Ultimate Beitou Hot Spring Travel Guide: Taiwan’s Relaxing Hot Spring Getaway!
The Beitou Thermal Valley gives off everlasting steam
If you’re traveling in Taiwan surely you’ve heard of places like the Ghibli-esque Juifen but little know about the hidden district of the Beitou Hot Springs in Taiwan.
Much like the the Onsen town of Yufuin in Japan, Beitou is a little town just on the outskirts of Taipei city full of natural hot springs, educational historical institutes, and charming atmosphere.
The Beitou Hot Springs was the highlight of my recent trip to Taiwan and I am so excited to share with you all the wonderful discoveries and experiences that are to be had in this historical town.
In this blog post, I’ll share with you some recommendations, insights and tips, as well as guides on how to travel to Beitou from Taipei City.
So join me as we explore the Beitou Hot Springs of Taiwan! :)
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How to Travel to Beitou
All these cute characters give Beitou it’s charm
Beitou (more specifically the Beitou Historical Park) is part of the Beitou District of Taiwan which is just north of Taipei City. Despite being located in a rough and mountainous terrain, it’s quite easy to travel to Beitou.
Your easiest option is taking the Taipei Metro (MRT) to the Beitou MRT Station (Tamsui-Xinyi Line). From Beitou Station, transfer to the Xinbeitou Line and take one more stop to Xinbeitou MRT Station, which is where all the hot spring action takes place.
Top 3 Hotels in Beitou
Personally, I’d think that a day trip from Taipei to the Beitou Hot Springs is enough, however, Beitou is also well known for their hospitality, since this area was historically a popular resting spot for many travelers.
You’ll find that a lot of hotels provide excellent food, rooms, and service. So if you want to spice up your romantic(?) Hot Spring getaway, then these are the 3 of the best Beitou Hot Spring resorts that I’d recommend.
Grand View Resort Beitou
If this is not luxury, then I don’t know what is
Let me warn you straight up, the Grand View Resort Beitou is insanely expensive, BUT is it worth it? Well if you want the ultimate in comfort and hospitality, uhh maybe?
This resort is located on a forested hillside about a 2 minute walk from the nearest bus stop. The rooms are decorated with elegant wooden designs with all the latest amenities you could ever want. Plus if you upgrade, your room will come with an indoor pool.
The Grand View Resort Beitou is no doubt an expensive splurge, but it is also the most well known and most popular accommodation in the area due to its impeccable service.
Google Maps Rating: 4.5 / 5 (5,686+ Reviews)
Location: No. 30號, Youya Rd, Beitou District, Taipei City, Taiwan 112
Chyuan Du Spring Resort
Honestly, I think I am too young to appreciate these decorations…
Scaling down from exquisite luxury, the Chyuan Du Spring Resort is more reasonable in their pricing with almost the same amount of value.
The Chyuan Du Spring Resort showcases a very classic style of royalty, with bridge red carpets and furniture decorated with gold accents. The fun things about this hotel is that the bathtubs uses natural hot spring water. Woahhh.
The locatioin is very close to Xinbeitou MRT Station, in fact it’s right on the Historical Park which is where you can find many of the Beitou’s attractions.
Google Maps Rating: 4.3 / 5 (6,466+ Reviews)
Golden Hot Spring Hotel
The décor of the rooms at the Golden Hot Spring Hotel is something else
The Golden Hot Spring Hotel is a little bit further away from the main Beitou Hot Spring action being a 11 minute walk away. However the hotel offers a beautiful view of the surrounding luscious mountain forests.
The rooms are very colorful and quite romantic, with all the necessary amenities. Some rooms even feature either an indoor or outdoor bathtub for you to soak in while enjoying the Beitou scenery.
Google Maps Rating: 4.3 / 5 (2,373+ Reviews)
Location: No. 240, Guangming Rd, Beitou District, Taipei City, Taiwan 112
Brief History of the Beitou Hot Springs
Do you guys know what this means? I don’t…
Beitou is a district just outside of Taipei City located at the base of the Yangmingshan Mountain range.
In the pre-modern era, the original inhabitants of the area, the Ketagalan Tribe referred to the Beitou Hot Springs as the “Residence of the Witch” due to the mist that envelopes the area. Subsequently, the Beitou Hot Springs were not used in this time period.
It wasn’t until the Japanese take over of Taiwan that Hot Spring culture truly started to thrive. The first hot spring establishment that was opened was the Tenguan Hot Spring Hotel, soon over 70 other establishments would open in the area.
During this time (early 1900s), the Beitou Hot Springs (Hokuto in Japanese) became a thriving upscale entertainment district that was primarily used by the Japanese and upper class Taiwanese population.
Exploring Beitou Hot Springs
A view atop a hill at the Beitou Hot Spring Park
Beitou is a small like district that is technically still part of Taipei City but to be honest, it feels like a separate town. The main Hot Spring action takes place at the Xinbeitou sub-dsitrict with the Beitou Park being your starting point to exploring the Hot Spring culture of the area.
Certainly the best time to visit Beitou is during the winter months, which is around December to March when the weather is cold and dipping your toes in the warm sulfuric waters of the Hot Springs feels like you’ve been transported to heaven. I went during December and the weather was just perfect.
Streams of cloudy spring water flowing through the Beitou Hot Spring Park
Walking through Beitou, you’ll notice that streams of water runs through various points of the area. The water in these streams contain different types of sulfur.
The one you see flowing in the waters of Beitou Park is Green Sulfur, although it’s highly acidic and you definitely don’t want to dip your toes into that… The source of the Green sulfur can be found at the Beitou Thermal Valley, which I will talk about later in this blog post, so stick around for that :)
The main one, and the one that is safe to use is “White sulfur” which is used by most if not all Hot Spring hotels and establishments. The source of this white sulfur comes from the Liuhuanggu and Longfenggu thermal valleys located in the Yangmingshan National Park which is a bit further uphill.
I don’t know who these people are…
You’ll be unpleasantly surprised to learn that the spring water in Beitou contains high traces of radium… But don’t worry, despite the water containing “high” levels of radium, in the grand scale of things, it’s inconsequential to us, and is truly safe to bathe in.
But the reason I’m telling you this is because the Beitou Hot Springs is the one of the few locations in the entire world with this characteristic. Over many centuries, the radium underwent corrosive reactions with the andesite rock in Beitou creating a unique mineral called “Hokulite” or “Beitou Stone” that can only be found in this area.
You can even see a 800kg sample of Hokulite at the Beitou Hot Spring Museum, which I will go into a bit more detail in the below sections.
Things to Do in Beitou
The obvious things to do in Beitou are, of course, bathing in the hot springs. However there is a lot more to discover and learn about in this quaint little town.
One thing to note though, AVOID coming here on Mondays. Monday is the day when a lot of shops in Taiwan close, and Beitou is no exception.
Beitou Hot Springs
As an Introvert this gives me anxiety but looks fun tho
You can’t go to Beitou without bathing in some of the many hot springs in the area. The hot springs in Beitou come in 2 varieties: Japanese (separate-sex, nude) and Taiwanese (mixed-sex, clothed in bathing suits). Here are some of my recommendations and available hot springs in Beitou:
Public Taiwanese Style
Beitou Public Hot Spring - The most popular public hot spring in Beitou, quite crowded, also not that clean or comfortable due to it being located out in the open right in the middle of the district…
Spring City Resort - The BEST public hot spring, clean, good service, a lot of facilities and children are allowed. I recommend this one.
Public Japanese Style
Longnice Hot Spring - The oldest operating hot spring establishment in Beitou, visited by the Japanese Emperor Hirohito, also provides cheap private rooms.
Kawayu Spa - Off the beaten path, not a lot of tourists, but also the most atmospheric out of all the establishments. Feels like you’re in the Studio Ghibli film “Spirited Away”. Quite far from the main Xinbeitou Area.
Private Hot Springs
Radium Kagaya - One of the most famous Hot Spring hotel in Beitou, complete with beautiful geishas greeting you in front of the building. Located right next to the Beitou Hot Spring Park.
Waterhouse - Good value for the price, also located right next to he Beitou Historic Park. A lot of options for room types, also has a public Japanese style option.
The prices for these hot springs ranges from 40 TWD to 2000 TWD with the public ones being on the cheaper end.
Beitou Thermal Valley
With all this mist, anyone else get reminded of Silent Hill…?
One of the highlights of the Beitou Hot Springs is the Beitou Thermal Valley that I mentioned earlier.
It’s the must-see attraction in Xinbietou. The Thermal Valley is a large pond/pool where the water contains large amounts of green sulfur. You can definitely smell the pungent rotten boiled egg “aroma” as you walk near this location…
The hot sulfur rocks causes the spring water to constantly boil and emit this everlasting steam/fog. The atmosphere is really special especially if you come here during the winter months.
A cozy little area to rest and enjoy the atmosphere, shame you aren’t allowed to dip your toes into the water here
There are some little points of interests along the perimeter of the Beitou Thermal Valley, including a path you could take to stroll around the sulfur pool. You can even find a little nook off to the side of the pool that gives a nod the Ketagalan legend of the Witch’s residence.
Entry to the Beitou Thermal Valley is free and there is a little souvenir shop at the entrance if you want to purchase any small gifts back home.
Yangmingshan National Park
There’s just something special about hiking up a hot spring mountain
The Yangmingshan National Park might not exactly be in Xinbeitou, but it is part of the greater Beitou area and is definitely a place you should visit if you have enough time.
Yangmingshan is one of the nine national parks in Taiwan and this mountainous region is great for hiking as well as sight seeing. Of course, sticking to the theme of hot springs, you can find many here such as the Lengshuikeng Hot Springs and the Manger Flower Village.
Some notable sights in the Yangmingshan National Park are:
Yangmingshan Zhongshan Hall - A traditional style Chinese reception hall built in the 1960s that was once the National Assembly.
Qingtiangang Grassland - A large open field, popular for hiking.
Yangmingshan Flower Clock - A luscious park with various types of flowers arranged in a clock pattern.
Bamboo Lake - Former lake created by a volcanic eruption, during spring the area turns into a sea of white calla lilies.
There is so much to explore in the Yangmingshan National Park, I would recommend you dedicate a whole day to explore or go on a One-Day Tour to make sure you see all the important attractions.
Beitou Public Library
The Beitou Public Library is definitely a standout landmark in the area
An official branch of the Taipei City Library, the Beitou Public Library sits in the center of the Beitou Historic Park.
The structure resembles a giant wooden ship that pays tribute the the Japanese history of the area. The cool thing about the Beitou Public library is that it is the first “Green” building in Taiwan, with the building getting 10% of it’s electricity from solar panels and 40% of it’s water from rainwater.
Although you are not allowed to take photos within the building at the risk of annoying the people in the library, it is a place you should check out purely just to admire the history. Though if you do plan on reading, most (if not all) of the books are in Mandarin…
Beitou Hot Spring Museum
The museum may look kind of small, but inside holds a plethora of history
If my lecture about Beitou’s history didn’t bore you, the Beitou Hot Spring Museum is your go-to location to learn about the local culture as well as it’s unique terrain. The museum boasts 2 floors with each floor teaching you about different aspects of Beitou.
Here you can learn quite a lot about how the hot spring culture came about including the Japanese influence of the area.
The Beitou Hot Spring Museum is where you can also learn more about the Hokulite or Beitou Stone that I mentioned earlier, as well as learning about its formation.
A beautiful hot spring pool in the first floor of the Beitou Hot Spring Museum
The second floor of the museum is where you’ll find a large space with tatami mats as well as learn more about the culture. While the first floor is where you can learn more about the ecology and mineral composition of the Beitou region.
I spent a good hour or two here as the different exhibits in the museum were actually quite interesting and they were interactive as well making for a fun learning experience.
Entry to the Beitou Hot Spring Museum is free and the museum is opened from 9AM to 5PM with it only being closed on Mondays.
Beitou Plum Garden
A peaceful place to learn about an interesting figure of the pre-modern world
The Plum Garden is more like a little building rather than a garden but it’s till worth a quick little visit. This building is a museum that was built upon a housing for Yu Youren, a famous Chinese educator, scholar, calligrapher, and politician.
The museum’s yard is filled with a variety of flowers and vegetation including plum trees that bloom in January. Entry to the Plum Garden is free asd the friendly staff at the front will welcome you and even offer you a free tour around the museum.
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Useful Resources for Traveling in Taiwan
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