Day by day
Day 1: Old town and the tower
- Longshan Temple at Longshan Temple MRT, 1 hr
- Bopiliao Historic Block lanes, 45 min
- Beef noodle soup lunch in the Wanhua lanes, 1 hr
- MRT to Chiang Kai-shek Memorial Hall for the hourly honor-guard change, 1.5 hr
- Rest valve: tea at a Yongkang Street tea house near Dongmen MRT, 1 hr
- MRT to Taipei 101, ride up at 4:30 PM, 1.5 hr
- Dinner and dessert at Raohe Street Night Market by Songshan MRT, 1.5 hr
- Total: about 5 km walking; 4 MRT segments
Day 2: Mountain views and culture
- Climb Elephant Mountain from Xiangshan MRT for the Taipei 101 view, 1.5 hr
- Scallion pancake and bubble tea breakfast from a street cart, 30 min
- National Palace Museum via Shilin MRT and bus 815, 2.5 hr
- Rest valve: lunch in the museum garden cafe, 1 hr
- MRT to Maokong Gondola at Taipei Zoo, standard cabin up, 1.5 hr
- Tea-plantation walk and viewpoint at Maokong, 1 hr
- Dinner at Ningxia Night Market near Zhongshan MRT, 1.5 hr
- Total: about 6 km walking; 5 MRT segments and 1 bus segment
Day 3: Jiufen hillside day trip
- Train from Taipei Main Station to Ruifang, 30 to 50 min
- Bus 788 or 827 from Ruifang to Jiufen Old Street, 20 min
- Walk the stepped lanes and tea houses, 2 hr
- Rest valve: a hillside tea house with a sea view in Jiufen, 1.5 hr
- Bus back to Ruifang and train to Taipei, about 1.5 hr return
- Dinner at a dumpling house near Zhongxiao Fuxing MRT, 1 hr
- Total: about 4 km walking; 2 train segments and 2 bus segments
Day 4: Yehliu coast and Beitou springs
- Kuo-Kuang bus 1815 from Taipei Main Station to Yehliu Geopark, 75 min
- Walk the sandstone hoodoos and the Queen's Head rock shelf, 2 hr
- Bus back toward Taipei, about 75 min
- Rest valve: free walk through the timber Beitou Library beside the hot-spring valley via Xinbeitou MRT, 1 hr
- Stroll the open-air Beitou Thermal Valley where sulphur steam rises, 1 hr
- Dinner at a beef noodle shop near Beitou MRT, 1 hr
- Total: about 5 km walking; 2 bus segments and 2 MRT segments
Day 5: Tamsui riverside and Dadaocheng
- Red MRT line to Tamsui, the last stop, 40 min
- Walk to Fort San Domingo and the old riverside streets, 2 hr
- Scallion pancake and bubble tea along the Tamsui boardwalk, 45 min
- Rest valve: a riverside bench at the Tamsui boardwalk for the sunset, 1 hr
- MRT back to Dadaocheng, walk the Dihua Street dried-goods lanes, 1.5 hr
- Dinner and mango shaved ice near Dihua Street, 1.5 hr
- Total: about 7 km walking; 3 MRT segments
