Recommended places to take your kids in Taipei

Someone invited us to a party at the inflatable play area of the science museum in shilin, last june. missed it, so i can’t personally vouch for running and screaming, but at the time they had a BIG (like 2 floors of the place) set up, so it seems like a safe bet! not sure if they still have it.

Nice thread. I wish I had children. You people are very lucky.

[quote=“Tempo Gain”]
Someone invited us to a party at the inflatable play area of the science museum in Shilin, last june. missed it, so i can’t personally vouch for running and screaming, but at the time they had a BIG (like 2 floors of the place) set up, so it seems like a safe bet! not sure if they still have it.[/quote]

Nah, that was a temporary ‘exhibit’.

So, where to take a 5 year-old (and her friends) for her birthday?

The zoo followed by McDonalds isn’t special enough. Done the zoo plenty.

A park with games/toys brought along and pizzas delivered? Eh, what if it rains? Plus, gotta have cake and ice cream.

Pizza Hut all you can eat buffet wouldn’t be all that exciting for them. My daughter loves Fridays; the atmosphere there gets her amped and she loves the chocolate brownie cake with ice cream. But by itself that doesn’t seem sufficient. Need entertainment and running and screaming.

Library or museums may have rooms available, but too quiet and sedate. I/they pretty much require some running, screaming and acting silly.

I’m drawing a blank. Any ideas?

We did a bday party in KFC close to our home when amber was 4yo, we had almost 20 kids so it was manic… but everyone thoroughly enjoyed.

Most have a party room, and will provide free of charge for a few hrs. The rooms are often bland so we jazzed it up a little by providing 100 helium filled balloons, big party banner, 4ft Mickey & Minnie at the entrance, etc. this really gave it a party atmosphere. The kids especially loved the balloons…

KFC provided hats, whistles, food… they also will give a gift to the birthday boy/girl (though you pay for it). They will also play some party games with the kids… and try to keep them entertained. We prepared in advance small party bags for each kid to take home.

We were going to get an entertainer to do balloon animals for an hr as well… but that option seemed just too expensive… The girls at KFC made in advance lots of simple balloon sculptures for free… initially everyone wanted the dog, but soon after they all wanted the swords…

Cake we brought ourselves, in fact we just pre-ordered from the cake shop next door and ran down and picked it up…

After the party, some left other kids moved to the soft play area… we thought come the end there would be a lot to clean up… but there was not a single balloon remaining… we still have Mickey & Minnie as well as lots of fond memories.

GO TO THE BOUNCY SECTION OF THE SCIENCE MUSEUM!!!

A five-year-old kid can have no more fun than bouncing around there. It’s impossible.

My girls are 9 and 6 and have been there (and to the science section of the museum) half a dozen times. Bouncy Town used to be a third of the (6th? floor). Now it’s the WHOLE FLOOR!
They upped the price a bit (from about 120 to 200), but it’s still worth it. Remember, YOU GO, TOO! Play hide and seek, zip down the slides, bounce around your kids and make them go up when you go down. Take a thousand photos with your digital camera. The place is solid primary colors and provides great backgrounds. Go down to Starbucks or (Burger King?) on the second floor or 7-11 on the ground floor if you need to recharge the battery; popcorn is available on the same (6th?) floor as Bouncy Town. Bounce; eat, and then go BACK FOR MORE! Bring a book for when YOU get tired of bouncing . . . kids won’t need one.

The science museum section would be paid for separately (an extra hundred or so). If you want to make a full day of it, do the science section first. Try to get there as early as possible, and go straight to the second floor, virtual-skiing exhibit. This is not as good as the science museum in Taichung, but they are both “hands-on” museums that are perfect for a child of 5. Five is a special birthday, right?

So, just go.

Thanks guys. Two fantastic ideas. :slight_smile: I’ll follow up on both.

Hadn’t occurred to me that fast food joints would have a free party room. That looks great from your photos. And, since we’ve still got a little over 2 weeks to go, we could probably find some great game ideas for kids (eg., along the lines of but not necessarily pin the tail on the donkey or smashing a pinata, or something to get them running around being silly, which my girl loves to do). And, of course, fast food is always a treat for kids.

As for hte Science Museum – wow, I’ve been to lots of museums in Taiwan but not that one. My wife tells me it’s in Shihlin. Is that right? Do you think one can book a birthday room there? Do you know if they have a Website? Here are some photos I found of it online.
pbase.com/andrew_aes/science_museum&page=all

Thanks again for the suggestions. We went to Bouncy Town in the Taipei “science museum”. It was great. A few hours of running, sliding, bouncing and acting crazy on giant inflatable dinosaurs and other huge bouncy structures. Nonstop fun for hours and a great workout to boot. Then went to her favorite restaurant – Fridays, capped off by their brownies with icecream and a red baloon. She’s now sleeping soundly (late nap).

We’ll definitely return to Bouncy Town and will also check out the rest of the science museum. It’s a nice, huge attractive modern building, I noticed they’ve got various 3d movies and undoubtedly some other cool stuff too. Strange that it took me 9 years to discover that, but once again I’m proud to introduce my Taiwanese wife to great things in Taiwan that I’ve learned about on forumosa. She no longer mocks the forum quite as badly as she once did. :slight_smile:

When I went, it was unfortunately mostly broken down leftovers from the old location on Nanhai Road. Hopefully they’re updating it. Next to say the science museum in Hong Kong it was pretty laughable.

I don’t have kids but this is a sure fire winner.

http://www.e7club.com.tw/

It’s literally just over the MinQuan W. Road Bridge as you head into San Chong. I go there with my friends every couple of months and it’s all the bowling and arcade you want for 253nt.

They just added this new ping pong game that will knock your socks off!

Rocky,

Thanks for the info. It looks like they have a pretty complex system of charges for the place. From their site, it looks like you (Rocky) don’t pay to be a member (NT$400), and you just go for 3 hours on the weekend. If I read the terms correctly, it might be a bit cheaper to arrive just before noon (to get a cheaper price) and then pay for 5 hours. Without a membership card, they add an extra 10 percent, so for you 230 +23 = NT$253 for three hours, right?

Can’t wait. :discodance: :lick:

[quote=“zender”]GO TO THE BOUNCY SECTION OF THE SCIENCE MUSEUM!!!

A five-year-old kid can have no more fun than bouncing around there. It’s impossible.

My girls are 9 and 6 and have been there (and to the science section of the museum) half a dozen times. Bouncy Town used to be a third of the (6th? floor). Now it’s the WHOLE FLOOR!
They upped the price a bit (from about 120 to 200), but it’s still worth it. Remember, YOU GO, TOO! Play hide and seek, zip down the slides, bounce around your kids and make them go up when you go down. Take a thousand photos with your digital camera. The place is solid primary colors and provides great backgrounds. Go down to Starbucks or (Burger King?) on the second floor or 7-11 on the ground floor if you need to recharge the battery; popcorn is available on the same (6th?) floor as Bouncy Town. Bounce; eat, and then go BACK FOR MORE! Bring a book for when YOU get tired of bouncing . . . kids won’t need one.

The science museum section would be paid for separately (an extra hundred or so). If you want to make a full day of it, do the science section first. Try to get there as early as possible, and go straight to the second floor, virtual-skiing exhibit. This is not as good as the science museum in Taichung, but they are both “hands-on” museums that are perfect for a child of 5. Five is a special birthday, right?

So, just go.[/quote]
We like Bouncy Town. Before that is was Alice in Wonderland, which my son called Alice Under Waterland. In that area is also the Astronomy museum which also has some 3d and IMAX movies. And the park there has a lot of neat science exhibitions, dealing with water. They also have acoustical pipes and sculptures and stuff. It’s a pretty entertaining area.

And they closed the Starbucks and the 7-11, but they still have Burger King.

[quote=“zender”]Rocky,

Thanks for the info. It looks like they have a pretty complex system of charges for the place. From their site, it looks like you (Rocky) don’t pay to be a member (NT$400), and you just go for 3 hours on the weekend. If I read the terms correctly, it might be a bit cheaper to arrive just before noon (to get a cheaper price) and then pay for 5 hours. Without a membership card, they add an extra 10 percent, so for you 230 +23 = NT$253 for three hours, right?

Can’t wait. :discodance: :lick:[/quote]

Yeah your calculation seems right to me. Every time I’ve been there it’s been a Friday or Saturday night and has been 253nt for 3 hours. I don’t know the benefits for being a member but something I might look into.

The other nice thing about the place is that you can buy beers at the Family Mart next door and bring them in. :smiley:

Doncha just love Taiwan?!

Beer and Bowling! What a great combination! Then again, beer goes great with most everything.

Beer + Bowling? Check!

Beer + Baseball? Check!

Beer + BMWs? Well, . . . 2 out of 3.

Doncha just love Taiwan?!

Beer and Bowling! What a great combination! Then again, beer goes great with most everything.

Beer + Bowling? Check!

Beer + Baseball? Check!

Beer + BMWs? Well, . . . 2 out of 3.[/quote]

Beer, bongs and bacardi. :thumbsup: :slight_smile: But that’s another thread.

As for kid’s places, a colleague just told me about this place, in Hsin-Yi District: babyboss.com.tw/

But he confessed that it’s ridiculously expensive. Something like NT$1,000 for one adult and one child, so your kid can go dress up like a doctor or a fireman (and get his/her photo taken). Apparently the place is for the kinds of BMW parents who dress their kids up in designer clothes and lavish designer gifts on them, thinking that will substitute for plain old time well spent.

Babyboss is a great place. If you go during your child’s birthday month, and you buy a VIP card for them (NT$300), then the child can go for free and the parent can go for $100. Still not cheap, but it’s not bad for a half day of fun.

Even our three-year old children loved it, so I’m sure an older child would like it a lot.

[quote=“scomargo”]Babyboss is a great place. If you go during your child’s birthday month, and you buy a VIP card for them (NT$300), then the child can go for free and the parent can go for $100. Still not cheap, but it’s not bad for a half day of fun.

Even our three-year old children loved it, so I’m sure an older child would like it a lot.[/quote]
They have discounts during the time that school is out as well.

This weekend I went for the first time to the XinBeitou library. Very nice. :thumbsup:

Very convenient: 2 blocks from the XinBeitou MRT stop.

Very pretty: beautiful wooden exterior, wooden floors, large windows opened wide, completely unlike any crappy Taiwan hermetically sealed tile/marble/cement building. Heck they even have nice big wooden chairs throughout the place, so it looks like a nice lodge in some resort in Colorado or the Adirondacks (of upstate New York).

And, very different.

[quote]Taipei residents can be proud that their city now boasts one of East Asia’s most energy-efficient and environmentally-friendly buildings: Taipei Public Library Beitou Branch (台北市立圖書館北投分館). A trip to the library can be combined with a visit to Beitou’s Hot Springs Museum (北投溫泉博物館), which is a stone’s throw away.

When it officially opened in November 2006, Beitou Library became the first building in Taiwan to qualify for a diamond rating — the highest possible — under the government’s EEWH certification system for sustainable construction projects. . .

The library’s wooden walls . . .

The library’s large windows help cut electricity use in two ways. An abundance of natural light means less interior lighting is needed. Also, the windows are often opened wide for ventilation, thus reducing the need for fans and air-conditioning.

One part of the roof is covered by photovoltaic cells that convert sunlight into electricity. Inside the building, by the loans-and-returns desk, an electronic information board shows how much electricity is being generated and consumed. The board also records humidity and carbon dioxide levels, plus precise interior temperatures (to 1/10,000th of a degree) in different parts of the library.

Another part of the roof is covered by 20 centimeters of soil to provide thermal insulation. During Taipei’s chilly winters, this soil layer cuts heat loss through the ceiling while in the summer, it helps shield the building from the sun’s heat.

The library conserves water by capturing rainfall. The sloping roof gathers rainwater, which is then stored and used to flush the library’s toilets. . .

The library’s address is No. 251, Guangming Road (光明路251號)[/quote]
chinapost.com.tw/travel/taiw … -green.htm

see also
culture.tw/index.php?option= … Itemid=157

As for the books, they don’t have as wide a selection as the nice main library next to Ta-an park, but we still came away with an armful of great kids books and a couple of good adult books too (all in English except one). We’ll be back. :slight_smile:

Earlier today me and Lady500 went to see the Pixar exhibition at the museum close to Yuanshan MRT.I’d say its well worth a look for any kids who want to see all the original concept work, interactive exhibits and all that.

Its open until 11th Nov but expect to queue on weekends, although you can buy tickets at 7-11 through the iBon thingy.

[quote=“Funk500”]Earlier today me and Lady500 went to see the Pixar exhibition at the museum close to Yuanshan MRT.I’d say its well worth a look for any kids who want to see all the original concept work, interactive exhibits and all that.

Its open until 11th Nov but expect to queue on weekends, although you can buy tickets at 7-11 through the iBon thingy.[/quote]

presently standing in line for the pixar show typing this on my iPhone. Arrived8:30 am, expect to get in by 10:30 or so. Madness. If it were picasso we’d be in by now, but pixar…
Hard to imagine the huge revenue this will generate w toys tshirts, etc
I’ll report back after the show