What to Do in Taiwan in 8 Days: Attractions, Food and Budget

We spent 8 days in Taiwan in April 2019: 5 days in Taipei, 2 in Taichung, then a final day in Taipei before flying on to Hong Kong. Between night markets, bubble tea and Taipei 101, it cost our family of four 26191 TWD (849 USD), flight included, since every hotel night was paid with points. Here is what we saw, what we ate and what we spent.

When we started planning our round-the-world itinerary, I must admit that Taiwan was not on our list. It only came up when I was looking for the cheapest way to leave Japan. We have no regrets: we had a lot of fun there!

What to Do in Taiwan: Taipei and Taichung

Taipei

Taipei 101 is the symbol of the Taiwanese capital. It was the world’s tallest skyscraper from 2004 to 2010, until Dubai’s Burj Khalifa took the title. The building is striking and very imposing, especially from the viewpoint on Elephant Mountain.

The Chiang Kai-Shek Memorial, built in honor of Taiwan’s first president, is another popular place in Taipei. Around the huge square where it stands are the equally impressive National Theater and National Concert Hall.

We visited the Shilin Night Market, considered the largest night market in the country, with a wide choice of food. We tasted the Taiwanese hot dog, a pork sausage wrapped in sticky rice, which was then one of the 34 street-food recommendations of the Michelin Guide in Taipei. It was delicious!

Another food stop we loved was Din Tai Fung, a restaurant specializing in xiaolongbao (steamed dumplings). The chain started in Taipei and now has restaurants around the world.

Since our hotel was in Beitou, we took the opportunity to walk around this district, where hot springs gush out of the ground and form streams of hot water, and where you can see steam rising from the sewer grates. The water in Hell Valley is so hot that you should not dip a finger in it, or you risk getting burned!

Taichung

Another famous night market, the Feng Chia (or Fengjia) Night Market, was a few steps from our hotel in Taichung. We happily went 2 nights in a row to soak up its friendly street-food atmosphere.

We also found a nice little spot in Taichung called Painted Animation Lane. As its name suggests, cartoon heroes are painted on the facades of the houses. Kids and adults alike loved it!

Our stay in Taichung also included a breakfast at Chun Shui Tang, the tea house where bubble tea was born!

How to Plan 8 Days in Taiwan

Itinerary: Taipei and Taichung

Our visit to Taiwan lasted 8 days in total:

• 5 in Taipei, the capital;
• 2 in Taichung, the country’s second-largest city;
• 1 more in Taipei, before our flight out.

I had first rented a car to drive around the island and see more places. Believe it or not, 80 USD per day was the cheapest option! After some thought, I cancelled the reservation (and the itinerary I had planned) when I found many reports of scams involving the rental company.

1. Elephant Mountain
2. Taipei 101
3. Jimmy’s Moon Bus
4. National Theater and Concert Hall
5. Liberty Square Arch
6. Chiang Kai-Shek Memorial
7. Shilin Night Market
8. Din Tai Fung Restaurant
9. Beitou Hot Spring
10. Taipei Station
11. Feng Chia Night Market
12. Painted Animation Lane
13. Chun Shui Tang

Accommodation Paid with Marriott Points

In Taipei, we spent 5 nights at the Aloft Taipei Beitou, a Category 2 hotel at 12500 points per night. We had booked it at 7500 points per night while it was still Category 1, and got the 5th night free offered by the Bonvoy program.

In Taichung, we stayed at the Fairfield by Marriott Taichung, another Category 1 hotel, at 7500 points per night.

We went back to the Aloft in Taipei for one last night before leaving Taiwan.

In short, our accommodation in Taiwan was fully paid for with 52500 Marriott Bonvoy points: a total value of 1080 USD for these 8 nights!

2026 update: Marriott Bonvoy dropped its fixed award chart in March 2022; award nights are now priced dynamically, so the category rates above no longer apply (source).

Getting Around by Metro and Train

In Taipei, the metro is very easy to use. Trains and buses are inexpensive ways to travel between the major cities. We took the train from Taipei to Taichung and back.

The Language Barrier

Since everything is written in Chinese and English is not widely spoken in Taiwan, the Google Translate app was a real help!

What to Eat in Taiwan

Have you ever heard of bubble tea? It’s a tea drink with tapioca pearls that has become hugely popular in Chinatowns around the world. Our pace was one bubble tea per person per day, sometimes two when the craving hit. It’s addictive, I admit, and it’s hard to resist when there’s a tea shop every 100 meters!

Taiwan is known for its inventive food culture, strongly influenced by southeastern Chinese and Japanese cuisine. When it comes to street food, Taiwan has few rivals, so a stand has to innovate to stand out, or risk disappearing.

How Much Does 8 Days in Taiwan Cost?

Since we paid for our accommodation with points, Taiwan was not expensive for us at all. The cost of our stay for our family of 4 was:

• 26191 TWD (849 USD);
• 3274 TWD (106 USD) per day;
• 818 TWD (27 USD) per person per day.

Amounts were paid in New Taiwan dollars. US-dollar equivalents use the average exchange rate during our trip (April 18 – 26, 2019): 1 USD = 30.85 TWD.

In detail:

Expense Category	Amount Spent
Flight	10911 TWD (354 USD)
Accommodation	0 TWD (0 USD)
Transport	5374 TWD (174 USD)
Eating out	6246 TWD (202 USD)
Groceries	2300 TWD (75 USD)
Activities	1360 TWD (44 USD)
Total	26191 TWD (849 USD)

Conclusion

Short and sweet: that sums up our stay on the island of Formosa. We didn’t get to tour the island, but Taiwan won us over with its peaceful character, its food and its smiling people. It was a smooth transition to our next destination: Hong Kong!