Taipei temples are great places to visit to meditate or connect. The most famous temple in Taipei is Longshan Temple in Ximen, but there’s also Taipei Confucius Temple and Bao’an Temple. Also worth mentioning is Jieyun Temple in the Banqiao area of New Taipei City, but a more romantic option is Xiahai “City God” Temple along Dihua Street, which is truly historical in nature, culturally and also its architecture. Why romantic? It’s close to the known sunset spot at Dadaocheng Wharf.
Because Taipei is surrounded by hills and mountains, it makes it a great hiker’s paradise. An easy Taipei hike is Xiangshan mountain, which you can get to via the MRT station of the same name, and here you can get a great view of Taipei and the skyline. Lesser known is Bishan Kaizhang Shengwang in Neihu—Taipei City looks here is framed by the phoenixes of a traditional Taiwanese temple. Other places to hike include Seven Stars Mountain in Yangmingshan National Park, and the trails near the Maokong Gondola.
Taiwanese temples fall into different categories, including city temples where people go to worship, anchor temples, which like other parts of Asia, are gateways into a neighborhood so a little off the beaten path and viewpoint temples which are not only beautiful in architecture but can sometimes have great views.
Temples worth seeing in Taipei:
- Bishan Kaizhang Shengwang Temple (go for the view – its just stunning)
- Bao’an Temple (you can walk to it from the Yuanshan Metro Station)
- Taipei Confucius Temple (they offer performances here if you can plan around it to see one)
- Jieyun Temple (is stunning to look at and offers some great restaurants nearby)
- Tianhou Temple (surprisingly pretty inside alongside a street between a couple of shops)
What about other parts of Taiwan?
A few worth mentioning include:
- Tainan Confucius Temple
- Dragon and Tiger Pagodas in Kaohsiung
- Quanhua Temple in Miaoli
- Fo Guang Shan Monastery in Kaohsiung
