3 days in Taipei: itinerary

Build the three days around three different Taipeis rather than three lists of sights. Day one is the old city: Longshan Temple, the Bopiliao brick lanes, then Ximending in the evening. Day two is the modern city: Chiang Kai-shek Memorial Hall in the morning, Yongkang Street for lunch, Taipei 101 and the Sun Yat-sen Memorial Hall area, then a night market. Day three leaves the city: the north coast and Jiufen, or Beitou and Yangmingshan if you want hot springs and a shorter ride.

If you have only two usable days, drop the day trip and keep the city days — Taipei rewards slow mornings in temples and long evenings at markets more than a rushed coast run. If you have four days, add Keelung or Tamsui as a half-day and keep the third day as planned.

Taipei is a cheap city by US or UK standards: MRT rides sit in the NT$20–65 band, a night-market meal is usually NT$50–150, and a mid-range hotel room is the biggest single cost. Treat every figure here as a 2026 estimate and confirm the big ones — the 101 observatory, gondola, hot-spring rooms and any day tour — on the operator's own page before you go.

Opening hours are the part most often wrong online. Temples generally open early and close in the evening; museums typically close one weekday; night markets run into late evening and are busiest after 19:00. Check each site's official page for the day you plan to visit, especially around Lunar New Year and public holidays.

Most visitors land at Taoyuan (TPE) and take the airport MRT to Taipei Main Station, roughly 35–50 minutes depending on the service. The parent country guidance is to land before 22:00 so you catch the MRT rather than a taxi. From Taipei Main Station the MRT reaches most hotel areas in 10–20 minutes.

Inside the city, the MRT plus walking covers almost everything in this itinerary. Buy or top up an EasyCard at any station; it works on the MRT, most buses and in convenience stores. For Jiufen, take a train to Ruifang and change to a bus, or book a day tour if you would rather not manage the change. For Beitou, the MRT goes straight there on the red line. Check the last-train times for whichever day trip you choose — they are earlier than you expect.