Ben's Guide to Taipei and Taiwan

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...

Wulai 烏來 The Wulai Falls are not Niagara Falls, but are a nice waterfall and an easy day trip out of Taipei. While the scenery is beautiful, there can be a lot of tourists and vendors to remind you that the city is not far away. In addition to the waterfall there are hot springs here and some scenic areas along the riverside. There is a mini-train that can take you to the base of the waterfall. The cost is $50. There is also a cable car that goes to the top of the falls. At the top are some really lame amusement park rides and games, a hotel, and some good hiking trails where you can leave the crowd behind. Wulai Hotsprings 烏來溫泉 wūlái wēnquán There are many spas and hotels in Wulai where you can pay to play in the hot springs or you can enjoy open air hot springs along the riverside. Spas offer communal baths, private rooms, or both. The communal baths are sometimes separated by sex, and are sometimes co-ed. The free pools can be crowded and get dirty quickly, but you definitely g...

Toucheng 頭城 is located on the east coast near Yilan 宜蘭 and in Yilan County 宜蘭縣. From Xindian 新店 follow Highway 9 towards Pinglin and Yilan to the coastal flat land. When you cross the mountains and are on the coastal flat lands you will follow the signs to the north (left) away from Yilan which is to the south. Once in Toucheng another clearly marked road sign will direct you to the Toucheng Seaside Park. It is roughly 60 km so allow at least 2 hours from Xindian if traveling by scooter or car. From Taipei go South on Roosevelt Road. When you cross the river into Xindian, the name will change to Bei Xin Road but the road remains the same. Where you would turn right to go to Wulai, you will continue straight and the road will become Hwy. 9. Once you are out of Xindian you will start to climb the mountain hills. Roads can have dangerously sharp curves. Much of the road has little or no shoulder to drive on. The beach is not the greatest for swimming or sunbathing but it is ok for wading...