In the Winter/Spring of 2017, I decided to bring my bike to Taiwan/Taipei for 2 weeks to get some warmer weather cycling in and explore the awesome country that is Taiwan. I first visited Taiwan back in 2016, but deeply regretted not bringing my bicycle and vowed to come back again with my bike. This led to me planning my Taiwan Cycling Trip.
The entire time, I stayed at the Meander Hostel in Ximen, Taipei, which had reasonable rates, a nice open public space for working, and space for me to store my bicycle.
I ended up making videos for most every day of the trip. While most of them are cycling focused, some of them are not since I did want to experience some regular tourist attractions as well. Here they are in order.
#1: Arrival in Taipei, build bike & ride to Tamsui (台北 – 淡水）
#2: Taipei to Fulong, pepper bun & bubble tea (台北、福隆、胡椒餅、波霸奶茶)
#3: GoPro chest mount test on Taipei river paths to southern mountains
#4: Taipei to Shiding, two peaks ride & beef noodles (台北、石碇、牛肉麵)
#5: Mini “velodrome” in Taipei? (likely speed skating track)
#6: Workout at Taipei Wanhua Sports Center (台北市萬華運動中心)
#7: Yangmingshan national park & Tian Yuan Temple (陽明山國家公園,天元宮)
#8: Hiking Elephant Mountain 象山 + New Logo!
#9: Exploring Taipei’s Attractions + Din Tai Fung & Oolong Tea
#10: Spirited Away in Jiufen
#11: Taipei Grand Hotel + Bento + Portable Toilets
#12: Ride to Wulai Falls From Taipei (烏來瀑布)
#13: My Favorite Bubble Tea + Street Art in Ximen
#14: Last Day in Taipei | Ride to Dongyanshan 東眼山
Final Thoughts – Taiwan Cycling Trip
This trip is easily one of the most memorable trips I’ve taken throughout all of my travels. Taiwan is a paradise for cycling, and dare I say I enjoyed the cycling here more than I do living here in Japan (minus the scooter exhaust in the city).
If you are considering traveling to Taiwan for some cycling, I strongly recommend it! Even though I have not really been outside of Taipei area yet, I hear the other areas are also really great and have some big cycling communities.
One of the things that I really enjoyed the most about cycling in Taiwan was seeing the large number of people cycling all over the place. From large group rides of regular cyclists to regular pedestrians riding on their commuter bikes, it was great to see a country full of people using bikes. Another great thing to see was all of the female rides in Taiwan, which is a bit of a rare sight in Japan in comparison.
I’m definitely planning on going back sometime for Taiwan Cycling Trip Part II so I can ride in and experience the cycling in other parts of Taiwan. Heck, if I can get enough vacation time, I might even try and cycling around the whole country 🙂 One day…..
