The city of Taipei's comprehensive, inexpensive, and easy-to-navigate public transportation system provides a headache-free way for backpackers to get around the big city. A bigger challenge is finding accommodation that is both inexpensive and convenient, and many travelers chose to arrange this aspect of their trip before leaving home.
Taipei city's range of travel lodgings is very wide, from five-star tourist hotels and business hotels to youth hostels, and to ensure that the travelers experience is one of maximum safety and comfort the city's Department of Information and Tourism directs a campaign in which the local accommodation industry constantly seeks ways to maximize“Safety, Tranquility, Peace of Mind”(安全、安靜、安心). The result has been a comprehensive improvement of the city's overall tourist-service quality. As of the end of 2011, 166 enterprises had passed the quality-assessment criterion, 116 had been assisted in installing updated fire-protection facilities, and 13 now enjoy Google Map identification and feature in mobile-phone navigation apps.
Many local places to stay are members of the respected Hostelling International (HI) network organized by the Taiwan Youth Hostel Association (社團法人中華民國國際青年之家協會), and have been given Youth Hostel (YH) recognition, a guarantee of international-caliber quality; we introduce three locations below.
Flying the“YH”Flag
The Youth Hostel movement was launched in 1909 by Mr. Richard Schirrmann, an eminent German elementary-school teacher, and the first permanent Youth Hostel was opened in 1912 in Altena Castle, Germany. Schirrmann's goal was to establish a system that budget-conscious youth could rely on, encouraging group travel to learn about other peoples and cultures. Hostelling International was established in 1932 in order to encourage the opening of a greater number of safe and comfortable YH facilities, and today it is the world's largest accommodation network, with over 90 member countries and 4,800 affiliated YH locations under its umbrella, providing friendly and inviting services. At the moment more than 30 Taiwan hostels carry YH accreditation, with eight in Taipei.
Hostels and homestays seeking YH accreditation must first submit a formal application. HI thereafter conducts an appraisal, focusing on such areas as legal status, location, price, safety, comfort, and quality of the local environment. Trained personnel are dispatched to conduct on-site visits, provide guidance on HI operational philosophy and management practices, and check to see that these are incorporated and adhered to. Operators must also attend training courses. Once all HI standards are firmly in place, YH accreditation is granted, and international travelers can rest assured they are staying in a venue of the highest quality.
All travelers can apply for the YH Card – there is no age limit – which brings preferential rates at YH facilities and special discounts at over 10,000 different attractions and services around the world. Each YH facility offers moderate, fair-value pricing, international quality, and shared rooms, providing travel-loving backpackers and budget travelers in general solid value for their money, a place to stay with no surprises, hassles, or worries, and the chance to meet like-minded adventurers from the world's four corners. Travelers are thus able to concentrate on the joys of travel rather than be consumed with the practical necessities.
Let's look at three of the most popular Taipei Youth Hostels, together with a glimpse of the scenic attractions and cultural life found in the areas surrounding each.
Refreshing Pastel Orange-White Pizzazz – CityInn Hotel I
The CityInn Hotel I (新驛旅店)—very much a youth hostel despite the name—is located in the heart of the city just five minutes by foot from Taipei Main Station. This is a busy area filled with the vitality and electricity that drives Taipei life. The hostel is especially popular with backpackers from South Korea, Japan, and Southeast Asia. The interior is chic, both brightly colored and well lit, with the warm and polite front-desk staff attired in neat and attractive uniforms. The hostel offers a self-service laundry, self-help cafeteria, and other public facilities, and each room has walls featuring attractive illustrations. All the classic YH elements are here: moderate pricing, convenience and comfort, and modernity.
CityInn I is in the midst of the culture—and history-rich Chengzhong District (城中區);“Chengzhong”means“inner city,”a reference to the old walled city; the walls are long gone but almost all the gates survive. The hostel is just a few minutes' walk from the wonderfully convenient and comprehensive MRT system, which gives quick access to most of the city's key tourist attractions. Nearby sites accessible on foot virtually brim with nostalgia, notably the many imposing architectural works created during the 1895~1945 Japanese colonial period.
One prime example is the National Taiwan Museum (NTM; 國立臺灣博物館), within 228 Memorial Peace Park (二二八和平紀念公園), which features a resplendent facade in Greek temple style. The irregular series of exhibits staged here focuses on Taiwan-related subjects. For example, before April 15th you can take in Impressions of Taiwan Railway in 1970s (鐵道印象), which provides a revealing educational journey. Opposite the museum, just outside the park, is the Taiwan Land Bank Exhibition Hall (臺博館土銀展示館), run by the NTM, which is housed in a renovated buidling that is a National Historical Relic of the Third Class. One of its intriguing permanent exhibits is on Taiwan's ancient animal inhabitants, with skeletons of dinosaurs and other primordial creatures.
Over on Ren'ai Road (仁愛路), the Museum of Medical Humanities (臺大醫學人文博物館) is housed in a refurbished hospital building almost a century old. The facility, designed in the Renaissance style, today has exhibits primarily focused on the practice of medicine in Taiwan, making a trip one of both classic architecture appreciation and of understanding of Taiwan's medical advances.
Other attractions in the Chengzhong District that serve as portals into the island’s modern history are the Astoria cafe (明星咖啡廳), Chengzhong Market (城中市場), Futai Street Mansion (撫臺街洋樓), and Zhongshan Hall (中山堂). Complementing them are new retail complexes as Shin Kong Mitsukoshi Department Store (新光三越) and the Qsquare (京站廣場) mall complex. Chongqing South Road (重慶南路) is known to all as Book Street, a busy area where old and new are intimately intertwined.
Pleasant Lane, Comfy Lodgings – Forte Orange Hotel Linsen
Located on Linsen North Road (林森北路), the YH-accredited Forte Orange Hotel Linsen (福泰桔子商旅林森店) is a business hotel run as a hostel. Rooms are spacious, and pricing is by bed. The first floor has a comfortable and inviting reception area, giving guests a warm sense of home.
Linsen North Road has long been a must-visit area for Japanese travelers exploring Taipei, because the neighboring lanes and alleys were designed during the Japanese colonial-era, and the district boasts a plethora of Japanese restaurants. The Forte Orange Hotel takes advantage of this, attracting many Japanese tourists to the youth hostel by cooperating with Japanese travel websites.
The MRT Zhongshan Station is just 8~10 minutes away on foot from the hostel. The station area is known for its many chic and trendy hair salons, cafes, and boutiques. The large Nanjing branch of the Shin Kong Mitsukoshi Department Store chain is the hub of the district, and there is a decidedly arty feel down along the surrounding lanes and alleys. Through the maze of small arteries is the ambiance of low-key cultured sophistication that defines the Zhongshan District (中山區). From this area, travelers can walk all the way to Taipei Main Station via the underground Zhongshan Metro Mall (中山地下街).
This district is also home to the accomplished Museum of Contemporary Art, Taipei (臺北當代藝術館; MOCA Taipei), housed in an impressive heritage building, which is a specially recommended YH Card site. Nearby is the US antebellum-style SPOT – Taipei Film House (光點臺北), long ago the US ambassador's residence. These two facilities present art exhibitions or avant-garde films by inspired talent from Taiwan and around the world. Both also house unconventional, history-rich cafes that are great choices as rest stops on long city walks. Note as well that down the lanes off Linsen North Road are many izakaya, or Japanese pubs, which provide mainly light foods and snacks.
A stay at the Forte Orange Hotel Linsen allows easy access to all of Zhongshan District's many attractions and also immerses the visitor in an environment of Japanese-style refinement, one aspect of the wonderfully diverse culture for which Taipei is so well known.
A Prime Venue for Youthful Learning—Chientan Overseas Youth Activity Center
Taiwan's Youth Activity Center system has the greatest number of YH facilities. Beyond simply providing clean, safe, and inexpensive accommodation, the Youth Activity Center facilities also best satisfy the YH goal of providing young travelers with opportunities for learning and international exchange. The center was originally set up with the specific purpose of education and training, and thus confirms in every way with the YH mission to be“the world's best platform for youth to engage in cultural exchange.”
Located beside Jiantan (劍潭), which literally means“Sword Pool,”a deep, slow-running section of the Keelung River, the Chientan Overseas Youth Activity Center (劍潭海外青年活動中心) youth hostel can accommodate almost 1,000 guests. Among its facilities are a friendship center, a coin laundry, and even a convenience store. YH Card members enjoy pricing per bed.
The center sits within a small green bubble in the middle of the city, surrounded by tall trees, a mountain backdrop, and the river, and has the relaxed air of a student dormitory. Most of the lodgers are teachers and students assembled for training sessions, and the air almost pulsates with the vitality and passion for life of Taiwan's young people.
The center is located within easy walking distance of MRT Jiantan Station. Riding the Tamsui Line south gives easy access to such important tourist sites as Taipei Fine Arts Museum (臺北市立美術館), Dalongdong Bao'an Temple (大龍峒保安宮), and Taipei Confucius Temple (臺北市孔廟). In the opposite direction, many other well-known attractions lie close to the MRT tracks as well, perhaps most notably the Beitou (北投) hot-springs resort area, rich in both history and in soothing, health-enhancing mineral waters.
Closer to Chientan are two of the city's finest green spaces—the Taipei Expo Park (花博公園) and Chiang Kai-shek Shilin Residence (士林官邸). A short bus ride away from the center is the Taipei Martyrs' Shrine (忠烈祠, famed for its changing of the guard ceremony), and the world-famous National Palace Museum, which is currently presenting an exhibition on Western Mythology and Legends: Selected Works from the Louvre Museum (西方神話與傳說─羅浮宮珍藏展). Another easy bus-ride away is Yangmingshan, with its beautiful flowers and fresh farm produce, and in a day-trip it's possible to cross the high mountains to the coast beyond. At night, visit Shilin Market (士林市場) for a taste of classic Taiwan snacks, resting after a long day and invigorating yourself for more exploration the following day.
Beyond the three leading YH venues discussed above, five other Taipei hotels have also been recently granted YH accreditation: Forward Hotel Taipei (台北馥華商旅松江館), Forward Hotel Nangang (台北馥華商旅南港館), Fu Chang Hotel (富粧商務旅店), Hotel B (台北碧瑤飯店), and NewStay Inn (新站旅店).
Where to go – and where to stay? These are important questions for any traveler planning to explore a new place. We hope that with the above information making these important decisions before a visit to Taipei City will be an easier matter.
