Hiking Archives - The Lifestyle I Want

Okay, so here’s an unpopular opinion, Elephant Mountain, it gives you a good view of Taipei, is not the best hike around Taipei city.

The Jiantan hiking trail gives you some of the most amazing views of Taipei you’ll get, and at a fraction of the effort, in comparison to getting to the top of elephant mountain.

Since this trail is not as popular as its peer at the end of the red line on the Taipei metro, you won’t see that many tourists/foreigners, it’s mostly visited by local Taiwanese who enjoy hiking.

You will get a good view of one of the most iconic buildings in Taipei, I’m talking about the Grand hotel, that red Chinese looking building in the pic below.

You will also get a perfect view of Taipei city. You’ll be able to see what Taipei is really like, a concrete jungle surrounded by mountains that are green all year long.

But, can You see 101 from here? The answer is YES!!!!!

You’ll see 101 in all of its splendor and more. Right in front of it you’ll see Songshan airport.

If you’re a good photographer you can get a pic of an airplane landing or taking off with the 101 as the background.

I wasn’t able to get that shot, but it was still an amazing view.

How Do You Get to Jiantan Hiking Trail?

It’s actually very simple, just head over to Jiantan station on the red line, this is the same station people get off at when they’re going to visit Shilin Night Market.

Instead of taking the exit towards Shilin Night market, take the opposite one. Get to the corner on your left and cross towards the left, once on the other side of the road make a right and walk until you reach the trailhead.

There’s a big sign that marks the beginning of the Jiantan hiking trail, you won’t miss it.

As usual, the best thing to do is follow Google maps, that’s how I get anywhere.

If you’re looking for a more challenging climb then you might be interested in reading about the Highest mountain in Taipei, Qixing Mountain!!

If you’re in Taipei and you’re looking for a fun hike near the city then look no further, just make your way towards Elephant Mountain, one of Taipei’s most visited mountains.

Take a look at the 6 minutes video I put together for you.

How to get to Elephant Mountain, Taipei?

Well that’s super easy, just get on the MRT and go to Xiangshan station, is the last stop on the red line opposite to Tamsui station.

Take exit number 2 and as soon as you walk out of it you’ll see signs directing you towards Elephant mountain.

As you can see in the video, the iconic 101 building of Taipei is super close to Elephant Mountain, so if you happen to be staying somewhere near the 101 area then this is perfect, it will take you no time to get there.

No matter in which part of Taipei city you are, if you take the metro it won’t cost you more than 45 NTD.

How Much Do I Have to Pay?

You don’t have to pay a single penny, that’s good right, no one likes to pay to go sweat their heart out, because ….that’s right you’re gonna sweat a lot.

The climb is very steep at points and Taiwan’s weather is usually hot and humid, so yeah you’ll sweat.

You can go up and down as many times as you want and no one will stop you. You can even take your pet with you if you want to, and as you saw in the video, you can even climb in a reverse four legs position and no one will say a word.

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Elephant Mountain, Taipei. Photo Gallery

Please swipe left or right to see photos.

On Jiuwu Trail
On Jiuwu Trail

Information About Elephant Mountain

In Chinese the name of this mountain is Xiangshan (Chinese: 象山 )
It’s part of Xinyi District, Taipei
The closest MRT station is Xiangshan metro station, exit number 2
The mountain is 183 m high
The hiking trail is about 1.5 km long

Even though, in the video, you see a lot of people wearing casual clothes, I do think is better to wear sporty clothes when you do this climb as it will be more comfortable.

Make sure you take a bottle of water with you as water fountains are not present as often as you’ll need them in case you forget to take water with you.

What is the Best Time to Go to Elephant Mountain?

If you want to stay away from the crowds then try going on a day from Monday to Friday. If you want to see the sunset and the city lights coming to life then go on an evening from Monday to Friday.

Yangmingshan and Qixing Mountain

Why avoid Saturday and Sunday? well because that’s when all the families and rest of people who are not working decide to go to Elephant Mountain, and it can get really crowded.

Once you make it to the top of Elephant mountain, you’ll see some other trails, the longest one is the one leading to Jiuwu peak, it would take you around 2 hours to get there.

Most people just climb to the top of Elephant mountain, they stay at one of the viewing platforms and that’s it. If you decide to do the Jiuwu trail then it will definitely be more of a peaceful hike as there won’t be many people around.

Conclusion

Elephant Mountain is perfect for a half-day trip from anywhere in the city. The mountain is easy to get to by metro and there is no entry fee of any kind.

If you want to avoid the crowds is best to go on a day from Monday to Friday when most people are working.

Once you make it to the top of elephant mountain you can just chill there and then head back down, or you can continue on one the connecting hiking trails such as Jiuwu.

Tag: Hiking

Jiantan Trail. The Best Hike in Taipei.