Taipei in 4 days: itinerary, MRT and EasyCard, night markets and day trips

Before you go

• Entry: many nationalities can visit Taiwan visa-free for short stays, but check the rules for your passport with Taiwan's Bureau of Consular Affairs.
• Taiwan Arrival Card: foreign visitors fill in the arrival card online before landing, on the official National Immigration Agency site. It is free; ignore sites that charge for it. Check how many days before arrival you can submit it.
• Money: cards are widely accepted in shops and restaurants, but night markets and small eateries often want cash. ATMs in convenience stores accept foreign cards.

Getting around: MRT and EasyCard

• No eating or drinking, including water and chewing gum, inside paid areas of the MRT.
• Stand on the right on escalators.
• The dark blue seats are priority seats; people leave them empty even when the train is full.

Day 1: the classic sights

• Chiang Kai-shek Memorial Hall: huge plaza, changing of the guard on the hour.
• Longshan Temple in Wanhua, one of the city's oldest and busiest temples. Visitors are welcome; keep your voice down.
• Bopiliao Historic Block nearby, then dinner at Huaxi Street or Guangzhou Street night market.

Day 2: Taipei 101 and Elephant Mountain

• Walk around the Xinyi district and go up Taipei 101 for the view, or skip the ticket and climb Elephant Mountain (Xiangshan) for the classic view of the tower. It is a steep staircase of about twenty minutes; go late afternoon and stay for sunset.
• Evening: Raohe Street Night Market, famous for pepper buns at the entrance.

Day 3: Jiufen and the northeast coast

• Go early or stay into the evening; the middle of the day is very crowded, especially at weekends.
• Combine it with Shifen on the Pingxi line (sky lanterns and a waterfall) or Houtong, the cat village.
• Teahouses with sea views are the reason to come. Take your time over a pot.

Day 4: Tamsui and Beitou

• Beitou is at the end of a short MRT branch: the Thermal Valley, a free hot-spring museum and public or hotel hot springs.
• Continue to Tamsui on the same line for the riverside promenade, old streets, Fort San Domingo and sunset over the estuary. A ferry crosses to Bali (the Taiwanese one) on the other bank.
• Back in the city, finish at Shilin Night Market, the largest.

Night markets: how they work

• Go hungry and share. Buy small portions from several stalls rather than one big meal.
• Try: oyster omelette, beef noodle soup, gua bao, pepper buns, scallion pancakes, and stinky tofu if you are brave. Bubble tea was invented in Taiwan.
• Cash is easiest. Many stalls do not have seats; eat standing or walking, but take rubbish with you, as public bins are scarce.

Other good options

• National Palace Museum: one of the world's great collections of Chinese art. Allow half a day.
• Dadaocheng and Dihua Street for old shophouses, tea and dried goods.
• Yangmingshan National Park for hiking, fumaroles and, in season, flowers.

Practical notes

• Rubbish is collected by music-playing trucks; public bins are rare, so carry a small bag.
• Summers are hot and humid with typhoons possible from roughly summer to early autumn; winters are mild and damp.