Best Things to Do in Taipei

Best Things to Do in Taipei

Guide: Mountain Views, Hot Springs & Night Markets

Taipei makes city and landscape easy to combine: a morning on volcanic hills or hot-spring ground can give way to observatories, old merchant streets, and night-market grazing.

• Taipei 101 ObservatoryHigh-speed lifts reach indoor views on the 89th floor, the enormous tuned-mass damper, and an outdoor level when weather permits. Visibility matters more than sunset mythology; buy a timed ticket after checking cloud cover, then stay through blue hour if conditions cooperate.
• Elephant Mountain TrailSteep stone steps climb quickly from Xiangshan MRT to classic Taipei 101 viewpoints and continue into the Four Beasts trail network. The first platforms crowd at sunset; carry water, use shoes with grip, and climb farther for breathing room.
• Maokong GondolaThe gondola rises from the zoo to tea-growing hills, crossing green valleys in standard or glass-bottom cabins. Wind and thunderstorms can halt service; ride up in clear weather, walk between teahouses, and use the bus down if queues build.
• Taipei ZooThis enormous, green zoo works best as a half-day of selected zones rather than a completion challenge. Giant pandas draw attention, but Taiwanese fauna and the hillside habitats are more distinctive; pair the lower entrance with the Maokong Gondola only if stamina allows.
• Beitou Hot Spring MuseumA restored 1913 public bathhouse explains Beitou's Japanese-era spa culture through tatami rooms, tiled pools, and the architecture of bathing. Entry is free and shoes come off; combine it with Thermal Valley rather than expecting an operating hot spring.
• Thermal ValleySulfurous steam rolls above an intensely hot green pool that once supplied Beitou's bathhouses. The loop is short and there is no bathing; visit early for clearer views, then book a legal public or private spring elsewhere in the district.
• Qingtiangang GrasslandOpen grassland on an old lava terrace gives Yangmingshan an unexpectedly pastoral face, often with water buffalo grazing near fenced paths. Fog can erase the view and buses fill on weekends; check park weather, keep distance from animals, and carry layers.
• Dihua StreetDihua Street layers tea merchants, dried-goods shops, fabric houses, restored shophouses, cafés, and temples along Taipei's old commercial spine. Walk north from Dadaocheng, look above the merchandise at the façades, and avoid Lunar New Year crowds unless the market is the purpose.
• Raohe Street Tourist Night MarketA single, navigable lane packs pepper buns, herbal pork-rib soup, grilled seafood, sweets, and games behind Ciyou Temple. Queue for the oven-baked pepper bun at the east gate, then graze selectively; weekend congestion can turn a short walk into a shuffle.
• Ximending Pedestrian AreaTaipei's neon pedestrian quarter mixes youth fashion, street performance, cinemas, food stalls, LGBTQ+ bars around the Red House, and relentless advertising. Visit after dark for full energy, then escape the main junctions into side streets when the crowds become exhausting.

Reviewed by RGuide Editorial · Venue details checked August 2026