Do I need a visa to visit Taipei?

Citizens of 65 countries, including the US, UK, Canada, Australia, Japan, South Korea, and most EU nations, can enter Taiwan visa-free for 90 days. You'll need a passport valid for at least 6 months and a return or onward ticket. Check the Bureau of Consular Affairs website for the current list, as it does update.

How much does a typical day in Taipei cost?

A budget traveler eating at night markets and using the MRT can manage on 1,500-2,000 NT$ per day (roughly 45-60 USD) excluding accommodation. A mid-range day with sit-down meals, a museum visit (150-350 NT$ per museum), and a taxi or two runs closer to 3,000-4,000 NT$. Hostel dorms start around 500-700 NT$ per night. A decent hotel in Da'an or Zhongshan runs 2,500-4,500 NT$.

Is Taipei easy to navigate without speaking Mandarin?

Easier than most Asian capitals. The MRT system is fully bilingual in Mandarin and English, including station names, maps, and announcements. Major tourist sites have English signage. Google Maps works well with accurate transit directions. Younger locals in service industries often speak some English. For restaurants off the tourist track, having Google Translate's camera function on your phone covers most menu situations.

What's the best way to get from Taoyuan Airport (TPE) to central Taipei?

The Taoyuan Airport MRT runs direct to Taipei Main Station in about 35-40 minutes for 160 NT$. Trains depart every 15 minutes from around 6 AM to 11 PM. A taxi to central Taipei costs roughly 1,000-1,300 NT$ and takes 40-60 minutes depending on traffic. Some hotels offer shuttle services. If you land after the last MRT train, a taxi or pre-booked car service is your main option.

Should I get a local SIM card or use international roaming?

Prepaid SIM cards are available at the airport arrivals hall from Chunghwa Telecom, Taiwan Mobile, and Far EasTone. A 5-day unlimited data SIM typically costs 300-500 NT$. Coverage is excellent throughout Taipei and on the MRT. Setup takes about 10 minutes with your passport. This is cheaper and more reliable than most international roaming plans, and you'll want data for Google Maps and translation apps.

Are night markets open every night?

Most of Taipei's major night markets operate daily from around 5 PM to midnight. Shilin, Raohe, Ningxia, and Tonghua (Linjiang) are all nightly. Some smaller neighborhood markets run only on specific days of the week. Individual stalls take their own rest days, which is why a stall you loved on Tuesday might be shuttered on Wednesday. Typhoon warnings and major holidays (particularly Lunar New Year) can close markets for 1-3 days.

Can I use credit cards widely in Taipei?

Acceptance has improved significantly in recent years, and most restaurants, department stores, convenience stores, and hotels take Visa and Mastercard. Night market stalls, traditional markets, small local restaurants, and taxis still run primarily on cash. The EasyCard transit system is cash-loaded. ATMs from major banks (Cathay United, CTBC, Mega) accept international cards with reasonable fees, typically 100 NT$ per withdrawal.

Is Taipei suitable for families with young children?

Taipei is notably family-friendly by Asian city standards. The MRT has priority seating, elevators at every station, and stroller-friendly gates. Taipei Zoo in Muzha is one of Asia's largest at 165 hectares and costs 60 NT$ for adults, free for children under 6. The Children's Amusement Park near Shilin MRT, Da'an Forest Park's playground, and the National Taiwan Science Education Center in Shilin all cater to younger visitors. Most restaurants are welcoming of children, and high chairs are common at mid-range and above.

Things to Do in Taipei: A Complete Guide

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Taipei sits in a basin ringed by volcanic peaks (Yangmingshan to the north, its fumaroles still steaming) with the Tamsui and Keelung rivers threading through the city floor. That geography shapes everything a visitor encounters: the subtropical humidity hanging in the alleys of Wanhua, the oldest district, where Longshan Temple has drawn worshippers since 1738; the hot springs at Beitou, fed by the same geothermal system that keeps Yangmingshan's sulfur vents alive. The city grew outward from those temple precincts through Japanese colonial rule, which left behind the Presidential Office Building and the grid of lanes in Zhongshan now holding independent bookshops and coffee roasters, then through postwar decades when Kuomintang refugees from every Chinese province packed into military dependents' villages, concentrating a density of regional cooking found nowhere else on the island. Modern Taipei moves at a pace that catches newcomers off guard: the MRT runs clean and punctual, convenience stores occupy every second block, and night markets that locals actually frequent, Raohe and Ningxia, stay open past midnight on weekdays. Mornings often start with soy milk and shaobing from a sidewalk counter in Da'an, the residential district where tree-lined lanes sit one block from six-lane boulevards. By afternoon the weather usually suggests a choice: the air-conditioned halls of the National Palace Museum, which holds the collection the Nationalists shipped from Beijing in 1949, or the shaded trails up Elephant Mountain, where the skyline (Taipei 101 still its tallest punctuation mark) spreads below a canopy of banyan and fern. Evenings collect in Xinyi, the commercial district built on what was a military depot until the 1990s, or in the narrower streets of Yongkang, where tea houses have outlasted three generations of landlords. The city rewards no particular agenda; it simply functions, and that orderliness is itself what visitors remember.