I was told that on the average, a Singaporean would visit Taiwan 5 times in his/her lifetime. For myself, I've already visited Taiwan for 3 times, with 1 more in plan. What makes Taiwan such a captivating country to visit, and Taipei, the capital of Taiwan, one of the favourite destination for Singaporean?
Why do tourists visit Taipei? Here are the 10 reasons:
1. Sunset at Danshui
Everyday, many tourists and locals, armed with sophisticated camera equipment, flock to Danshui's Fisherman Wharf to view and capture the sun setting into the Straits of Taiwan.
Quite unfortunately, out of my 2 trips to Danshui, I missed it by 15mins in my first trip, and it was too cloudy on my second trip to view the complete sun set. Hence, it is better to reach there earlier to enjoy the sea breeze (and pray for good weather) than to be late and miss the whole thing.
After the sunset, lovers can cross the Lovers' Bridge, which is nicely lighted up at night
Danshui is also famous for the Danshui Old Street, where you can buy Ah Gei (阿给), as shown in the picture below, Ah Por Tie Dan (阿婆铁蛋), fish cracker (鱼酥) and not forgetting the Ginger Tea from Black Old Legend (黑金传奇)。
Direction: Take MRT to Tamsui station. Danshui Old Street is within 5mins walking distance. To reach Fisherman Wharf, take bus (Red 26, 836 or 857) at the bus terminal below Danshui station, or alternatively, take a ferry from Danshui Ferry Pier (situated near the middle of the Danshui Old Street).
2. Hot Spring at Beitou
The first hot spring hotel in Taiwan was opened in Beitou, and soaking in a hot spring is supposed to bring you some health benefits, such as better blood circulation and complexions. You can either choose to take a hot spring bath in a public pool, or if you prefer more privacy, you can book a room at one of the many hot spring resort, like what I did, where I stayed 1 night at Aqua Bella.
3. Pacific Ocean at Jiufen
Jiufen used to be a gold mining town, and is now transformed into a tourist attraction, with shops selling taro balls, sausages, peanut ice creams and many more along the Old Street. There are also many tea houses, where you can sit down, relax, and have some tea while overlooking the Pacific Ocean.
Direction: Take TRA train to Ruifang Station then transfer to the Pingxi Line. Alight at Shifen. From Shifen, take a train back to Ruifang, cross the road, board any buses heading to Keelung. Alight near 7-11.
4. Sky Lantern at Shifen
Do you have any unfulfilled dreams and want to let your wishes known to the deities in the sky? You can go to Shifen, write your wishes on a sky lantern, and release it to the sky.
Everyone's dream
If you are not a believer, you will still be enchanted by this rustic old town, especially in the evening when the sky turns reddish yellow while you are taking a walk along the railway tracks with lights from the shop houses shining by the side.
Direction: Take TRA train to Ruifang Station then transfer to the Pingxi Line. Alight at Shifen.
Yehliu is home to many rock formation, and the most famous rock formation is the Queens' Head, as shown in the picture below. Yes, all these rock formation are naturally formed over thousands of years through waves attack and rock weathering, so after a visit to this Geopark, you'll most likely be amazed by how wonderful and powerful is the force of nature.
Direction: Take Kuo Kuang Express Bus bound for Jinshan Youth Activity Center at the Taipei West Bu Station Terminal A, alight at Yeh Liu
6. Flowers at Yang Ming Shan
Fancy being surrounded by flowers blossoming around you? Pay a visit to Yangmingshan National Park in spring, where you'll be surrounded with cherry blossom (from Feb to March) and calla lily (from March to May). They are also many different types of flowers that grows in this National Park throughout the year. I visited Zhuzi Hu and Xiaoyou Keng during my trip to Yangmingshan in autumn. Although I can only see withered cherry blossom and the leaves of calla lily, it was great to escape from the city fumes and be surrounded by fresh and crisp air in the mountain.
Direction: Take bus 260 from Taipei Main Station (outside exit M1) to Yangmingshan bus station. You can also hire a driver to arrange for a 1 day trip to Yangmingshan, Yehliu, Jiufen, and Shifen.
7. Street Food at Night Markets
A visit to Taiwan would not be complete without going to at least 1 night market, and try street food such as black pepper pork bun (Hu Jiao Bing), chicken cutlet, stinky toufu, spring onion pancake (Cong You Bing), oyster omelette, mee sua etc etc. The most famous night market in Taipei is Shilin Night Market and Rouhe Night Market, and these night markets are easily accessible via the MRT.
Shi Lin Night Market - Take MRT to Jiantan
Rouhe Night Market - Take MRT to Houshiping
8. Starbucks at Taipei 101
This extraordinary Starbucks is situated at the 35th floor of Taipei 101, and is a good alternative to the top floor of Taipei 101, as you can also view the city from a high altitude, with a cup of coffee, tea or juice in your hands.
Direction: Take MRT to City Hall Station (Exit E2), walk to Taipei 101. Enter the office part of the building
9. History at National Palace Museum
I'm not a fan of museum, but this is 1 of the few museums in the world that I would recommend people to pay a visit. National Palace Museum is one of the world's largest museum that houses ancient Chinese arts and artefacts that belongs to the collections of China's emperor. Most of the pieces were brought to Taiwan during the Chinese civil war.
Direction: Take MRT to Shilin and take bus Red 30 to National Palace Museum.
10. Easy accessibility to other parts of Taiwan
There are so many places to visit in Taiwan - Cingjing and Alishan for the mountains, Kenting for the beach, Sun Moon Lake, Tainan, Kaoshiong, Taitung, etc etc. Most flights from Singapore fly directly to Taipei, and you can plan to spend a few days in Taipei before or after visiting these locations.
See also: Itinerary to Taiwan and Hong Kong
