I’m traveling to Taipei in a few weeks. It will be my first time to Asia, and I’m not a frequent traveler - so I’m taking every kind of precaution one could possibly take. I’m not paranoid, but a bit… fussy
Though I already asked which areas are most/least affected by earthquakes, I’d also like to ask which areas are central enough (as in conveniently connected to airport and main sights etc) but not too crowded, maybe around a few parks, or anywhere green where I could jog in the morning, enjoy a bit of quietness, etc. before going sightseeing or anything else.
I don’t mean a back alley or suburb, but, say if London’s crowded centre is Piccadilly/Oxford Circus, I’d stay in South Kensington (near Hyde Park), Baker Street (near Regents Park) etc.
But the most important thing is that it’s easy to get from the airport, because I will be super tired and want to sleep first thing after I arrive…
Da-An park is the best hope. Just don’t go there in the weekends if you want somewhere quiet or go for a run without stopping to avoid people every 3 steps
Yangmingshan is also nice but has the mandatory stone steps and is not the easiest to get to. Avoid in weekends at all costs.
Getting to/from airport is super easy, you prolly dont wanna stay near airport.
Da an Park, the parks near the Fine Art Museum, CKS Memorial, NTU University campus, and any of the many Riverside Parks. Some people like to jog around SYS but it’s a little small.
Better don’t come with the expectation that you might find parks like you have in London, especially if you look in the center of the city. I’d say green and convenient is mutually exclusive. Yangmingshan is great, but not convenient. Daan Park is convenient, but surrounded by streets with heavy traffic. Early in the morning might be OK, but there are lot of folks practicing their morning routines. So you won’t be alone and it won’t be quiet with bird songs in the air, though surprisingly there are a lot of water birds around that pond they have. Here is something in between: the Shuangxi Riverside Park in Shilin, I would go jogging there, there’s also the small Zhishan Mountain Park you could check out.
If you are in the Gongguan area you might go to the campus of National Taiwan University. Students get up late, so I think in the early morning it’s rather quiet and they have a lot of old trees.
Can I stir you away from Taipei city and head straight to New Taipei? How about Xindian? It is a bit closer from the airport, we have the Bitan lake and the bike path and the mountains for hiking. There are several hotels around teh area, not very pricey, not very fancy, and the metro station is right there. As everything in Taiwan, bit crowded in the weekends, and in te eveining there is a water show that attracts crowds, but it is over early.
Bit about the area:
Couple of hotels to consider:
Since you will be next to the MRT, transportation will be very easy.
