{"id":837,"date":"2026-07-05T09:15:00","date_gmt":"2026-07-05T09:15:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/globalriceball.website\/taipei-day-trips\/"},"modified":"2026-07-09T13:56:14","modified_gmt":"2026-07-09T13:56:14","slug":"taipei-day-trips","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/globalriceball.website\/en\/taipei-day-trips\/","title":{"rendered":"Taipei Day Trips: How to Choose and How to Get to Jiufen, Pingxi, Tamsui, and Wulai"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>Updated: 2026-07-05<\/p>\n<p><em>Want to escape Taipei for some fresh air on the weekend without spending the whole day in transit? These four destinations are all reachable by public transport, and a day trip there and back is easily doable.<\/em><\/p>\n<p>New arrivals in Taipei, or visitors just staying a few days, often ask the same question: without renting a car or joining a tour, can you really go see the night view in Jiufen or release a sky lantern in Pingxi on your own? The answer is yes, and the combination of Taiwan Railway, the MRT, and buses is more intuitive than you'd think. The main difference is that these four places are completely different in character \u2014 Jiufen is an old mountain town, Pingxi is a railway town, Tamsui is a riverside town with historic sites and sunsets, and Wulai is about hot springs and waterfalls. Pick the wrong place for the weather or the wrong timing, and the experience can be very different. This guide rounds up the transport, highlights, who each spot suits, and roughly how long to stay, so you can plan easily side by side. You might want to read <a href=\"https:\/\/globalriceball.website\/en\/taipei-travel-guide\/\">Taipei Travel Guide<\/a>, to get a handle on city transit cards and transfer logic first \u2014 it'll make things go a lot more smoothly once you head out to the suburbs. Related spots are also kept updated in <a href=\"https:\/\/globalriceball.website\/en\/category\/taipei\/\">Taipei category page<\/a> .<\/p>\n<style class=\"lt-tbl-css\">.entry-content table,.lt-tbl{border-collapse:collapse;width:100%;margin:1.2em 0}.entry-content th,.entry-content td,.lt-tbl th,.lt-tbl td{border:1px solid #d4dcd7;padding:8px 11px;text-align:left;vertical-align:top}.entry-content th,.lt-tbl th{background:#eef3f0;font-weight:600}<\/style>\n<table class=\"lt-tbl\">\n<tr>\n<th>Location<\/th>\n<th>Mode of transport<\/th>\n<th>Travel Time (from Taipei Main Station)<\/th>\n<th>Suggested Time to Spend<\/th>\n<th>Who it suits<\/th>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>Jiufen<\/td>\n<td>Take TRA to Ruifang Station, then transfer to bus 788\/827\/856 etc. up the mountain<\/td>\n<td>About 50 minutes + 15-20 minutes by bus<\/td>\n<td>3-4 hours<\/td>\n<td>People who love old streets, night views, and photography<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>Pingxi Line (Shifen, Pingxi, Jingtong)<\/td>\n<td>Transfer at Ruifang Station to the Pingxi Line train; a day pass is available<\/td>\n<td>About 20-30 minutes from Ruifang to Shifen<\/td>\n<td>4-5 hours (covering multiple stops)<\/td>\n<td>People who want to release sky lanterns, explore railway towns, and see waterfalls<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>Tamsui<\/td>\n<td>MRT Tamsui-Xinyi Line goes direct to Tamsui Station<\/td>\n<td>About 40 minutes<\/td>\n<td>3-4 hours<\/td>\n<td>People who want sunset views, historic sites, and an easy stroll<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>Wulai<\/td>\n<td>MRT to Xindian Station, then transfer to Xindian Bus 849 to Wulai<\/td>\n<td>About 1 hour (including transfer and wait time)<\/td>\n<td>4-6 hours (including hot spring soaking)<\/td>\n<td>People who want to soak in hot springs, see waterfalls, and slow down<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/table>\n<h4>Jiufen and Houtong: More Than One Way to Enjoy the Mountain Old Street<\/h4>\n<p>The starting point for Jiufen is always Ruifang Train Station \u2014 whether you take the Tze-Chiang Limited Express, the Chu-Kuang Express, or a local train, it's about 50 minutes from Taipei Main Station. After exiting the station, transfer to a bus bound for Jiufen, and it's another 15 to 20 minutes to reach the entrance of the old street. Jishan Street is the liveliest stretch, lined with traditional snack stalls selling taro balls, grass jelly rice cakes, and braised pork rice balls, with crowds usually peaking from afternoon into evening. Walk up the stone steps of Shuqi Road and you'll find old-style teahouses overlooking the sea \u2014 one of Jiufen's most photographed views. To avoid the crowds, it's best to head up on a weekday morning or close to sunset, when the light and foot traffic are both more pleasant. If your timing works out, on the way back you can transfer at Ruifang Station to the TRA line to Houtong Station, just a few minutes' walk from the famous Cat Village \u2014 a nice half-hour-to-one-hour detour without a special trip. For a full rundown of local teahouses and old street shops, check out <a href=\"https:\/\/globalriceball.website\/en\/jiufen-travel-guide\/\">Jiufen Travel Guide<\/a>. Half a day is enough for just Jiufen; if you're adding Houtong, plan on 3 to 4 hours total to keep things relaxed.<\/p>\n<h4>Pingxi Line: One Ticket, Four Towns<\/h4>\n<p>The Pingxi Line is the most suited of these four destinations to going without a car or a private driver, because the railway itself is both the transport and the scenery. From Ruifang Station, transfer to the Pingxi branch line, which passes through small stations including Houtong, Shifen, Wanggu, Lingjiao, Pingxi, and Jingtong along the way. Walking between stations, or hopping on the next train, is easy, and a one-day round-trip ticket lets you get on and off as many times as you like. Shifen is best known for releasing sky lanterns right beside the railway tracks \u2014 visitors write wishes on the lanterns and light them next to the rails, and the sight of a train passing by is genuinely spectacular, but it also means peak hours get crowded, so go early or on a weekday. From Shifen Station, it's about a 15-minute walk to Shifen Waterfall, nicknamed 'Taiwan's Niagara Falls,' where the trail lets you view it from above looking down \u2014 a different angle from most waterfalls. Further into the mountains, Jingtong Station is the end of the Pingxi Line; its old street is small and sees fewer visitors, making it a better fit for people who like quiet spots and want to sit down at a caf\u00e9. Plan for 4 to 5 hours for the whole line so you're not rushing to catch a train at every stop.<\/p>\n<h4>Tamsui and Wulai: Two Completely Different Paces<\/h4>\n<p>Tamsui is the easiest of these four to reach with no transfers, making it perfect for a spontaneous outing \u2014 just ride the Tamsui-Xinyi Line MRT all the way to the end at Tamsui Station, and the old street is right outside the exit. Walk along the Golden Riverside Bikeway all the way to Fisherman's Wharf, or take the ferry across instead. Fort San Domingo and Fort Hobe require an extra bus (like the 857 or Red 26), but one ticket covers all three sites. The best part of Tamsui to save for last is the sunset \u2014 the wooden boardwalk at Fisherman's Wharf has been rated by several international media outlets as one of the best places to watch the sunset, so plan to be there in the late afternoon. Wulai, on the other hand, is a completely different pace: take the MRT to Xindian Station, then transfer to Xindian Bus 849, about half an hour to Wulai Old Street, where the highlights are hot springs, waterfalls, and the mini trolley. Walk from the old street to Lanshen Bridge, then ride the Wulai trolley to Wulai Waterfall \u2014 a short ride but full of nostalgic charm \u2014 and finish with a soak at a hot spring resort on the way back. It's the ideal choice for a relaxed weekend with no rush. Only pick one of these two in a single day \u2014 Tamsui leans toward city strolling and photos, Wulai toward nature and hot springs, and trying to fit both into one day will feel rushed.<\/p>\n<p>If you'd rather not research bus schedules yourself, the Jiufen and Pingxi route also has ready-made day tours you can simply join:<a class=\"lt-btn\" href=\"https:\/\/www.kkday.com\/?cid=25297\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow sponsored noopener\">See Jiufen &amp; Pingxi Day Tours<\/a>. This article contains this promotional link; see <a href=\"https:\/\/globalriceball.website\/en\/affiliate-disclosure\/\">Affiliate Disclosure<\/a>. Whichever way you choose, all of these places are within an hour of Taipei, and with good planning, a same-day round trip is no problem at all.<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>You don't need a car to see it all from Taipei \u2014 Jiufen's mountain streets, Pingxi's sky lanterns, Tamsui's sunset, and Wulai's hot springs. This guide rounds up transport options, travel times, and how long to stay at each, perfect for foreign travelers and new residents planning a weekend getaway.<\/p>","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":844,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[17],"tags":[65,45,67,66],"class_list":["post-837","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-taipei","tag-jiufen","tag-taipei-travel","tag-taipei-day-trip","tag-pingxi-line"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/globalriceball.website\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/837","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/globalriceball.website\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/globalriceball.website\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/globalriceball.website\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/globalriceball.website\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=837"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/globalriceball.website\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/837\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":847,"href":"https:\/\/globalriceball.website\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/837\/revisions\/847"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/globalriceball.website\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/844"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/globalriceball.website\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=837"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/globalriceball.website\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=837"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/globalriceball.website\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=837"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}