Taipei 4-day itinerary for first-timers: Chiang Kai-shek Memorial Hall, National Palace Museum, Jiufen and Taipei 101 by MRT

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Four days is the sweet spot for a first Taipei trip: three full days in the city and one day out to the hills or the coast, with one hotel. Each day stays in one part of town so you never cross the city twice. Day 1 is the old political centre and the food streets around Dongmen; Day 2 the National Palace Museum and the biggest night market (or hot springs); Day 3 Jiufen or Tamsui; Day 4 Taipei 101, a sunset hike and a creative park or an old street.

Every opening hour and price below was checked on the official websites on 13 September 2026; where a site publishes no number, this guide says so. Distances are given as MRT stations, because that is what you navigate by.

Before you go: entry, cash and the MRT

Most European, North American, Japanese, Korean and Australian passports get 90 days in Taiwan without a visa; Singapore and Malaysia get 30. Check yours on the Bureau of Consular Affairs (BOCA) list: you need six months of passport validity and a ticket out. The paper arrival card is gone, so fill in the online Taiwan Arrival Card (TWAC) before you fly.

Taiwan entry 2026: the online arrival card, visa-free rules and what you cannot bring in

Taipei is more cash-based than Tokyo or Seoul: cards work in hotels, department stores, sit-down restaurants and convenience stores, while night market stalls and small noodle shops take cash. Buy an EasyCard at any MRT station or convenience store (NT$100 for the card, then top up); it covers the MRT, buses and convenience stores, with NT$8 off when you change from the MRT to a bus within an hour.

The four MRT lines this plan uses

The Tamsui-Xinyi line (red) runs from Tamsui in the north through Beitou, Shilin and Taipei Main Station (台北車站) to Chiang Kai-shek Memorial Hall, Dongmen, Taipei 101 and Xiangshan, the Elephant Mountain station; since 30 August 2026 it runs one stop further to Guangci/Fengtian Temple (廣慈/奉天宮). The Bannan line (blue) crosses it at Taipei Main Station and runs east through Zhongxiao Fuxing to City Hall and west to Ximen. The Songshan-Xindian line (green) links Songshan station (Raohe night market), Zhongshan, Ximen and Chiang Kai-shek Memorial Hall; the Wenhu line (brown) serves Songshan Airport. Single fares are NT$20 to NT$65, and trains run from early morning until around midnight.

Read the full description

簡化的台北捷運示意圖，畫出淡水信義線（紅）、板南線（藍）、松山新店線（綠）與文湖線（棕），並用編號標出四天的區域。第 1 天：中正紀念堂、東門（永康街）、西門，晚上可改去中山站附近的寧夏夜市；紀念堂 09:00 到 18:00，衛兵交接 09:00 到 17:00 每個整點。第 2 天：士林站轉公車或計程車到國立故宮博物院（週二至週日 09:00 到 17:00，NT$350），晚上在劍潭站的士林夜市；替代方案是北投、新北投溫泉。第 3 天：從忠孝復興站附近搭基隆客運 1062 到九份、金瓜石，或搭台鐵到瑞芳再轉公車；也可以搭紅線到終點淡水。第 4 天：國父紀念館站旁的松山文創園區、台北101/世貿站的觀景台（10:00 到 21:00，成人 NT$600）、象山站的步道，最後到松山站的饒河街夜市；上午的替代方案是北門站附近的大稻埕。捷運單程 NT$20 到 65，悠遊卡捷運轉公車折 NT$8。/ Simplified Taipei MRT map with the Tamsui-Xinyi (red), Bannan (blue), Songshan-Xindian (green) and Wenhu (brown) lines and numbered areas for the four days. Day 1: Chiang Kai-shek Memorial Hall, Dongmen (Yongkang Street) and Ximen, with Ningxia night market near Zhongshan as an evening option; hall 09:00 to 18:00, guard drill hourly 09:00 to 17:00. Day 2: bus or taxi from Shilin to the National Palace Museum (Tuesday to Sunday 09:00 to 17:00, NT$350) and Shilin Night Market at Jiantan, or the Beitou and Xinbeitou hot springs. Day 3: Keelung Bus 1062 from near Zhongxiao Fuxing to Jiufen and Jinguashi, or TRA to Ruifang and a bus; or the red line to its Tamsui terminus. Day 4: Songshan Cultural and Creative Park by Sun Yat-sen Memorial Hall, the Taipei 101 observatory (10:00 to 21:00, adults NT$600), the Elephant Mountain trail at Xiangshan and Raohe night market at Songshan, with Dadaocheng near Beimen as a morning alternative. Single MRT fares NT$20 to 65; NT$8 off an MRT-to-bus transfer with an EasyCard.

Which pass, if any

Over four days an EasyCard usually beats a pass: most days here are two or three rides at NT$20 to NT$30. Buy a pass only for a heavy day, and buy the Taipei Fun Pass Unlimited version only if you would visit most of its attractions anyway.

Day 1: Chiang Kai-shek Memorial Hall, Yongkang Street and Ximending

Morning: the memorial hall and the guard ceremony

Take the red or green line to Chiang Kai-shek Memorial Hall station (中正紀念堂). The white hall with the blue roof opens 09:00 to 18:00 and the park 05:00 to 24:00, every day and free. The honour guard drill now happens outdoors on Democracy Boulevard in front of the hall's steps, on the hour from 09:00 to 17:00 (nine times a day, about 15 minutes each), and is cancelled in rain, so aim for the 10:00 or 11:00 slot and walk the park first. The hall closes on Lunar New Year's Eve and Day, 28 February and maintenance days.

Lunch and afternoon: Yongkang Street

Walk east through the park or ride one stop to Dongmen (東門). Yongkang Street (永康街) starts at exit 5 and is the most concentrated eating street in the city: beef noodle soup, scallion pancakes, Din Tai Fung's soup dumplings (the branches around Xinyi Road draw Taiwan's longest queues, so go before 11:30 or after 14:00) and mango shaved ice in summer. The side lanes are tea houses and ceramics shops.

Evening: Ximending

Take the red line to Taipei Main Station and the blue line one stop to Ximen (西門). Ximending (西門町) is the pedestrian shopping district: cinemas, street performers, the rainbow crossing and snack shops along Hanzhong Street. Or walk fifteen minutes north to Ningxia night market (寧夏夜市) between Zhongshan and Shuanglian stations, small and food-only, for taro balls and oyster omelettes.

Day 2: National Palace Museum, then Shilin Night Market (or Beitou hot springs)

National Palace Museum

The National Palace Museum (國立故宮博物院) holds the imperial collection moved from Beijing's Forbidden City; the Jadeite Cabbage and the Meat-shaped Stone draw the queues, so see them first or last. Hours are Tuesday to Sunday 09:00 to 17:00, closed Monday (the museum trialled daily opening in summer 2026, so check its calendar). General admission NT$350, concession NT$150, groups of ten or more NT$320 per person, under-18s free; free for everyone on 1 January, the Lantern Festival, 18 May, 27 September and 10 October. Take the red line to Shilin (士林), then a bus or a short taxi; the museum lists the bus routes. Allow three hours.

Evening: Shilin Night Market

Shilin Night Market (士林夜市) is not at Shilin station: get off at Jiantan (劍潭), one stop south, and follow the crowd. The food court is underground and the better stalls are in the lanes around Cixian Temple: fried chicken cutlet, oyster omelette, pepper bun, then a bubble tea to walk with. Cash only, and busiest from about 19:00.

Taipei night markets guide: Shilin, Raohe, Ningxia and what to order at each

Alternative afternoon: Beitou hot springs

Prefer to soak? Ride the red line to Beitou (北投) and change to the one-stop Xinbeitou branch (新北投). The Beitou Hot Spring Museum was built in 1913 as a public bathhouse, once the largest in East Asia, and reopened in 1998 after restoration; the public bath and the hotel baths line the same valley, about ten minutes' walk from the station. Prices and bathing rules are in our hot spring guide.

Taipei hot springs: Beitou and Wulai, public baths, hotel day-use and etiquette

Day 3: Jiufen and the north-east coast, or Tamsui

Option A: Jiufen, Shifen and Yehliu

Jiufen (九份) is the hillside former gold-mining town with lantern-lit stairways and teahouses over the sea. The direct way is Keelung Bus 1062 from the stop on Fuxing South Road Section 1 near MRT Zhongxiao Fuxing (忠孝復興); it runs to Jiufen and on to Jinguashi. Or take a TRA train from Taipei Main Station to Ruifang (瑞芳) and a local bus up the hill. Go early, because by mid-afternoon the old street is a slow shuffle. Adding Shifen (十分) for sky lanterns and Yehliu (野柳) for the rock formations only works comfortably with a driver or a day tour, since the buses do not line up; the day trip guide has the timings and fares.

Jiufen, Shifen and Yehliu day trip: bus, train and tour options compared

Option B: Tamsui and the river mouth

Tamsui (淡水) is the red line's northern terminus, one train with no changes. Walk the riverside from the old street to Fort San Domingo (紅毛城), then take a bus or the ferry to Fisherman's Wharf (漁人碼頭) for the sunset over the river mouth. It is a half day, so pair it with Beitou on the way back if you skipped the hot springs.

Day 4: Taipei 101, Elephant Mountain and Songshan Cultural Park

Morning: Songshan Cultural Park or Dadaocheng

Songshan Cultural and Creative Park (松山文創園區) is a former tobacco factory turned design hub next to the Eslite Spectrum bookstore-mall; the grounds open 24 hours and the indoor spaces 08:00 to 22:00, a ten-minute walk from Sun Yat-sen Memorial Hall station (國父紀念館) on the blue line. If you prefer old Taipei, go west to Dadaocheng (大稻埕) instead: Dihua Street (迪化街) is the dried-goods and tea street lined with restored shophouses, and Yongle Market has a fabric floor and a food floor; the nearest stations are Beimen (北門, green line) and Daqiaotou (大橋頭, orange line).

Afternoon: Taipei 101 Observatory

Taipei 101/World Trade Center station (台北101/世貿) on the red line drops you at the tower. Tickets are sold at the observatory counter on the office tower's first floor or online; the observatory (floors 88 and 89, with the outdoor 101st floor as an add-on) opens 10:00 to 21:00 daily. Adults NT$600, concessions NT$540, children under 115 cm free; the Priority Pass (NT$1,200) skips the queue, the 101st-floor deck costs NT$380 extra, and the Skyline460 rooftop experience is NT$3,000. Clear days are rare: if the morning is clear, go up first and hike later.

Sunset: Elephant Mountain

One stop further is Xiangshan (象山). The trail starts a few minutes from exit 2 and is stairs all the way to the Six Giant Rocks platform, the classic shot with Taipei 101 filling the frame. Parts of the trail are closed for works from 20 July 2026 to about 13 April 2027, so follow the detour signs on the day. Arrive an hour before sunset, bring water, and expect company. Finish at Raohe Street Night Market (饒河街夜市) by Songshan station (松山) on the green line: one straight street, with the drum-oven pepper buns at the temple end.

Taipei viewpoints: Taipei 101, Elephant Mountain and the trail detour

What to eat, day by day

• Day 1: beef noodle soup and xiaolongbao on Yongkang Street, mango shaved ice in summer; Hanzhong Street snacks or Ningxia night market at night.
• Day 2: lunch at the museum; fried chicken cutlet, oyster omelette and pepper buns at Shilin, or a post-bath bowl of noodles in Beitou.
• Day 3: taro balls and a teahouse with a sea view in Jiufen; fish crackers, iron eggs and a-gei (stuffed tofu) in Tamsui.
• Day 4: brunch in the park or the herbal shops of Dihua Street; Raohe Street's pepper buns and grilled squid to finish.

Tipping is not expected; a 10 percent service charge appears only in hotels and higher-end restaurants, and street food costs exactly what the board says.

Taipei city page: hotels, airport transfers and more guides

Taipei food directory: restaurants and stalls by neighbourhood

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