little notice; check forecasts before booking outdoor days.
Eat this
Places the planner can use
Mark places as a must or something to skip. The itinerary is built only from this list; ★ marks the destination’s highlights.
Observation deck near the top of a 508-metre tower, with a giant tuned-mass damper visible through glass.
A steep 20-minute climb to a rock platform with the postcard view of Taipei 101 above the skyline.
The Michelin-starred dumpling chain's flagship, famous for soup dumplings folded with exactly 18 pleats.
One of the world's largest collections of Chinese imperial art and artifacts, spirited out of the mainland in 1949.
Taipei's biggest night market, famous for giant fried chicken cutlets and stinky tofu.
Pedestrian shopping and entertainment district often called Taipei's Harajuku, loud with karaoke and street fashion.
Busy, incense-thick Qing dynasty temple honoring Buddhist, Taoist and folk deities side by side.
Volcanic hot-spring baths in a leafy suburb reachable by MRT, from public baths to private hotel tubs.
Lantern-lit hillside town said to have inspired Spirited Away, with red teahouses stacked above the sea.
Older, more local night market known for pepper buns baked in a clay oven.
Taipei's "lungs" — a big central park good for an early jog or an evening with street performers.
Volcanic peaks, sulfur vents and, in spring, cherry blossoms, less than an hour from downtown.