In early 2023, I found an ad on Instagram from a local travel agency called SMB. In red and blue cursive letters, it read: “Terrific Taiwan”, with a caption promising a 4-day, 3-night itinerary for as low as 36,999 PHP (631.79 USD) - flights and hotel included. My mom didn’t need much convincing, so we booked the tour for April that year.
Although it was meant to be a 4-day trip, we really only had 3 full days in the country, and we spent it hopping from fascinating attractions to amazing restaurants across Taipei and Taichung. I couldn’t have asked for a better first experience.
Taiwan is known for several iconic attractions, such as Taipei 101, Shifen Waterfall, Chung She Flower Garden, and more. While we chose a group tour with a guide for ourselves, you can also just head to these places on your own. If you need recommendations for what to do and see, keep reading my account of all the places I visited during my 3-day adventure from Taipei to Taichung.
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Day 1
Vigor Kobo Pineapple Cake Factory
The first thing on our itinerary was to go to a pineapple cake factory to learn how to make pineapple cakes, which are famous in Taiwan. Though I was a bit hesitant to go, when we got there, it was a really nice factory. When you get to Vigor Kobo Pineapple Cake Factory, they first give you a tour of the factory, followed by a 30-minute pineapple-cake-making session. Then, you’ll be brought downstairs for a free tasting of the products they sell while your creations get baked!
While we enjoyed the free tasting, they also gave us a checklist with all their products so we could pick the ones we wanted to buy. Immediately after this first stop, we already had bags of souvenirs to bring back home.
Lara’s tip: If you’re a fan of pineapple cake, I recommend booking a tour so you can see how it’s produced.
Lunch near Shifen Waterfall
Our next stop was Shifen Waterfall, which is a must-visit when going to Taiwan. But before we got to the waterfall, we stopped for lunch at a restaurant in the area. While I don’t remember its name, we had standard Taiwanese fare, including noodles, rice, and soup.
Our guide told us that Taiwanese people don’t add much MSG to their food, so everything we had was healthy. If you’re planning to eat at a Taiwanese restaurant, you might not get super spicy or salty food, but it’ll be delicious nonetheless.
Additionally, while walking to the waterfall, you’ll pass by a bunch of food stalls selling fresh fruit, fried squid, and Taiwanese sausages, among other delicacies. Even if you don’t eat at a restaurant, you can load up on these food items before you get to Shifen Waterfall.
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Shifen Waterfall
Once we were full, we headed to the main attraction. There’s a huge railing here where people stand when they’re having photos taken with the waterfall in the background. The area is crowded, so bear in mind that you might have to wait for a bit. But I think it’s worth the wait because of how beautiful it is.
It’s quite a long walk to Shifen Waterfall, but even if you don’t make it, you’ll still be able to take lots of photos. It’s a beautiful park with trees and lots of flowers and butterflies. If you love nature, you’ll definitely love visiting this place.
Lara’s tip: Since it’s a long walk and a bit of a wait for photos, I highly recommend eating before you get here, so you have enough energy.
Shifen Old Street and Pingxi Sky Lanterns
We went to Shifen Old Street next to see the sky lanterns. This is almost a rite of passage for everyone who is visiting Taipei for the first time. When I saw photos of beautiful sky lanterns floating in the air online, it made me want to experience it for myself. When you go to Pingxi Sky Lanterns, you can buy a lantern where you can write your wishes. When you’re done, somebody will help you light the lantern and another will take photos for you.
Being a tourist area, you’ll find some street food options and places where you can shop for souvenirs. So once you’re done with the sky lanterns, you can spend a little bit of time exploring. My mom and I actually were one of the first to be done, so we had a lot of time while we were waiting for everyone else in the group. Naturally, we spent it shopping for different souvenirs. We also ended up eating peanut roll ice cream here, which was really good. But they also have other options if you’re still feeling peckish.
Lara’s tip: Studio Ghibli-themed souvenirs are available in the shops here, particularly Spirited Away (lots of No Face keychains!), so if you love this film, you must buy some while you’re here.
Ximending Shopping Area
Our next stop was Ximending, which is a huge outdoor shopping area. We had about an hour to explore, so my mom and I walked around for a little bit. There were stalls selling snacks and milk tea, but every time we passed a milk tea stall, there was always a huge line. Since we were on a group tour, I didn’t want to be late going back to the bus. We passed the hour buying more souvenirs (black peanuts and egg rolls) and then waited for everybody else to come back. Depending on the time you visit, you might see some street performers.
Taipei 101 Shopping Mall
Out last official stop of the day (before dinner), was Taipei 101. We didn’t go up because I didn’t think we would have had enough time, so we just explored the shopping mall inside, which has many high-end luxury brands. If you’re interested in that, you can combine going up to see the views from the top of the tower here and then shopping after that.
Lara’s tip: You can get yourself some refreshments while you’re here. My mom and I found a family mart in the basement where we bought water and snacks (and superglue for my shoes that broke the hour we landed in Taipei).
Dinner
For dinner, we went to a restaurant that served Taiwanese beef noodles, which were delicious. They gave us a shot of plum cider afterward. I’d never had it before, but it was also excellent. I had no complaints about anything we ate on day one. Everything was so good.
Eslite Xinyi Store
My mom and I were interested in exploring a little bit more, even though we were so tired. After we checked into our hotel, we took an Uber to go to Eslite Xinyi Store, a 24-hour bookstore. This was my only chance because we were going to Taichung the next day. I explored the shop for a little bit and bought books (of course). They had a surprisingly good selection of English titles.
My wallet lighter, we booked a ride back to the hotel and slept soundly!
Day 2
Taiwan Cultural and Creative Arts Center
On day two, our first stop was still in Taipei: Taiwan Cultural and Creative Arts Center. I didn’t know what to expect, because in our itinerary, it said the first stop was a shop for jade handcrafts. We wouldn’t have found out about this on our own, but you can buy jade jewelry, carvings, and more here.
My mom and I were able to buy matching jade necklaces. We had heard from our tour guide that Taiwanese people really like jade stone because it’s considered lucky and that it brings prosperity and wealth. I think everybody in our group bought something from here after hearing that.
Lara’s tip: If you want to buy jade items or a unique souvenir from Taiwan, you definitely need to stop by here because they have such good deals. If you buy a certain amount, it’s tax-free.
Leofoo Village Theme Park
Our second stop was also not something I would have picked if I had planned the trip myself, but I think if you’re traveling with family or friends, you might enjoy this. Leofoo Village Theme Park is, as the name suggests, a theme park with rides and other fun activities.
On the day we visited, the weather was really nice. While my mom and I didn’t go on rides ourselves, we enjoyed people-watching. We still had a lot of fun because they gave us vouchers - each person received a voucher with a value of 250 NTD (7.7 USD). Between the two of us, we had more than enough to buy whatever we wanted. We basically ate our way around the park and enjoyed Taiwanese fried chicken, sausages, and french fries.
With the remaining 100 NTD from our vouchers, we rode a trolley car that we thought would just take us around the theme park, but it actually took us outside onto the highway and then to a temple with a giant Buddha statue. It was really interesting!
Even though we weren’t expecting to enjoy this place because it wasn’t our scene, we had a great time.
Lara’s tip: The park is a good stop for any traveler - it’s basically a really chill version of Universal and Disney parks and isn’t as crowded.
Hot pot dinner
The bus trip from Taipei to Taichung took a while, so after the theme park, we just went to dinner. We had hot pot at a restaurant, which was very interesting. You can shop for whatever you want to put in your own personal hot pot and then cook it. They also had a cooked food section in case you want to pick from there. There’s a lot of variety, which includes drinks and desserts.
Hot pot restaurants are abundant in Taichung, so I would recommend!
Day 3
Miyahara
We had our breakfast at around 7am - 7:30am, and set off at around 8:30am for Miyahara, which is very popular online because it looks a lot like Hogwarts. If you love Harry Potter, you must visit!
They’re a gift shop, so they sell chocolates, tea, and cookies, among other things. But people mostly come to take photos here and to enjoy the famous ice cream. There’s always a long queue for it, so you have to wait. I think it would take at least 30 minutes before you can buy the ice cream, so we didn’t end up queuing (I was worried we would miss the bus). But if you have more time in Taichung, I recommend waiting. We went back on our second trip, and I can attest that the ice cream is worth the hype and the wait.
Lara’s tip: I suggest getting here as soon as possible if you want to take nice pictures because it gets crowded during the day.
Anime Lane
If you like anime, I highly recommend our next stop for the day. People have graffitied the walls of this entire street with different anime characters. This includes a lot of popular characters as well, so if you like that sort of thing, then you’ll be able to take lots of really good pictures. It’s a quiet street as well.
Lara’s tip: If you’re starting off super early and the other attractions haven’t opened yet, you can head to Anime Lane first since you won’t have to wait.
Lunch
Lunch was interesting because we went to a huge building that seemed like it was made to host events. The food that we ate was typical Taiwanese fare again. We had fresh seafood, deep-fried pork, braised pork, rice, noodles, and a lot of vegetables—all very healthy. At this point, we were missing condiments such as hot sauce and ketchup, but we still enjoyed the food for sure. Afterward, we were full enough that when we got to our next stop, we had a lot of energy to walk around.
Chung She Flower Garden
Chung She Flower Garden is a huge place, so you’ll be walking around and stopping to take lots of photos since there are Instagramable spots here. I see a lot of people coming here to film TikTok videos, so I think this is a must-visit. They change the flowers depending on the season as well, so if you’re visiting more than once, you might be able to see different varieties of blooms. It’ll be interesting every single time.
Lara’s tip: If you like taking lots of photos, plan to spend at least three hours here.
National Taichung Theater and nearby malls
We were supposed to go to National Taichung Theater next because you can explore the building for free even if you’re not watching a show. But we wanted some free time for ourselves, so we broke off from the rest of the group and went to a mall nearby. I don’t have specific recommendations for malls to visit as there are a lot in this area, including a Mitsukoshi!
However, I do think it’s worth stopping at the theater. When we went inside later to meet up with everybody else, we saw that the interior was beautiful. They also have a gift shop where you can buy souvenirs.
Lara’s tip: If you’re planning to stay in the area, there are hotels around as well.
Dinner
For dinner, our guide had nothing planned for us as it was our last full day on the tour. My mom and I took another Uber to a mall near our hotel (there was an Eslite branch, so I had to go). We stopped by a food court and, later, a convenience store to buy dessert and snacks. We found so many unique chip flavors and snacks at the 7-Eleven and Family Mart, so I got some to bring back for my brother.
My recommended accommodations
Hotels in Taipei
Check out this travel talk video where I spoke more in-depth about my stay in these Taipei hotels!
CHECK inn Taipei Xinyi (from USD 74)
I would recommend this hotel for solo travelers and couples, or if you’re traveling with another family member, like I did with my mom. The room we had was pretty small, so if you’re traveling in a large group or with a lot of luggage, it might not be the best pick. This hotel is also an appropriate choice for the elderly, as there were elevators and the bathroom was also accessible. It’s also well located and in a safe area, but we couldn’t really find any convenience stores nearby.
One of the major plus points of staying here is that you can walk to Taipei 101 Shopping Mall, which is 10 minutes away.
CHECK inn Taipei Xinyi
Address: 3F, No. 468, Section 4, Xinyi Road
Green World Hotel - Zhonghua (from USD 53)
I really liked the location of this hotel, as it’s across the street from Ximending Shopping Area. It’s also connected to a sushi restaurant and the infamous Hello Kitty-themed 7-Eleven. I would recommend it for all travelers—families, solo travelers, and couples—because the rooms were quite spacious. If you grew up in an Asian household like me, you’ll be pleased to know that this hotel has bathrooms with a Japanese toilet!
The only point to consider here is that if you’re traveling with a senior citizen or someone who requires accessibility, you might need to check if they have accessible rooms.
Green World Hotel - Zhonghua This is a Proud Certified property where you can be extra sure of a welcoming stay.
Address: 13F, No. 41, Zhonghua Road, Section 1
Hotel in Taichung
Park City Hotel Central Taichung (from USD 66)
This hotel is located close to attractions in Taichung, such as Miyahara and Anime Lane, so if you want to explore these places, you can stay here. There was a 7-Eleven in the area too, which we took full advantage of. On our way back from the store, we actually ran into a group who had just come from Miyahara. How did we know? They were holding a giant cup of the signature Miyahara ice cream.
The breakfast was decent - a good selection with bread rolls, braised pork and rice, and fresh fruit. Plus, the room was comfortable, so I had no complaints!
Park City Hotel Central Taichung
Address: No. 66, Min Quan Road
The shortest trip of my life
On our last day, sitting in front of our hotel breakfast in Taichung, my mom and I planned our next trip to Taiwan. We knew we had to go back - there were so many things we missed: milk tea, night markets, Jiufen and A-Mei Teahouse, museums, and more hours exploring Eslite Bookstore. While I do think booking a tour was a good starting point for two first-timers with no sense of direction, if you’re DIY-ing your trip, I highly recommend staying for at least a week. You’ll just have to trust me on this!
History
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