Shifen (十分) is a small town located to the east of Taipei. Tourists flock to this quaint place to witness the majestic Shifen waterfall (十分瀑布) and light paper lanterns.
SEE
Eat
The best places to eat in Shifen would have to be the street food stalls that dot the main roads of the town.
Candied tomatoes and prunes are a great sweet to snack on while you explore the streets of Shifen.
If you are a fan of chicken (who isn’t), you are in luck. There’s quite a few stalls selling skewers of every chicken part you can imagine. I had some chicken butt (the skewers in the top row of the picture above). It’s actually chicken tail, more commonly known in Taiwan as Qi Li Xiang (七里香).
One stall was selling their home made dish — grilled chicken wings stuffed with rice. A finger licking, protein and carb filled parcel.
Do
A very touristy thing to do at Shifen is to write your wishes and prayers on a paper lantern (天灯) and set it afloat. There are several stores selling these paper lanterns, they will provide ink, brushes and help you float your wishes into the sky.
Get to Shifen
Shifen is easily accessible from Taipei by bus, train or taxi. I personally chose to take the train for the scenic views!
Bus:
From Muzha MRT Station (捷運木柵站) catch the No. 15 Taipei Bus (台北客運15路公車).
Train:
Take a train from Taipei Railway Station to Ruifang Station (瑞芳站). Alight at Ruifang station and switch over to the Pingxi Line (平溪支線). Take that train to Shifen Railway Station (十分火車站).
Taxi:
Taking a taxi to Shifen from Ruifang station will set you back approximately NT$480. Many taxi drivers offer packages to Shifen and surrounding tourist areas such as Jiufen (九份) and Jinguashi (金瓜石). Be sure to settle on a final price with the taxi driver before getting in!
For more travel videos head to my YouTube channel
You can also find me on Instagram and Twitter
No Comments