Ben's Guide to Taipei and Taiwan

Traveling by scooter or car, cross the river from Central Taipei going towards Beitou and Yangmingshan, going north on Chengde Rd.(承德路 Chéngdé Lù) Staying on the main road, there will be brown street signs directing you to Xin Beitou and Yangmingshan. From Xin Beitou there is access to Yangmingshan. Basically stay on the main road unless directed by the signs. When you reach Xin Beitou, the MRT station will be on the right hand side and you will be on Daye Rd (大業路 Dàyè Lù) which connects with several roads. To continue to Yangmingshan take Quanyuan Rd. (泉源路 Quányuán Lù) which is ahead and to the left. Continue on and you are in Yangmingshan. Follow the signs for additional options. If you follow Zhongshan Rd. (中山路 Zhōngshān Lù) the park will be on the right hand side which has an adjoining museum and public hotspring. There is no shortage of private spas to choose from if you want something nicer. The public hotspring is built on a hill with several pools. The hottest pools are on top ...

Beitou Hot Springs When you arrive at Xinbeitou MRT Station one of the first things you may notice is the smell of sulfur in the air. Walk uphill past the park as far as you can go. Eventually you will come to a steaming geothermal sulfur pond, which is quite eerie. On your way there are many spas where you can bath in the hot springs. You can rent a private room for a reasonable rate, or you can go to the public outdoor bath. The public bath is on the north side of the park near the museum. Entrance is $40 and there are several different pools at different temperatures. The pools on the top of the hill are the hottest, and get more mild as you reach the bottom. There is also a cold water pool. Next to the public bath is the Hot springs museum. It is small and entrance is free, so if you’re interested stop in. Getting to Xinbeitou MRT : Take the Red-Danshui Line North to Beitou, where you will change trains and continue on to Xinbeitou (New Beitou), which is the...

Yangmingshan / 陽明山 / Yángmíng Shān Yang Ming Shan or Yang Ming Mountain is an easy trip from Taipei. If the weather is nice on the weekend there will be a lot of people, but if you go off the beaten path you can get away from them. You can take bus 260 to the base of the park. The bus stop is on the north side of Taipei Main Station. You can also bypass Taipei Main Station by catching the bus on Zhongshan Rd. just south of Nanjing Rd. You can get here by getting off the MRT one stop north of main station at Zhongshan Station. When bus 260 finishes it’s journey at the Yan Ming Shan bus station, you can begin your hike or take minibus 108 which loops around the mountain stopping at access points to places of interest. Yang Ming Shan is also accessible by car and scooter. Campsites are available if you want more than a day trip. Driving Directions : http://taipeiguide.blogspot.com/2006/11/yangming-shan-xin-beitou-driving.html http://www.ymsnp.gov.tw http://taiwan.wcn.com.tw/en/park/Ya...