Day trips from Taipei on your own

7 min read · Updated 2026-10

New Taipei wraps around the city, and its best-known sights are a bus or train ride away: gold-mining towns in the hills, sky lanterns over a railway line, a river mouth at sunset and a coast of strange rocks. All four trips below work on public transport, and none of them needs a group. Pick one per day; trying to squeeze in two areas usually means a lot of time at bus stops.

Which one to pick

• Jiufen and Jinguashi: Lantern-lit old streets and teahouses in the hills. About 1–1.5 hours by bus. Busy, but a classic.
• Shifen and the Pingxi Line: Sky lanterns, a waterfall and little railway towns. About 1.5 hours by train or bus.
• Tamsui and Bali: Riverside snacks, an old fort and a ferry at sunset. The easiest, by MRT.
• The North Coast: Rock formations at Yehliu, then food and hot springs in Jinshan. By bus, and the buses are the least frequent of the four.

Jiufen and Jinguashi

Getting there. Bus 1062 from Zhongxiao Fuxing MRT Station (Exit 2), or bus 965 from Beimen or Ximen, runs to the Jiufen Old Street stop in about 1–1.5 hours. Both carry on to Jinguashi at the end of the line. You can also take a train to Ruifang and a bus of about 15 minutes up the hill.

1. Go early. Start at the Gold Museum in Jinguashi (NT$80) in the morning, before the crowds reach Jiufen, then take a short bus back.
2. Walk the old streets. Jishan Street is narrow, mostly flat, partly covered and lined with snacks. Then go down the steep Shuqi Road steps, past the teahouses.
3. Eat as you go. Taro balls at Grandma Lai or A-Gan-Yi, a peanut ice cream roll at A-Zhu, or braised pork rice at Jiufen Jie Jiao.
4. Sit down for tea. At A-Mei Teahouse, the house tea set is priced per person, so ordering one on your own is normal. See how tea houses work.
5. Stay for the lanterns, then leave in time. The lanterns light up around sunset. Buses back to Taipei run until about 20:30 and the lines get long, so check the timetable.

Shifen and the Pingxi Line

Getting there. Take a train to Ruifang (about 45 minutes), then the small Pingxi Line to Shifen (about 30 minutes). Or take bus 795 from MRT Taipei Zoo Station, about 1.5 hours. Tap your EasyCard out at the station readers, which are easy to miss.

1. Shifen Old Street. Shops line both sides of a working railway. When a train comes, step well back. This is where you release a sky lantern.
2. Sending up a lantern alone. Single-color lanterns are the cheapest. You paint your wishes on each side, and staff hold the lantern with you while it fills and take your photo. Release it only in the marked zone, never on the tracks: walking onto the rails can bring a fine of NT$10,000–50,000.
3. Shifen Waterfall. A 20–30 minute walk away, and free. From October to May the last entry is 16:30.
4. Up the line. Pingxi Old Street, with trains passing overhead, is liveliest on weekends. At the end of the line, Jingtong is the quietest stop, with lunch at Hongbao Miners' Canteen (closed Tuesdays).

Tamsui and Bali

Getting there. Take the MRT Red line to Tamsui, the last stop. Only about every second train goes all the way, so check the destination on the platform.

1. The riverside. Walk the promenade and old street, snacking as you go. Try a-gei, fried tofu stuffed with glass noodles, at San Jie Mei or Wu Family.
2. Fort San Domingo. The red fort on the hill (NT$80) is a short bus ride or a 20–25 minute walk. One ticket also covers the Little White House and Hobe Fort on the same day.
3. Across to Bali. The ferry leaves every 15–30 minutes (about NT$40). In Bali, try the fried squid and twin donuts on the pier street.
4. Sunset. Come back across the river in the late afternoon and stay on the riverside for the sunset.

The North Coast: Yehliu and Jinshan

Getting there. Kuo-Kuang bus 1815 from Taipei Main Station runs along the coast to Yehliu and on to Jinshan. From Tamsui, bus 862 and the Taiwan Tourist Shuttle 716 also run here; the 716 runs daily from May to October, but only on weekends and national holidays from November to April.

1. Yehliu Geopark first. Yehliu (NT$120) opens at 08:00. Arrive early on a weekday, before the tour groups. You can leave bags for free at the visitor center.
2. On to Jinshan for lunch. Jinshan Old Street sells most snacks one at a time. Have sliced duck at Jinbaoli Duck, a one-person seafood congee at Big Bowl Crab or an individual hot pot at Fuyuan.
3. Soak your feet or more. There's a free outdoor foot bath next to the old street. For a full soak, the Jinshan Governor's Hot Spring public baths are a short taxi ride away (closed Wednesdays).
4. Art in the hills. The Juming Museum sculpture park (NT$350, closed Mondays) is a taxi ride up from Jinshan. If you'll see both Yehliu and Juming, a combined e-ticket on KKday (paid link: we earn a commission) costs less than the two gate prices together. It can't be canceled once bought, and the second visit must be within 14 days of the first.

Tips for going on your own

• One area per day. Each trip is easily a full day once you add bus times, and the buses get crowded in the late afternoon.
• Rather not deal with buses? Shared day tours from Taipei cover Yehliu, Shifen and Jiufen in one day and run even with a single booking, for example this Klook day tour (paid link: we earn a commission). The Yehliu ticket, sky lanterns and meals cost extra, and you get less time at each stop than on your own.
• Go on a weekday. Jiufen, Shifen and Yehliu all fill with tour groups on weekends. Mornings are calmer everywhere.
• Carry an EasyCard and some cash. EasyCard works on most of these buses and trains, but small stalls often take cash only. See paying in Taiwan.
• Check the last bus or train before you set off, and save the stop name in Chinese to show the driver.
• Bring a rain jacket. Weather in the hills and on the coast changes quickly, and Jiufen’s stone steps are slippery when wet.
• Typhoons and heavy rain can close parks and stop the ferries. Check the official sites below on the day.

See everything on the map: all places in New Taipei.

Check the latest

Bus times, ticket prices and closures change. Before you go, check:

• New Taipei City travel website (official): sights, transport and closure notices
• Taiwan Railway (official site): train timetables to Ruifang, Houtong and the Pingxi Line
• Taiwan Tourist Shuttle 716 (official site, in Chinese): North Coast shuttle times and running days
• Gold Museum (official site): hours, tickets and activities
• Yehliu Geopark (official site): tickets, opening hours and weather closures

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