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Where to Stay in Taipei (2026): Five Areas and 12 Hotels, Compared

By Casey, Gently Yonder editor

Taipei Main Station and Zhongshan for a first trip, Ximending for food and value, Xinyi for Taipei 101, Da'an for cafés and quieter streets, and Beitou for a night in a hot-spring room. Five areas and 12 hotels.

Last updated · 10 min read

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In this guide10 sections
  1. The short answer
  2. Taipei Main Station and Zhongshan: the first-trip base
  3. Ximending: food, shopping and value
  4. Xinyi: Taipei 101 and the big hotels
  5. Da’an and the East District: cafés and quieter streets
  6. Beitou: a night in the hot springs
  7. All 12 at a glance
  8. Before you book
  9. Getting around from your hotel
  10. Frequently asked questions

Taipei is an easy city to stay in well, because the MRT reaches almost everything you will want to see. The choice is about what is outside your door: the station that takes you to the airport and the high-speed rail, a night market, Taipei 101, a quiet street of cafés, or a hot spring. The city’s trains meet at Taipei Main Station, and the rest follows from how far from it you want to be.

This guide compares five areas, then names twelve hotels across them, with the reason to pick each and, where there is one, the catch. They are researched picks, chosen for location, what each property publishes and consistent guest feedback, and each was checked as operating at the start of October 2026. Two of the twelve are in Beitou, the hot-spring district on a branch of the MRT’s Red Line, for a night in a room with its own spring-water bath. No hotel pays to appear here.

The short answer

If you… Stay in Why
are on a first trip Taipei Main Station and Zhongshan The Airport MRT, the high-speed rail and the Red and Blue lines at Main Station; department stores and cafés one stop north
want food, shopping and value Ximending Pedestrian streets of food and shops around Ximen station, Longshan Temple one stop away, and lower-priced hotels
want Taipei 101 and the malls Xinyi The modern business district around Taipei 101, with its malls joined by skybridges
want cafés and quieter streets Da’an and the East District Yongkang Street, Da’an Forest Park and the East District’s shops
want a hot-spring night Beitou Hotels with a hot-spring bath in every room, a short MRT ride from the centre
A tall lit tower rising above a city at night, seen from a wooded hillside under cloud
Taipei 101 and the city at night, from Elephant Mountain. Photo: Timo Volz / Pexels

Taipei Main Station and Zhongshan: the first-trip base

A large station building with a traditional-style roof behind a plaza with flagpoles, under a cloudy sky
Taipei Main Station, where the MRT, the railways and the high-speed rail meet. Photo: BUY Camera / Pexels

Taipei Main Station is where the city’s trains meet: the Red and Blue MRT lines, the high-speed rail, the conventional railway and, at its own station next door, the Airport MRT, whose express trains make only two stops before the airport. Zhongshan, one stop north on the Red Line, is the pleasanter place to walk out of, with department stores on Nanjing West Road, cafés and small shops in the lanes behind them, and Dihua Street, in old Dadaocheng, a walk to the west. Both stations are on the Red Line, so Taipei 101 is one train away.

Where to stay around Taipei Main Station and Zhongshan

How the hotel links work: a hotel’s name goes to its own website. “Check rates” opens it on Booking.com through our partner Stay22, which pays us a commission if you book, at no extra cost to you.

Ximending: food, shopping and value

A dense crowd in a pedestrian street at night under bright billboards and shop signs
Ximending on a busy night. Photo: Jimmy Liao / Pexels

Ximending is Taipei’s youth-culture quarter, a grid of pedestrian streets around Ximen station, where the Blue and Green lines meet, full of street food, sneaker shops, cinemas and crowds until late. The Red House, an octagonal market hall built in 1908, stands at its edge, and Longshan Temple is one stop west. It has many of central Taipei’s lower-priced hotels, and Main Station is one stop east.

Where to stay in Ximending

Xinyi: Taipei 101 and the big hotels

A very tall segmented tower seen through a gap in green trees above a flight of steps
Taipei 101 through the trees. Photo: Jimmy Liao / Pexels

Xinyi is Taipei’s modern business district, laid out around Taipei 101, the city’s tallest building, with department stores and malls joined by skybridges. Taipei City Hall station on the Blue Line and Taipei 101/World Trade Center station on the Red Line serve it, and Elephant Mountain, where the photograph at the top of this guide was taken, is a short walk from Xiangshan station. It suits a trip built around shopping, dining and the night view, and it costs more than the older districts.

Where to stay in Xinyi

Da’an and the East District: cafés and quieter streets

A night-market street lined with stalls under bright signs, with people shopping
A Taipei night market in the evening. Photo: Jimmy Liao / Pexels

Da’an is residential Taipei at its most pleasant: Yongkang Street, by Dongmen station, where Din Tai Fung began; Da’an Forest Park; the Shida night market near National Taiwan Normal University; and, on its northern edge, the East District’s department stores and side streets around Zhongxiao Fuxing and Zhongxiao Dunhua stations. It is quieter at night than Ximending and more central than Xinyi.

Where to stay in Da’an and the East District

Beitou: a night in the hot springs

Steam rising from a pale green pool surrounded by rocks and trees
Steam rising from a hot-spring pool among the trees. Photo: Jimmy Liao / Pexels

Beitou, on the city’s northern edge, has been a hot-spring resort since the early twentieth century. Its public bathhouse of 1913 is now the Beitou Hot Spring Museum, free to enter, and the steaming Thermal Valley is a short walk up the stream. Take the Red Line to Beitou and change for the one-stop branch to Xinbeitou. A night here, in a room with its own spring-water bath, pairs well with a few nights in the centre.

Where to stay in Beitou

All 12 at a glance

Hotel Area Tier Best for Watch out for
Regent Taipei Zhongshan Comfortable to splurge A classic in the first-trip area A big, busy hotel
The Okura Prestige Taipei Zhongshan Splurge Japanese service and calm Price
Palais de Chine Hotel Taipei Main Station Comfortable The station on your doorstep A busy transport hub
citizenM Taipei North Gate Taipei Main Station Good value A lower-priced base by the trains Small rooms
amba Taipei Ximending Ximending Good value The neighbourhood at your door Late-night noise
Just Sleep Taipei Ximending Ximending Good value A low-fuss base by the MRT Little beyond the room
Grand Hyatt Taipei Xinyi Splurge Taipei 101 next door Its size
W Taipei Xinyi Splurge Nightlife and the MRT in one building Price; a lively bar
Shangri-La Far Eastern, Taipei Da’an Splurge The view to Taipei 101 A walk to the MRT
Hotel Proverbs Taipei East District Splurge A boutique stay by the MRT Price
Grand View Resort Beitou Beitou Splurge A hot-spring bath in every room No under-12s in the public spring
Hotel Royal Beitou Beitou Comfortable A hot-spring night by the station Sulphur and silver

Before you book

Getting around from your hotel

Frequently asked questions

What is the best area to stay in Taipei for a first trip?

Around Taipei Main Station or Zhongshan, one stop north: the Airport MRT, the high-speed rail and the Red and Blue MRT lines meet at Main Station, and Zhongshan has department stores and cafés on the Red and Green lines.

Is Ximending a good place to stay in Taipei?

Yes, for food, shopping and lower-priced hotels: it is a grid of pedestrian streets around Ximen station, one stop from Taipei Main Station. The catch is noise; it is busy late into the night.

Should I stay in Xinyi near Taipei 101?

If your trip is about shopping, dining and the night view, yes, but Xinyi costs more than the older districts and is further from the airport train. Grand Hyatt Taipei and W Taipei are both there.

Can I stay in a hot-spring hotel in Taipei?

Yes, in Beitou, on a branch of the MRT's Red Line. Grand View Resort Beitou and Hotel Royal Beitou both have a hot-spring bath in every room.

Do Taipei hotels add a service charge?

Many add a 10% service charge to the room rate, and tipping is not customary. Check whether the price you see includes the charge and the tax before comparing.

Do I need an arrival card for Taiwan?

Yes. Since 1 October 2025 the paper card has been replaced by the online Taiwan Arrival Card, which is free and is submitted on the National Immigration Agency's site in the week before you arrive.

Sources & further reading

Hotels rename, renovate and reprice. Every detail here was checked at the start of October 2026; confirm rates and room types with the hotel before booking. These are researched picks, not reviews. This article contains affiliate links: hotel rates on Booking.com and other booking sites through Stay22; if you book through them we may earn a commission at no extra cost to you. No hotel pays to be included.

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