Taipei/Beitou Travel Guide
From Wikitravel
Beitou 北投區 (also sometime spelt Peitou) is in a northern district of Taipei famous for its hot springs.
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Understand
Beitou has two faces. Old Beitou is the area where the local people have lived and worked for over a century and is located around Beitou MRT Station and Beitou Market, while Xin Beitou (New Beitou) is the area around Xin Beitou MRT Station and Chingshui Park that was developed as a hot spring resort during the Japanese era (1895-1945). In addition to the waters, Xin Beitou's other attraction was the girls, and the area had the dubious distinction of being one of Taiwan's largest illegal red light districts.
During the 60s, many characterless concrete hotels were built around the park area, and these structures remained the dominate feature of Beitou's landscape for over twenty years.
The late 80's and 90s, however, ushered in a new era. The government made a concerted effort to clean up the area, and the MRT line reached Beitou. As a result, the concrete hotels were either demolished and rebuilt or totally refurbished as luxury spas. In addition, many new apartments were constructed to accommodate young professionals with families who were drawn to the Beitou area because of its good environment and convenient transportation links to downtown Taipei.
Like a phoenix rising from the steam of the scalding waters, the Beitou of today is characterized by its high quality spas, good hotels, excellent living accommodation and green and lush environment.
Due to the smell of sulphur and the constant rising of steam, the Beitou valley had the appearance of a witch's cauldron, and so the aboriginal inhabitants of the area named it 'witch'. Beitou is the Chinese corruption of this name.
Get in
MRT: 'Xindian - Danshui' and 'Beitou to Nanshijiao' lines. Within Beitou, there is a one station branch line running from 'Beitou Station' to 'Xin Beitou Station'. The latter is nearer to the hot spring resort area.
See
Museums
- Built during the Japanese colonial period, this beautiful Euro-Japanese style building was once the main public bath in Beitou. It has been lovingly restored and re-opened as the Beitou Hot Spring Museum in 1998. Through the twelve rooms, the story of Peitou's romantic years of steam and mystery are revealed in interesting displays. The museum is located in Ching-shui Park.
- The Ketagalan Cultural Center is a ten story building dedicated to the aboriginal culture that once flourished in the Beitou area. The center is located at 3-1 Zhongshan Road (next to Chingshui Park - when coming from Xin Beitou MRT Station, keep the park to your right) Tel:2759-5565
Parks
- The world-famous Yangming Mountains (Yangmingshan) National Park covers the volcanic mountain range behind Shilin and Beitou. There are hiking trails, hot springs and numerous areas to relax and fill your lungs with fresh air. Within the mountain range, there is also a cultivated area famous for its flowers, which are especially stunning in the spring. Bus 260 leaves from directly behind Taipei main station for the park every ten minutes, traveling along Zhongshan North Road and turning right onto Jungzhen Road in Shilin. From Beitou, bus 230 plies the route every thirty minutes. It is a short walk from the bus terminal station to the cultivated area of the park. Hikers will enjoy the walk up to the peak of Qixing Shan (Seven-star Mountain).
- Chingshui Park is a long, narrow park located directly across the road from Xin Beitou MRT Station. Within the park are fountains, Beitou library, the Hot Spring Museum and an outdoor hot spring. Due it its central location, the park is a useful landmark for locating Beitou's other attractions.
Temples
- Puji Sz is a wonderfully preserved Japanese temple. The temple is located across from 'Hotel Kyoto' on Wenchuan Road. Walk up flight of stairs to right.
Do
Hot springs
Public hot spring etiquette requires that bathers thoroughly wash and rinse off their bodies before entering the bath, do not wear clothing (including swim wear) in the bath and tie up their hair so that it does not touch the water. Finally, people with high blood pressure, heart disease or open wounds should not enter the baths.
Places to bathe
There are many hotels and traditional baths located around Qingshui Park (previously called Xin Beitou Park). This park is located directly across from Xin Beitou MRT station (Danshui line). Xingyi Road, the main road from Tianmu to Yangming Mountains in Beitou, also has many hotspring cum restaurants, plus a couple of free public baths (at the top end where the bus turns back). For Xingyi Road, take bus 508 from Wenlin Road, Shilin (from Exit 1 at the Shilin MRT station, follow the overhead tracks and turn left at main road (Zhongzheng Road) and right at next crossroads [with pedestrian overpass], the 508 stop is on the right). On its way to Xingyi Road, the bus makes a stop opposite the Veterans Hospital in Shipai. Note: The spring water in Beitou is acidic, so don't wear anything that can be damaged by acid, such as pearls.
- Spring City (see 'sleep' section) only has private rooms or an outdoor swimming pool-type pool for non-guests.
- Beauty Age Hotel (Meidai) (see 'sleep' section) offers private of family size baths. The family baths are NT$1,000 (NT$1,200 at weekends) per room (irrespective of the number of people) - this is a well maintained hotel offering a very relaxing environment.
- Sweetme Hot Spring Resort (Shuimei) - see 'sleep' section.
- Millennium Hot Springs is an outdoor public hot spring. At NT$40 (plus an additional NT$20 if you store your stuff in a locker), it's a great choice for the budget minded. After exiting the Xinbeitou MRT station, you'll see a park across the street. Walk up Zhongshan Road, along the left side of the park. On the way you'll past the Hotspring Museum. After the Museum, you'll come to a fork in the road. The entrance to the hot spring is on the right. NB: As this hot spring is in view of neighboring apartment buildings, it is one the few on the island where you do not bathe naked. So bring swimwear. They have a number of rules, available on English signs; it would behoove you to follow them lest the guy in the red shirt blow his whistle at you.
Learn
- The internationally well-known Ch'an (Zen) master Ven Sheng-yen has a monastery, publication house, Buddhist University and several meditation centers in the Taipei area. The umbrella group is called Dharma Drum Mountain, and the administration center and university are located on a hill side in Jinshan, Taipei County. The main monastery, Nung Chan Sz (Nongchan Monastery), is located in Beitou (nearest MRT station: Qiyan on the Danshui line) and holds weekly meditation classes with English instruction. For information, check their English web page: [1].
Buy
Eat
- Outside of the hotels, Beitou has a dearth of good restaurants. However, a few can be found around Chingshui park.
- Lian-Hwa, 110-2 Wenchuan Road (top of Chingshui park, turn right, the restaurant is immediately on the left). Tel:2892 7611 - an excellent vegetarian restaurant with reasonable prices.
Drink
Sleep
Budget
Mid range
- Beauty Age Hotel (Meidai), 281 Gwangming Road (top end of Chingshui Park) Tel:2898 6768. Double rooms from NT$1,920 (NT$2,560 at weekends) to NT$ 3,150 (NTS4,200 at weekends) - this hotel offers a a very relaxing and pleasant environment.
Splurge
- Spring City Resort, 18 You Ya Road, Beitou. Tel:2897 5555 - a five star hot springs resort overlooking the Beitou valley.
- Sweetme Hot Spring Resort (Shuimei) 224 Guanming Road (across from Xin Beitou MRT Station overlooking the park). Tel:2898 4506. Despite the hotel's rather uninspiring English name, the resort offers a pleasant environment to relax and unwind, and is conveniently located within a two minute walk from Xin Beitou MRT Station.
Contact
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