Taipei Essential Guide Released
A comprehensive new guide to Taipei, Taiwan, highlights the city's best hotels, neighborhoods, food, shopping, and nightlife. Notable recommendations include day trips to Beitou's onsen hot springs, hiking in Yangmingshan National Park, and sampling the vibrant culinary scene at night markets. The guide emphasizes Taipei's blend of tradition and modernity through temples, mountain vistas, and dynamic street life.
- For the first half of 2025, Taiwan saw 4.19 million visitors, a 10% increase from the same period in 2024, with Japan, Hong Kong/Macau, and South Korea being the top sources of tourists. - Taipei has been repeatedly recognized for its tourism appeal, winning "Best Leisure Destination in Asia" from Global Traveler magazine and awards as a "Most Promising Muslim-friendly City Destination." - The city's cultural landscape is expanding with recent additions like the Taipei Performing Arts Center (opened in 2022), the Fubon Art Museum (opened in 2024), and the Taipei Music Center (opened in 2020). - Major infrastructure projects are underway to enhance connectivity, including the continued expansion of the Taipei MRT with the construction of the North and South Circular Lines. - The Beitou hot springs, a popular day trip, have a history dating back to the Japanese colonial era when the first hot spring hotel, Tenguen, was opened in 1896 by a Japanese businessman. - Yangmingshan National Park, known for its volcanic geography, was originally named "Caoshan" (Grass Mountain) and was officially designated a national park in 1985. - Taipei's famous night markets originated from small food stalls located near temples and grew in popularity after World War II, evolving into vital centers for local social life, food culture, and small-scale entrepreneurship.
