TAIPEI IS A BEEHIVE OF ACTIVITY, as you would expect of a city as populous as Chicago, but those are not bumblebees you hear at every intersection. They’re motorized scooters, the vehicles of choice for most young Taipei residents. These noisy two-wheelers, compact, agile and just a little edgy, fit Taipei’s mood to a T.
Led by big-city Taipei, Taiwan economic heft is plenty real, with a higher per capita gross domestic product than Saudi Arabia or Portugal. Luxury cars weave through Taipei’s scooter swarms, and business booms.
Numerous carriers offer flights to Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport — 12–14 hours non-stop from Los Angeles or 15–16 hours from New York City. Upon landing, take one of the frequent MRT express trains from the airport to downtown Taipei, which covers 31 miles in 38 minutes. You can then grab a cab to your hotel; taxis also prove the best way to get around the city.
Downtown boasts several business-friendly hotels. The elegant Palais de Chine, next to Taipei’s main train station, offers free airport shuttle service and hotel-wide WiFi. The more contemporary W Taipei applies the design chic of the W brand to more than 30,000 square feet of event and meeting space in the upscale Xinyi district.
The Regent, a third luxury hotel, sits next to an underground shopping street, letting you escape from the noise and usually polluted air at street level. Other leading hotels include Grand Hyatt, Sheraton Grand, Mandarin Oriental, Le Méridien and Kimpton.
The first thing your Taipei client is likely to ask is, “Have you eaten?” Reflecting the importance of food in Taiwanese culture, it’s as common a greeting in Taipei as “How are you?” in Tulsa. It’s meant to be rhetorical — just say, “Yes” (or “shi”) — but not always. Expect to be invited to a meal or a drink soon after meeting clients, unless you beat them to it. But where do you dine?
Hotel restaurants prove a good — and easy — choice, especially when they come with a view. The W offers two of the best: Yen, serving New Cantonese cuisine on the 31st floor, and The Kitchen Table, with diverse international fare, three meals a day, on the 10th floor. Not to be eclipsed, Palais de Chine’s 17th-floor Le Palais earned three Michelin stars for its Chinese cuisine. But you’ll find most of central Taipei’s best restaurants at street level.
Tim Ho Wan (two locations) is a surprisingly affordable Michelinstarred lunch/dinner spot known for steamed dim sum and baked pork buns. J.W. Teres serves authentic Bulgarian entrées and wines — not as unexpected as it sounds, as Taipei brims with European-cuisine restaurants. Another surprise: Mume, where three chefs create Nordic dishes with Taiwanese ingredients. Chun Shui Tang (multiple locations), the birthplace of boba (milk) tea, also makes a good dim sum lunch/dinner spot.
Mikkeller Taipei and all of Taipei’s five Taihu Brewing taprooms pour tasty craft brews. Fourplay Cuisine, SoShow Bar & Restaurant and Hanko 60 serve some of Taipei’s most uniquely creative, Taiwan-inspired cocktails. And central Taipei’s Wine Café and Whinos Bar & Kitchen may be the city’s best wine bars.

Chiang Kai-shek Memorial Hall Honor Guard PHOTO: © XIN HUA – DREAMSTIME.COM
Have a day off? Take the elevator to the 91st-floor observation deck of Taipei 101, the world’s tallest building when it opened in 2004. You can shop across the street at Breeze Nan Shan, a futuristic new mall. For a look back in time, choose among visits to the National Palace Museum (8,000 years of Chinese art), palatial Chiang Kai-shek Memorial Hall, and Longhsan and Xiangtian temples. Stop by the outdoor Jingmei or indoor Shilin night markets, too, for a taste of street food and Taiwanese culture.
If you can add a few days to see more of Taiwan, consider taking a bus or van tour. Visit nearby Fulong or Dawan Kenting beach if you’re a beach lover, Yangmingshan National Park if you have the hots for hot springs, Taroko National Park if you enjoy mountain hiking (the narrow gorge road switchbacks to a 10,744-foot peak), Sun Moon Lake if you like to bike (rent one to trace the 18-mile perimeter trail) or take the 215-mile high-speed train ride to the coastal city of Kaohsiung to traverse most of this island nation in less than two hours.
Read This Next
Yil Surehan
December 2019
Dec 18, 2019Introducing
FX Excursions
FX Excursions offers the chance for once-in-a-lifetime experiences in destinations around the world.
#globility
Insta FeedDaily
Mar 29, 20234 Spring Hotel Openings
With the start of spring, travelers have their choice of new design-centric boutique properties opening in the coming months. Check out these properties for travel inspiration.
eFlyer Reviews
Mar 29, 2023Elk Cove Inn & Spa Review
Mendocino County is a self-contained universe of effortless, California-centric joy enveloped within the Redwood Forest National and State Parks, the rocky Pacific Coast and several prime wine production areas like Anderson Valley. If Highway 1 and Route 128 are the ribbons holding this package together, Elk Cove Inn & Spa can be considered the bow. Mendocino Coast’s first vacation destination, established in 1968, is an ideal 16-room gateway to the destination.
eFlyer News
Mar 29, 2023YOTEL to Open YOTELPAD London Stratford in Late 2023
YOTEL recently announced plans to open YOTELPAD London Stratford at the end of this year, making it the seventh YOTEL property in the United Kingdom and third in London, joining YOTEL London City and YOTEL London Shoreditch. YOTEL currently features properties in the United States and United Kingdom, with hotels in Boston, New York, San Francisco and, more recently, Washington, D.C.
Sponsored Content
Share Your Travel Preferences with Global Traveler in a Short Survey & Win
Learning more about our readers’ travel habits and preferences ensures Global Traveler delivers the content you desire. As the travel industry has adapted and changed over the last few years, it’s more important than ever to connect. To best meet your short- and long-term travel content needs, please help us!
eFlyer News
Mar 29, 2023Puerto Rico’s Hotel El Convento Unveils Multimillion-Dollar Renovation
Hotel El Convento, one of Old San Juan’s most popular landmark hotels, recently completed a multimillion-dollar design and architectural renovation to its 81 rooms. The renovation blends Old World charm with Puerto Rico’s vibrant and modern energy.
Last-Minute Spring Deals from SIXT
eFlyer Deals
Mar 29, 2023Daily
Mar 29, 2023Set Sail on a California River Cruise with American Cruise Lines
Love small-ship cruising and the California coast? You’re in luck: American Cruise Lines offers an eight-day San Francisco Bay excursion, taking in some of the best wine country in the United States. The itinerary for American Jazz — one of 10 new riverboats in American Cruise Lines fleet — includes ports in San Francisco, Stockton, Sacramento and Vallejo. Sailing time takes in San Francisco Bay, San Pablo Bay and the Napa and San Joaquin rivers. American Jazz reaches the California Coast following a repositioning journey from Mississippi, including a transit through the Panama Canal.
Sponsored Content
Enter to Win $500 and Get Six Months’ Free Access to the New GT App
Now through May 8, sign up for a free six-month trial of the Global Traveler app and be automatically entered for a chance to win a $500 gift card of your choice for Amazon, Apple or American Express.
Daily
Mar 28, 2023Recaro Aircraft Seating CL670 Business-Class Seat Takes Off on Iberia
Recaro’s new CL6720 business-class seat with doors took off recently on Iberia’s Airbus A350 cabin, flying Madrid (MAD) to Buenos Aires (EZE), with a total of 31 of the seats in the aircraft’s business-class cabin. The premium-economy and economy cabins also feature Recaro seats.
ShareThis