Jiufen travel blog — Jiufen day trip from Taipei: How to spend 1 perfect day in Jiufen?

The houses on the mountain slopes

This is the most beloved scene when referring to the ancient village of Jiufen, the back is the mountain, another side in front of the sea has created a beautiful landscape of the village.

Jiufen Tea house (Ah Mei teahouse)

As an iconic of the ancient village of Jiufen, this is a large and tall house, where many people come to rest, enjoy the Oolong tea and look at the surrounding landscape.

This is Taiwan’s most famous tea house. In 1989, this place was chosen as the scenes for film “A city of sadness” by Hou Hsiao – Hsien director. “A City of Sadness” recreates a part of the history of Taiwanese people for four years in the war with Japan and the Interim Government. The film deeply depicts the conflicts between indigenous peoples of Taiwan and immigrants and the difficulties that people faced in this dark age. Address: 224, Taiwan, New Taipei City, Ruifang District, 市下巷20號. Phone: +886 2 2496 0833

Jiufen Street Food

Many of the shops and restaurants with typical street foods such as peanut butter cream, Taro tea, beef noodles, barbecue snacks, snails grilled… create a typical bustling scene of the ancient village.

Coming to the ancient village of Jiufen, visitors can catch Japanese culture in harmony with the Chinese culture. When come here, visitors remember to enjoy the specialties of the region such as fishballs, shrimp balls, beef balls, tofu tablets … Just a few items fill with broth is enough to create a unique dish, bring bold of Jiufen’s culinary culture. But the most interesting and attracting is still the cakes made from potatoes and taro with a very special flavor, famous throughout Taiwan.

In addition to the Shuqi vertical road, Jiufen also has two parallel roads and crosses Shuqi which are the Songde road and Jishan road. Along these two roads, there are many tea shops, bakeries, cafeterias and restaurants in front of each of the cafes that cakes are chopped for visitors to taste before buying.

The scenes of movies

Although it is a village, Jiufen is a bustling town filled with houses close together and famous as the scenes of the famous movie “A city of sadness.” and “Sprited Away” by Japanese director Miyazaki Hayao.

Jiufen day trip from Taipei: Some guides and useful tips to discover Jiufen

How to get to Jiufen village?

There are many ways to getting to Jiufen. The three best options are shuttle bus, train and normal bus.

Shuttle Bus

From the center of Taipei, you can take a taxi or bus with a travel time of more than an hour. The short-distance shuttle bus service is available to take visitors from Taipei City in Ximen to Jiufen, then to Shifen Old Streets. The car goes in the morning and comes back before dinner time. It was the easiest way to get to Jiufen. Car Schedule: Morning: 9:00AM for $30.25 or noon 1:30PM for $15.50. Link to book Jiufen Shuttle Bus from Ximen.

Train

From Taipei Main Station, take the train to the north, arrival at Ruifang Station. After leaving the station, turn left and walk 200 meters to Mingdeng Road. Next to the police station is a local bus station called Local Residents Plaza, with routes No.827 and No.788 heading to Jiufen.

Bus

From Zhongxiao Fuxing MRT, you leave the stop from Exit 1 and take the bus No.1062 (Keelung Bus) to Jinguashi and arrival in Jiufen. The trip takes about 1 hour and the fare is NT$102 (~$3.35). Get up early to get a good seat, comfortable and enjoy the beautiful Taipei. Bus No.788 is also available at Keelung.

Accommodation

Although most visitors from Taipei to Jiufen visit in one day, but there are also many people who prefer to stay overnight at one of the hotels here, or at the B&Bs, or minus. Because the number of guest houses and hotels in Jiufen are limited, and this is one of the most popular destinations in Taiwan, we recommend you reserve the room before arrival here. Accommodation here is also more crowded and expensive at the weekends, but prices do not increase as much as many other famous tourist destinations of Taiwan.

You can find, check rates, availability & booking for hotels in Jiufen on Agoda.com or Booking.com.

Further information

What is the best time to visit Jiufen?

At any time of the year, you can also visit the ancient village of Jiufen, however traveling to Taiwan in February to April or from September to November with cool weather is the best time to visit.

How long should I visit at Jiufen?

You should spend it at least 2 hours to a half day or full day to visit Jiufen village and discover special things in the village that located on mountain slopes.

Opening hours: Daily from early morning to midnight
Duration of visiting: at least 2 hours to a half day or full day
Entrance fee: Free

Again. Link to book Jiufen Shuttle Bus from Ximen.

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Are you looking for more Taipei travel guide and top things to do in Taipei: Tours, activities, attractions and other things? Read more: Taipei travel blog — The fullest Taipei city guide for a wonderful trip to Taipei for the first-timers. And Jiufen Shifen itinerary: Jiufen Shifen day trip — How to visit Jiufen and Shifen in one day from Taipei?