In the video above, you’ll find 10 minutes of Shilin Night Market footage that will give you a good sense of what this market is all about, food, drinks, fruits, clothes, souvenirs, games and a lot more.
Even though some stores and cafes in this market open as early as 7 a.m to serve breakfast to people going to the office, the best time to visit Shilin Night Market is after 5:30 p.m.
After 5:30 p.m is when all stores open and people flock the streets to eat and shop with friends or family.
Some Information About Shilin Night Market
- The Night Market is composed of many street food vendors and small restaurants and clothes stores
- There are also many adjacent businesses such as Samsung stores or massage places.
- There is an underground food court. It’s located under the Shilin Night Market neon sign, minute 9:42 in the video B1美食區
- The market is the most crowded from 8 to 9 p.m.
- Many stores and restaurants close past midnight
- There are many fair like games, if you score many points you’ll get a prize.
- The origin of the market goes as far back as 1909 when agricultural products from nearby farms were sold here.
- The night market was officially opened in 1913 and many food vendors decided to settle here to take advantage of the affluence f people.
Is It Easy to Get Here?
It’s super easy. This is a very popular area in Taipei city, there are many buses that stop nearby and Jiantan metro station is the closest to the market.
Jiantan metro station on the red line is located right across the street, just take exit 1.
Half-day trip to Qixing Mountain. Taipei.
Interestingly Shilin metro station, which is the next station after Jiantan (Going from Xiangshan to Tamsui) is not the closest station to Shilin night market.
Some tourists make the mistake to get off at that station and then have to walk 15 minutes to reach the market.
Popular Night Market Food
- Fried Buns
- Dumplings
- Bubble Tea
- Oyster Omelet
- Large Sausages
- Bao Zi (Pork Buns)
- The infamous stinky tofu
- Squid
Shilin Cixian Temple
Something I believe people should talk more about when talking about this amazing night market is the temple in it.
Right in the middle of the market, you’ll find Shilin Cixian temple. If you visit the market during the day, you can take some really nice pictures as it will be quite empty.
Once the market starts working at full capacity, this place of apparent peace and tranquility becomes one with the market and its people.
After 4 p.m. food vendors start setting up outside. They also set up chairs and tables for people to eat, and people also use the stairs in the front of the temple to sit down, eat and drink.
Conclusion
Shilin Night market is a must-see place in Taipei. It’s very easy and convenient to get there as there is a metro station right in front of it.
The choices of food and drinks are endless. There is also a really nice temple right in the middle of the market that will add to the cultural experience of visiting one of the healthiest cities in Asia.
Thanks for reading.