Itineraries · 3 days
A food weekend: Taipei to Tainan
Two cities, one very good eating itinerary.
Classic
3 days · Taipei & Tainan
Numbers follow the order of the trip. Open a destination for the full guide.
Day by day
The plan
Taipei and Tainan are the two poles of Taiwanese food: the capital is fast, experimental and open late, while Tainan is slower, sweeter and deeply traditional.
This route is deliberately gentle. The only fixed points are the trains; everything else can move around them.
Day 1
Taipei: breakfast to night market
A full day of Taipei classics, with enough walking between meals to make room for the next one.
Traditional breakfast
Start with soy milk, egg pancakes and sesame flatbread at a neighbourhood breakfast shop in Zhongzheng or Da'an.
Dadaocheng tasting walk
Walk Dihua Street for tea, dried fruit and traditional snacks, then stop at a courtyard café for a second coffee.
Beef noodle lunch
Join the queue at a respected beef noodle shop in Zhongshan or Yongkang Street. Order the half-tendon, half-meat version.
Longshan Temple & shaved ice
Visit the temple, then cool down with mango shaved ice or a bowl of traditional taro dessert nearby.
Ningxia Night Market
A compact, food-first market loved by locals. Try oyster omelette, fried taro balls and squid soup.
Nightcap in Dadaocheng
Finish in a small bar or tea house in the old town, then walk back along the river.
Day 2
Tainan: snacks and old streets
Take the high-speed rail south and spend the afternoon eating through the old capital.
HSR to Tainan
The train takes about 1 hour 45 minutes. Leave your bag at the hotel and take a taxi or local train into the centre.
Anping snacks
Start with oyster rolls, shrimp crackers and tofu pudding in the lanes around Anping Fort.
Danzai noodles
A small bowl of Tainan's signature noodles, topped with coriander and a slice of pork.
Chihkan Tower & Shennong Street
Walk off lunch at the red pavilions of Fort Provintia, then wander the lantern-lit lane of Shennong Street.
Milkfish soup
An early dinner of clear milkfish soup, rice and a soy dip at a local shop in the old town.
Garden Night Market
If it is Thursday, Saturday or Sunday, finish at Tainan's beloved Garden Night Market.
Day 3
Tainan mornings, then home
One more snack crawl before the high-speed train back to Taipei.
Confucius Temple
A quiet morning in the oldest Confucian temple in Taiwan, surrounded by banyan trees.
Tainan Art Museum
Two buildings of Taiwanese art and a good café, with a welcome dose of air conditioning.
Coffin bread
Try the city's famous hollowed-out toast filled with a creamy seafood stew.
Coffee and a last walk
Tainan has excellent small coffee shops. Pick one near the old town and linger before the train.
HSR to Taipei
About 1 hour 45 minutes. Allow time to connect to the airport or your next hotel.
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