Taipei’s Ximending is famous for its bright lights, evening bites and late nights – Ximending is the heart and soul of Taipei’s Wanhua District, home to sublime street art, cool shops like Pop Mart and night-time entertainment. And there are lots of Ximending hotels to suit all budgets making it an affordable place to stay.
Popular with tourists, young people and first time travellers to Taiwan, there are many things to do in Ximending at all hours of the day including photo booths and crazy claw-machines (Taipei truly is a 24 hour city).
Although Ximending is busy both night and day, if you only have time to visit once during your visit to Taiwan, we’d recommend you go in the early evening to enjoy the neon nights and nocturnal street delights.
From Don Don Donki to milk sugar donuts, the Red House to Rainbow Six Crossing (plus the new Bugcat Capoo House and cool Ximen Undercity Mall), here is our guide to the top things to do in Ximending, Taipei 2026.
This article was originally published on cktravels.com in July 2019.
Things to do in Ximending, Taipei Map
How to get to Ximending
Ximending is located in Taipei’s Wanhua District – it has its own MRT Station located on the blue Bannian Line and the Green Songshan Xindian Line.
Once you get to Ximending MRT station, take exit 6 for the main Ximending entertainment district and walking street or exit 1 to head towards The Red House.
From Taipei Main Station to Ximen MRT, it is only a 2 minute journey on the Metro.
Alternatively, take the bus to Ximen Market Station – bus number 18, 1503, 221, 232, 235, 257, 513, 621. 635, 637, 640, 663, 783, 799 and 835
Also check Google Maps or the official Go! Taipei Metro app to see which is the quickest and best route for you.
Taiwan checklist
We love using agoda.com (use the code TAIWANDERERS for a discount), expedia.com and booking.com for researching and booking all our hotels.
For booking tours, transfers and buying SIM cards/eSIMs we recommend Klook, Get Your Guide, Viator or KK Day.
For booking rental cars visit Discover Cars. For private drivers and taxis, check out our Transfer guide >
For more recommendations, check out our Taiwan travel booking resources page >
All set for Taiwan? Do one final check with our Taipei first timers guide and our packing list guide. Travelling with kids? Check out our Taipei For Kids eBook >
Ximending accommodation
We would highly recommend basing yourself in the Ximending district during your stay in Taipei. Here are some highly rated accommodation suggestions for all types of budget in Ximending!
BUDGET ($)
Meander Taipei Hostel
Highly rated hostel that offers a number of tours and fun events. Check out prices and availability on booking.com, agoda.com and expedia.com
Luxury ($$$)
WESTGATE Hotel
Contemporary rooms a 1-minute walk from Ximen MRT Station. Check out prices and availability on booking.com, agoda.com and expedia.com
Read more in our detailed guide to the best hotels in Ximending >
Things to do in Ximending, Taipei
1. The Red House
One of the main tourist draws and best things to do in Ximending (both in the daytime and at night), the Red House is a beautiful red brick building that has served many purposes over the years since it opened in 1908.
Ximending’s Red House now hosts cultural performances, a theatre, plus a fantastic two storey independent retail emporium, chock full of unique and one-off designs by local artists.
The stalls at the Red House change every few months to keep it fresh, plus during Lunar New Year in Taipei, it is home to lion dances and many celebrations.
Whilst shopping heaven in the daytime, Red House reinvents itself at night with an array of LBGTQ+ bars opening in the courtyard.
From crafts to clothing, bars to brownies, here is our ultimate guide to Red House Taipei >
You might like – Taiwanderers guide to Ximending rainy day activities >
2. Ximending LBGTQ+ Bars / Taipei’s Gay Capital
By night, the retail side of the Red House gives way to the hustle and bustle of some of Ximending’s best bars and nightlife – it features in our gay Taipei / LGBTQ+ guide.
Around the Red House, you’ll find around 10 or so bars, pubs and clubs dotted around the square (plus a couple on the upper levels).
The bars around the Red House in Ximending are known as Taipei’s main gay area – Ximending is also where Taipei Pride (‘the Color Taipei’) is held every October.
All of the bars around Red House have very late opening hours, (very) Happy Hour drinks prices plus themed outdoor terraces and tropical gardens with neon signs. They are a great place to meet people, people watching and alfresco drinks.
Some of the most popular LGBTQ+ Red House bars in this part of Ximending include The Secret Garden, Paradise and Café Dalida (all open until 2am). Whilst sleepy in the daytime, this part of Red House comes alive at night.
The LGBTQ+ bar area in Ximending is fun and safe to explore at night. Taiwan is one of the most progressive Asian countries – same-sex marriage between citizens became legal in Taiwan on 24 May 2019, the first country in Asia to do so.
You might like – Our guide to Jiufen, an easy day-trip from Taipei (plus there are direct shuttles from Ximending) >
3. Ximending Shopping and Souvenir shops
Ximending is retail heaven! Although there are some amazing malls in Taipei, it is actually nice to roam outdoors around Ximending and browse all the independent stalls (some are rather whacky!) plus see some of the brands you might recognise like NET (fashion shop), Uniqlo, Nike, Adidas and ABC Mart.
If you are looking for Taiwan souvenirs to take back home or for yourself whilst in Taipei, you’ll find dozens of souvenir stalls in Ximending selling everything from ‘Shiba Says’ stickers to capybara cups! We’d rate Ximending as one of the top places in Taipei to buy souvenirs.
As there are so many souvenir shops, there is a lot of competition so prices for the likes of cutesy characters, fridge magnets and stickers are all quite low and good value.
Whilst a lot of the souvenir stalls here do sell tourist tat / rubbish, we noticed on our latest visit to Ximending that some really good souvenir shops have popped up like the new 水水生活旗舰店 Sui Sui Life store (map) or the new Jinart store (map).
You might like – Our guide to the 20+ best shopping malls in Taipei including Syntrend, Taipei’s trendiest tech mall
4. Undercity: XIMEN
A new thing to do in Ximending for 2026, Undercity: XIMEN 西門地下市 is a cool new underground mall by Ximen MRT exit 5, full of pop-up shops, gachapon stores, awesome anime finds and K-Pop galore.
Aimed at Taipei’s youth market and kawaii fans, there are around a dozen shops and pop-ups, featuring everything from K-Pop bands like Seventeen plus a popular themed Naruto Ichiraku Ramen restaurant (as inspired by the popular anime series and based on a real life ramen shop in Fukuoka, Japan).
Opened in January 2026 and transforming an old subterranean shopping space, we visited Undercity: XIMEN just a month after it had launched and it looks awesome, from the neon signage to modern wall graphics.
Popular shops at Undercity: XIMEN include FANME, FANFANS, Animate, Gratte coffee shop, Universe Creative, Photogray Korean photo booth stall plus How To Get Pretty, selling Korean beauty products which you would normally see in Olive Young in South Korea – could this mall be the new Taipei’s K-Pop central?!
5. Xing Fu Tang Ximen
Taiwan is famous for its bubble tea but one of the most popular spots in Ximen has a unique twist on the classic brew.
Recently, we finally tried the brown sugar boba milk tea from Xing Fu Tang Flagship store across from Pop Mart.
It has always looked like a tourist trap with huge queues whenever we have walked past, but today at 10am there was no queue so we thought we would try it for ourselves!
It cost NT$120 and was absolutely delicious (we loved the warm boba balls). The brown sugar is charred using dinosaur shaped blowtorches!
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6. Pop Mart Ximen Flagship Store
Pop Mart Ximen is now open! Launched in late December 2023, Pop Mart’s Ximen branch opened to much fanfare with huge queues around the block and is Taiwan’s flagship Pop Mart store.
It is an incredible building themed like a cinema, with Pop Mart figures and collectibles over four floors including a dedicated Mega Space Molly showroom. Seriously, the design of this building and the way all the toys are displayed is nothing short of superb.
Famous for their cute and quirky collectibles and blind-boxes, Pop Mart’s new Ximen branch is their flagship store and their third in Taiwan.
The first floor is dedicated to exclusive Pop Marts and mystery / blind boxes, floor two is PopBean and various merchandise plus there is even a broadcast studio and VIP lounge on the third level.
There are huge Pop Mart dolls to pose with on every level plus a customizable area where you can create your own unique PopBean figurines or frames – the highlight for us was the Mega Space Molly floor which kind of felt like a modern museum.
Pop Mart Ximen flagship store is open from 11am daily until 10pm Sunday to Thursday, and until 10.30pm Friday and Saturday.
Please note there is a second smaller ‘Ximen Pop Mart Roboshop’ on Google Maps but it is a vending machine!
Read our floor-by-floor guide to Pop Mart Ximen here >
Check out the Pop Mart store on Amazon >
Check out our Taipei neighbourhoods guides:
Beitou >
Dihua Street and Dadaocheng >
Gongguan and Longquan >
Tamsui >
Ximending >
Xinyi >
Zhongshan >
Also check out our guide to the best neighbourhoods in Taipei >
7. Wannian Building
A myriad of market stalls and small independent shops, the Wannian Building is your go to place for gachapon stores galore, retro clothing and cool toy shops – it very much reminded us of our time spent in cool Tokyo neighbourhoods like Shinjuku or Akihabara.
Spread over several levels with a cheap food court in the basement (the Lao Shan Dong homemade beef noodle restaurant in the basement is so tasty – more on this shortly), the Wannian Building market in Ximen is a good place to geek out.
There are amusement arcades, a huge collection of claw machines plus an entertainment centre (Tom’s World’s on level 5).
Across 5 stories of shopping, you can get cool toys, smart looking sneakers, cracking comic book stores and much more.
It has to be the largest concentration of gachapon stores in Ximending, if not Taipei. One of the most inviting stores we discovered was 8_n_bomb, chock full of play-things, models and fashion goods.
Taiwan checklist
We love using agoda.com (use the code TAIWANDERERS for a discount), expedia.com and booking.com for researching and booking all our hotels.
For booking tours, transfers and buying SIM cards/eSIMs we recommend Klook, Get Your Guide, Viator or KK Day.
For booking rental cars visit Discover Cars. For private drivers and taxis, check out our Transfer guide >
For more recommendations, check out our Taiwan travel booking resources page >
All set for Taiwan? Do one final check with our Taipei first timers guide and our packing list guide. Travelling with kids? Check out our Taipei For Kids eBook >
8. Starbucks Ximending
Shock! Horror! Ximending has a Starbucks! Whilst we aren’t saying this is the best coffee shop in Taipei, the Starbucks branch in Ximending is HUGE inside and located in one of the most historic buildings in the Wanhua District, so it is quite a unique Starbucks.
There is seating over several floors (watch out for the steep steps) and this Starbucks is a good place to people watch, especially if you get a window seat on one of the upper floors, that look directly down onto the main Ximending shopping street.
And if you are a collector of Starbucks cups, they have a huge range of Taiwan / Taipei branded Starbucks mugs, some exclusive to the Ximending branch.
You might like – Our guide to Simple Kaffa Sola atop Taipei 101, Taiwan’s highest coffee shop >
9. Bugcat Capoo House Ximen
Newly opened in late 2025, a permanent Taipei Bugcat Capoo House has finally opened in Ximending (咖波屋Capoo House 台北西門店Taipei).
Bugcat Capoo (貓貓蟲咖波) is one of the most popular Taiwanese cartoon characters, created by Taiwan illustrator Yara (亞拉) a cute cross between a blue cat and a bug. Fans have previously had to go to Taichung to visit the original Bugcat Capoo House or make do with pop-ups or the Bugcat themed 7-Eleven in Taipei.
Finally, there is now a three storey Bugcat Capoo House in Ximen and they have done a fantastic job of the theming – there is so much cute merchandise to buy plus there are several photo zones and a free Bugcat Capoo souvenir stamp area.
Souvenirs range from NT$50 postcards and inexpensive stickers to more elaborate plushies, Bugcat Capoo clothing and huge blind box selections.
We visited on a Saturday afternoon in February 2026 and it was really busy but the queue moved quickly. Be sure to visit floor 2 for the endearing display of Bugcat and friends sitting in their lounge playing video games and having fun – the theming and attention to detail is so good!
Find Ximen Bugcat Capoo House 台北西門店 here >
10. Themed 7-Eleven stores in Ximending
We all know that Taiwan is famous for its sheer number of 7-Elevens, in fact as of early 2024 there are around 7,000 7-Eleven branches in Taiwan – now that is a lot of Slurpees!
However, unique to Taiwan, there are now over 100 themed / character 7-Elevens, particularly in Taipei. Did you know there are over 20 themed 7-Elevens in Taipei including a Heineken themed 7-Eleven, Peanuts 7-Eleven, Ultraman 7-Eleven plus even a Mofusand themed 7-Eleven?
Check out our guide to all the themed 7-Eleven stores in Taipei and in Kaohsiung.
Ximending is home to several themed 7-Elevens in Taiwan including:
Lay’s Themed 7-Eleven
In the heart of Ximending entertainment district near the Cinema Park, you’ll find a Lay’s Crisps themed 7-Eleven. It is easy to spot by the bright yellow branding running through the store, plus on the bright neon sign outside.
Inside the Lay’s 7-Eleven, you’ll find themed dining tables, Lay’s memorabilia on the walls plus the biggest Lay’s potato chips section ever. Locals genuinely make special trips here to stock up on those harder to find Lay’s potato chip flavours; we saw people leaving the store with big bags full of potato chips.
The Lay’s 7-Eleven is located here >
UK readers: Lay’s potato chip are the international version of Walker’s crisps – equally tasty just slightly different branding and way more flavours.
Sanrio / Hello Kitty Themed 7-Eleven
A cute kaleidoscope of cartoon characters, Ximending’s other themed 7-Eleven is a homage to Hello Kitty and her Sanrio chums. Bright pink on the outside with huge characters to greet you, this has to be one of the most charming cafes and shops in Taipei.
Inside the Sanrio 7-Eleven, you’ll branded tables, heaps of Sanrio merchandise plus all the usual 7-Eleven food and drink. Better yet, there is big Hello Kitty inside the store, a perfect place to grab a snack and take some selfies.
There are two Sanrio themed 7-Elevens in the Ximending area, one here (the larger of the two) and one here (slightly smaller).
Read more in our guide to Taipei’s Hello Kitty Sanrio 7-Eleven stores >
7-Eleven Open DreamWorld / Hanzhong Store
You can never have enough 7-Elevens in Ximending right?
Another cute and charming character themed 7-Eleven in Taipei, this particular 7-Eleven store not only features the Open Dreamworld characters both inside and out, but you can also create and customise your own T-shirts using the instore print area.
One of the coolest and most creative things to do in Ximending!
Choose which Open Dreamworld character(s) you want on your T-shirt and then wait a few minutes whilst the 7 Eleven staff print it out for you – a very unique souvenir from Ximending (better than all those fridge magnets eh).
Our favourite part of the 7-Eleven Open DreamWorld store is the huge DJ booth with a cute character playing the decks and bright flashing lights. Definitely one of the more interesting places to grab and eat a 7-Eleven toastie in Taipei!
First time in Taipei? Check out these helpful guides:
- Taoyuan Airport MRT Train to Taipei city guide >
- How to use / buy a Taiwan EasyCard >
- Taipei 1 day itinerary >
- Taipei 3 day itinerary >
- Best Taipei neighborhoods to stay in >
- Best Taipei shopping malls >
- Unique and unusual Taipei activities >
- Things to do in Taipei with kids >
- 25+ Taipei at night activities >
- Din Tai Fung dumpling restaurant guide >
- Taipei’s highest cafe, Simple Kaffa Sola 101 >
11. Korean Photo Booths
Talking of selfies…one of the newest things to do in Ximending which seems to have cropped up a lot in the last few years are Korean photo booths – you can even find Taiwan’s first Subway themed photo booth which opened in 2024.
In recent years, these photo booth stores have popped up in lots of vacant Ximending buildings that closed down during the COVID pandemic. On our last count, there were around 20 or so Korean photo booth shops in Ximending including Cut Cut, Snapshot and Kr4cut.
We recently visited Taiwan’s very first subway style photo booth located at Plan B Studio in Ximending. It has several themed photo areas including a laundry, tunnel and elevator sets.
We opted for the subway Korean photo booth as it seemed the most fun. Four images cost us NT$300 (prices correct as of early 2026) and it is a unique souvenir from Taiwan, plus a great way to escape the rain in Ximending.
Most Ximending Korean photo booth shops are brightly painted and you can borrow clothes and props and then pose for selfies or take photos in the booths.
Opened in January 2026, there is also a Korean PHOTOGRAY booth in the new K-Pop inspired Undercity: XIMEN mall by Ximen MRT Exit 5.
Try this – Northeast Coast Instagram tour in New Taipei >
12. Ximending Entertainers
Taipei has over 60 official areas for street-performers to entertain, but the busiest we saw by far was the one right in the centre of Ximending, where the four main pedestrianised areas congregate.
We were enthralled most nights by the local street-performers who queue up one after another to entertain in heart of Ximending.
From tight-rope walkers to knife throwers (plus a lot of singers), you can see a dazzling array of talent every week (all free but donations into a hat are expected). This is definitely one of the best things to do in Ximending.
During one visit to Ximending, we also came across a street painter who created incredible works of art before our eyes, using cans of spray paints and home made tools. A huge crowd gathered as he created a colourful canvas (only stopping occasionally to dab the ash away from his cigarette).
Street-performers are required to get an official permit to entertain here so the only thing we don’t like in Ximending is the rise of ‘begpackers’. These are backpackers with limited funds who busk / beg, taking away potential income from local performers.
You might like – First timers guide to visiting Taipei and Taiwan >
13. Eslite Spectrum Ximending
A smart looking shopping centre in the heart of Ximending (with a hotel on the higher floors), Eslite Spectrum Ximending is famed for its beautiful book shop which has row upon row of novels, comics and literature (the Eslite Bookshop here also has many English language sections if you want to buy a new book to read whilst in Taipei).
On the upper level of the Eslite bookshop, there is a cheap as cafe and coffee shop that is popular with students and their study time.
On the lower levels of Eslite Spectrum Ximen, you’ll find several big brand name shops like legendary Japanese fashion and furniture chain Muji. We also saw an Adidas outlet when we visited plus the Canadian clothing store Roots (nice, eh!)
On the second floor, you can get cheap as Japanese udon noodles from Marugame, a popular Japanese chain restaurant in Taiwan. A tasty way to spend some time in Ximen!
You might like our guide to Eslite, Taiwan’s most beautiful bookshops and stationery stores >
14. Modern Toilet Restaurant (now reopen)
A toilet themed restaurant you say? One that promises ‘crappy’ food and a dining experience like no other – time to ‘poop’ on over to Taipei, literally one of the ‘…sh*ttiest things to do in Ximending (but in a very good way!)
Welcome to the Ximending Modern Toilet restaurant, where diners sit on a toilet bowl to eat at their ‘convenience’.
The Modern Toilet in Taipei has two different branches (another Taiwan Modern Toilet Restaurant can be found in nearby Shilin) but the ‘flagsh*t’…sorry…flagship branch is in Ximending. Talk about ‘flushed’ with success!
This Ximen Modern Toilet branch was temporarily closed during 2023 but it reopened in early 2024.
We thought the Modern Toilet restaurant experience in Taipei was such a peculiar yet fun night out that we’ve written a dedicated blog post about Modern Toilet >
You might like – 20+ weird, wonderful and unusual things to do in Taipei >
15. DON DON DONKI Ximen Store
Japan’s favourite discount store comes to Ximending in Taipei!
Originally known as Don Quijote in Japan where it has dozens of stores all over the country, Don Don Donki (as it is branded in Taiwan) opened their first Taiwan store in Ximending in 2021.
Located over several stories and open 24 hours a day, DON DON DONKI Ximen Store is easy to find as you’ll be bombarded with the surprisingly catchy ‘Don Don Donki’ theme tune as you get close to the front entrance.
One of the key similarities between all Don Don Donki stores (other than low prices) – is that they have speakers at every entrance blaring out the same ditty on repeat; it must drive the poor staff insane.
Their iconic and cute character Donpen can also be found in cartoon statue form outside the store, including sitting on the bench by the Don Don Donki food kiosk outside (which is also one of the cheapest places to get food in Ximending).
Specialising in cheap Japanese imported goods and foods, DON DON DONKI Ximen is quite unique as there is special Taiwan Don Don Donki merchandise (e.g. you can buy a a bag with Donpen outside the famous Jiufen tea house).
On the top floors, there are also several restaurants including a Korean fried chicken place.
You might like – Our guide to Dihua Street and Dadaoheng, one of Taipei’s oldest neighborhoods
16. Tattoo Street
If you want a more lasting souvenir from Taipei, you could always head to Tattoo Street in Ximending.
There are several tattoo shops located in one covered lane, all of which have tattoo ‘menu boards’ outside. Apparently Kevin Tattoo shop is famous in Taiwan and has featured on Taiwanese TV programmes.
On our last visit, one tattoo shop was proving particularly popular as it had a rather cool cat out front drawing attention from passers by.
Very hipster in nature, most of the staff along Ximending’s Tattoo Street understand English and there are also several fashion and jewellery stores nestled amongst the tattoo shops. So if you want to get inked in Taipei, Ximending has a good choice of tattoo shops to choose from.
To find Tattoo Street in Ximending, just keep an eye out for the huge golden statue (a bit like a giant Oscar statue TBH) that is holding a massive tattoo needle – quite the Taiwan tourist attraction!
You might like – Our guide to Zhongshan District, Taipei’s trendiest neighborhood >
17. Rainbow Six Crossing
At the main intersection near to the Red Brick House, one of Ximending’s most popular spots is the Rainbow Six Crossing (named as it is next to exit No.6 of Ximen MRT Station).
Close to the LGBQT+ bars and main gay area of Taipei, the Ximending rainbow crossing was unveiled in late 2019 to celebrate that Taiwan had became the first country in Asia to legalise same-sex marriage earlier that year.
The whole area around Ximending’s Rainbow Six Crossing has huge billboards and neon displays, similar to Shinjuku in Japan or Piccadilly Circus in London.
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18. Ximending Crispy Milk Donuts
We found the ‘Crispy Milk Donuts’ little stall beneath Shinjuku Plaza totally by chance – we saw a huge queue of young school kids lining up so we just knew we had to try it.
The hot donuts are served straight from the fryer and made in small batches (hence the long queues).
Crispy on the outside and fluffy inside, these sweet treats are then covered in sugar and milk powder. Damn, they are addictive and only $NT40 a go!
You might like – Our guide to the Pingxi Line including Shifen Waterfall
19. Ximending Street Art in America Street
Explore Ximending’s America Street (Lane 96) and you’ll discover a whole world of street art and magnificent murals.
Although Taipei’s laws around graffiti are not too strict, many of the murals are sanctioned by the Taipei Youth Art Centre, whereby local business owners are contacted to see if they’ll allow an artist to complete a piece on their blank walls.
Given the lax laws, Taipei is awash with street art but the alleyways around Ximending are some of the best areas to see a highly concentrated area of superb street art.
You might like – Our guide to Taiwan’s 20+ most Instagrammable spots and colorful cities >
20. Yong He Soy Milk
A good Ximending breakfast restaurant and a great way to start the day, call in at Yong He Soy Milk (map).
Although the reviews are a little mixed, we thought we’d try it out ourselves and it was good!
We spent NT$185 on a few pancakes, plus a hot sesame soy milk and iced coffee.
These are the pancakes we ordered (and rated in order of our favourites) – a ‘Grab cake egg cheese’ (NT$65), biscuits egg ham (NT$53) and bacon omelet pancake (NT$45).
We rocked up at 10.30am and managed to hit a quiet period where there was no queue, but about 20 minutes later a long one had formed.
21. Carrefour Ximending / Carrefour Guilin Store
A trip to Carrefour in Ximending might not be high on everyone’s to-do list, but it is a good place for cheap food and drink plus tasty Taiwan souvenirs like pineapple cake and Taiwanese tea.
We first discovered about people’s love for Taiwan Carrefour from various posts in our Taiwan Travel Tips (TTT) Facebook group – it is also open 24 hours and carries everything from luggage to toys.
The Ximending branch is one of the biggest Taiwan Carrefour branches plus the building itself has other big brand retailers like Decathlon plus chain restaurants like Sushi Express – find Carrefour Gulin on Google Maps here >
Check out our Taiwan Carrefour guide including what you can buy >
22. Snow King Ice Cream
Definitely one of the n-’ice’-st things to do in Ximending, Snow King is a family run ice-cream parlour that has been creating the most extraordinary flavours since 1947.
A tasty Taiwan treat, Snow King has produced hundreds of different ice-cream types over the decades. A newspaper article on the wall here dating back to 1993 said they’d created 300 flavours by the 1990s so who knows how many there have been since.
On our visit to Snow King, you could try unusual ice cream flavours such as pork floss, kidney bean, peanut and taro. We opted for basil ice cream and passion fruit ice cream (190 NTD / Taiwan Dollars per scoop).
The basil was incredible and so rich. On our next visit, we intend to try the Taiwan beer ice cream flavour!
Some of the more unusual / interesting ice cream flavours previously available at Snow King include sesame oil chicken, wasabi, chilli Pepper and kinmen kaoling.
You might like – Guide to the best night markets in Taipei >
23. Ximending Movie Cinema Street (Wuchang Street)
Ximending’s movie theatre history comes full circle here – in the 1950’s, Ximending was known as the theatre district for Taipei and a collection of movie theatres (including an impressive IMAX theatre that can be found here).
There are around 15 cinemas in the area, but the biggest concentration can be found here along Ximending movie theatre street (Wuchang Street). Most of the movies are shown in their original language, with mandarin subtitles.
Please note that the famous Landmark Cinemark Ximen Theater closed down recently after 25 years and will return in a ‘new form’ in 2026.
You might like – Our guide to Taiwan’s best supermarkets and convenience stores >
24. FUFU CatCafe and Le Mao Chef
‘Feline’ like a fun thing to do in Ximending?
Taipei has a few cat cafes including the world’s first cat cafe in nearby Shilin, and the recent opening of Cat Cafe Mocha in Xinyi (this is a huge Japanese cat cafe chain) – the original cat cafe to open in Ximending was the FUFU Cat Cafe, which opened in 2017.
Very good value compared to other cat cafes, FUFU Cat Cafe charges $50 NTD per 10 minutes or $500 NTD for 100 minutes which includes a drink (unlike other cat cafes, you don’t have to purchase a drink if you don’t want to). Other snacks (human and cat treats) can be bought additionally.
Recently, more cat cafe competition has been seen in Ximending, including the newly opened Le Mao Chef which has a minimum spend of NT$500 – unlike the FUFU Cat Cafe which is up several flights of stairs, this is on the ground floor so you can see what kitties are about.
Other snacks (human and cat treats) can be bought additionally.
You might like – Guide to the best themed restaurants and cafes in Taiwan >
25. Ay-Chung Flour Rice Noodle
A very popular and iconic stall with long queues of hungry locals waiting to purchase a take away tub of Taiwanese flour rice noodles (served with gravy and pig intestines!).
The queues move pretty quickly as they only sell the one dish. We were not huge fans of the dish but the price is so cheap at NT$60 for a small tub that you may as well try it!
Check out this discounted Ay-Chung Flour-Rice Noodle at Ximen voucher from Klook >
26. 8n-Bomb (New Standalone Store)
One of the Wan Nian buildings’ best anime and Manga collectibles now has a new standalone store in Ximending, very close to Starbucks.
From the best blind boxes to fine-detailed figures, 8n Bomb has two floors of collectibles and is much quieter than nearby Pop Mart.
The more expensive models are kept in glass cabinets on the upper floor and you’ll find everything from Gundam to Monday Bruce blind boxes. Shop for Monday Bruce on Amazon >
27. Lane 50 Food Market in Ximending
Looking for some late night snacks or street food in Ximen?
Head on over to Lane 50 Night Market (next to the Emei Street ABC Mart footwear store) serving up everything from beef noodle bowls (120 TWD) to fresh cheese corn (100 TWD) and candied strawberries.
This popular street food market on Ximen’s Lane 50 is open day and night (between 12pm to 11:30pm) and has around 20 or so stalls.
The steam billowing from the hot food stalls is very enticing and as well as Taiwan food like radish cake, fried chicken and soy milk, you’ll also find several Korean food stalls selling everything from spicy tteokbokki rice cakes to Korean hotdogs.
This street is also full of gachapon vending machines galore – even if you aren’t hungry, this area of Ximending is very photogenic and well worth a visit, especially at night.
For better night market food in Taipei, try Raohe Night Market, Gongguan Night Market or Ningxia Night Market – or try this Taipei Tour Me Away street food tour (video below).
28. Capybara Drinks at Ximending More Beer
It had to happen eventually, one of the backstreet bars in Ximending now serves capybara themed drinks whereby steam escapes through capybara cup nostrils – NT$290 for soft drinks or NT390 for alcoholic capybara drinks.
It has gone viral on social media and is just a 20 second walk from the famous Ximending Rainbow Six crossing. Find ‘More Beer’ on Google Maps here and purchase a drink voucher in advance on Klook.
You might like our guide to Taiwan’s Capybara Rock or Taipei’s Capybara cafe
29. MONGA Chicken
Now that Ximending’s famous Hot Star Chicken has closed down (we aren’t clucking around), the current contender for Ximending’s best fried chicken has to be MONGA.
Monga serves up delicious juicy fried chicken, including boneless chicken nuggets which we rave about – place your order, grab a ticket and your chicken is cooked fresh to order.
They have several branches around Taipei and more across Taiwan plus overseas in the UK, Canada and China. Who needs a Hot Star when you can munch on MONGA?!
You might like – 30+ things to do in Taichung, Taiwan >
30. Driftwood (Taihu Brewing Bar)
As there are so many things to do in Ximen, it can be tiring work trying to do it all – so take some time to kick back, relax and enjoy some craft beer at Driftwood bar.
Located on Kunming Street next to the Papa Whale hotel, Driftwood is one of the best craft beer bars in Taipei serving craft on draft from Taihu Brewing.
As you’d expect, this Driftwood Bar has several wooden tiki huts inside and is a great place to sup good quality beers from Taiwan’s largest craft beer brewer, Taihu Brewing.
If you can’t decide what to drink, go for one of their tasting flights where you can sup a sample of craft beers. Cheers!
Read more about the best craft beer bars in Taipei >
31. Taipei North Gate / Cheng’en Gate
A short walk from the main entertainment district of Ximending, Taipei North Gate is a historical landmark dating back to the 1880s (built during the Qing Dynasty era) and located in Beimen North Gate Square.
A National Monument of Taiwan, the two storey North Gate is the best preserved of the Taipei City Wall gates and is free to visit (note you can only access the exterior). The Taipei city gates were built originally as a measure of prosperity, to encourage others to build homes in Taipei City.
Nearby in Beimen MRT Underground station, you can also see various ancient relics and artifacts in glass cases that were uncovered when the station was being built.
PS We recently stayed at the CitizenM NorthGate hotel in Ximending and highly recommend it – the location is amazing and the views of Taipei from the higher floors are great.
32. Taipei Cinema Park
A colourful creative hub and meeting place with incredible street art and cute cafes, Taipei Cinema Park is the largest public park in Ximending.
A former gas works dating back to the 1930s, the site fell into disrepair for many years before becoming a cool neighbourhood park and Art Plaza.
On the weekends, you’ll sometimes find small markets here at Taipei Cinema Park plus there are a couple of permanent restaurants and cafes.
Best of all, the street art here is superb (including a dedicated graffiti wall – Lane 96) plus aerial walkways so you can enjoy the art from above.
When we revisited Taipei Cinema Park in October 2024, there was a small free to visit pop-up exhibition with neon lights and cartoon statues which detailed the rich cinematic history of the area.
You might like – Our guides to Taipei’s coolest creative hubs, Huashan 1914 Creative Park and Songshan Cultural Park
33. Gachapons galore / claw machines and amusements
Taiwan (and Taipei in particular) love their amusement machines and arcades. Their current favourite craze is the claw machines, where you can win both practical (iPhones) and novelty gifts. We even once saw a dedicated Ferrero Rocher arcade machine in Ximending!
In most cases, these arcades in Ximending are open 24 hours a day, and many are unstaffed hence why they can always stay open.
Whilst in Ximending we saw ‘gachapon’ galore – these are Japanese style vending machines where you put a coin into the slot to get a mystery capsule toy.
These can be found in dedicated gachapon shops and amusement arcades or even just in front of 7-Eleven and FamilyMart convenience stores in Ximending. The Wannian Building in Ximending probably has the biggest collection of gachapons in Ximen.
34. Ximending Pottery Workshop / 抱瓶庵藝事空間
Although most people think of Ximending as loud and brash, there are quite a few cultural gems and hidden spots located in the side-streets.
We’d recommend a day-trip to Yingge, Taiwan’s pottery and ceramics capital and only a 30 minute ride from nearby Taipei Main Station. However, if you don’t have time and want a really unique Taiwan souvenir (or just want to ‘kiln’ some time), make your own pottery at 抱瓶庵藝事空間, located on Google Maps here >
As part of this Ximending pottery workshop, you get to choose what you want to create and throw plus the classes include drinks and dessert.
You might like – Things to do in Sun Moon Lake >
35. Ximending Night Market
Taiwan (and Taipei in particular) are renowned for their night markets and Ximending is no different.
That said, unlike say nearby Raohe night market or Ningxia night market, Ximending’s night market is more of a ramshackle affair – night time street vendors pop up around various streets, and there is a small dedicated area of about 20 stalls on Lane 50 near ABC Mart (more on this later).
There are also a few street vendors who sell stinky tofu, hot chestnuts, chopped fruit and more using trestle tables – the food quality is mixed in Ximending so you might want to look to restaurants or basement food courts instead.
Try these Taipei night market tasting tours with Klook >
36. PARTYWORLD ZhongHua Karaoke
Time to let off a little steam after traipsing around the streets of Taipei all day – PARTYWORLD KTV is the go-to place in Ximen for karaoke. With dozens of private booths, sing to your heart’s content without fear of anyone hearing you (unless you are a pretty good singer).
Private booths are charged on an hourly rate (prices vary depending on the time of day) and they sometimes do special tourist discounts at PARTYWORLD if you show your overseas ID or passport.
There is an extensive food and drink menu (note there is a minimum spend on food and drink on top of the karaoke booth hire). English and Japanese songs are available as part of the karaoke song selection.
Love karaoke? Check out Taiwan’s Sanrio themed train >
37. Nishi Honganji Temple / Bell Tower
Once Taiwan’s largest Japanese style temple during the Japanese era, the Nishi Honganji temple (called Xibenyuan Temple in Chinese) was alas destroyed by a fire in 1975.
Now a Bell Tower stands near the original site atop a small hill – this area is a very peaceful place compared to the rest of the usually busy Ximen district.
The Bell Tower recently celebrated its 100th anniversary, having been built in 1922. The large bronze bell was cast in 1901 and lost in WWII – the current bell was made according to the style of bronze bells at that time.
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38. Eighty Eightea Rinbansyo Tea House
A postcard picture perfect place to enjoy Taiwanese tea, Ximen’s Eighty Eightea Rinbansyo tea house was a former head priest’s residence, a remnant from the days of the Nishi Honganji Temple.
At Eighty Eightea Rinbanso, as well as enjoying tea in a sumptuous setting, you can enjoy dessert platters and Japanese tea sets. Their fruit waffle is highly recommended.
You might like – Guide to watching planes land at Airplane Alley at Taipei Songshan Airport >
39. Uniqlo Ximending
Ximen’s Uniqlo store has six storeys plus a Uniqlo flower shop on the first floor as you enter.
In addition to the usual Uniqlo high quality clothing like thermals, winter jackets and jeans, the Ximen Uniqlo also has a special fourth floor with a personalised clothing section (‘UTme!) where you can create your own designs and see them printed before your very eyes.
Customising your own Uniqlo bags or tops using the tablets is really simple plus it has designs and embroidery icons that are unique to Taipei like a cartoon Ximen Red House.
Uniqlo Ximen is open Monday to Sunday from 11am to 10.30pm. There is a tax refund counter on the top floor too.
Try this – Top 10 Taipei food tours with Viator including the award-winning 10 tastings private tour
40. Taipei Tianhou Temple
Dedicated to Mazu, the Goddess of Mercy, the Taipei Tianhou temple is one of the most beautiful temples in Ximen, albeit quite small inside.
On our visit, there was a steady stream of worshippers paying their respects plus an array of lit up red lanterns hanging from the temple roof – there was also a menagerie of plastic zoo animals in the temple like a roarsome lion and an elephant.
The Taipei Tianhou Temple attracts many tourists including many Japanese visitors as it enshrines the Japanese Buddhist Grand Master Kobo-Daishi and is the only temple in Taiwan to do so.
You might like – Our guide to Longshan, Taipei’s most famous temple >
41. NET Ximending
We’re throwing the ‘NET’ to find the best budget fashion store in Ximending.
In our Taiwan Travel Tips (TTT) Facebook group, there are often questions about where to shop in Taiwan for inexpensive clothes be they summer shorts, swimming costumes or winter gear.
One of the main Taiwan fashion shops that gets mentioned in NET. With over 150 NET fashion stores around Taiwan, it is a clothing chain that is similar in style to UNIQLO and GAP…but much MUCH cheaper.
The Ximending NET store has two floors and is open until 10.30pm at the weekends if you need a late night fashion fix!
Check out our guide to Taiwan’s NET clothing stores >
42. The best brownies in Taipei
Looking to get your chocolate fix in Taipei – then look no further. We’d recommend the brownie store near the Red House – Mr Brownie, home to dozens of incredible brownie flavours (like, SO MANY different flavours from raspberry to matcha) – plus they have several mystery brownie flavours.
Some of the more decadent and interesting brownie flavours at Ximen’s Mr Brownie include lime mint brownies, French Rose brownies plus marvellous mojito brownies. Take our money now!
Prices for decadent chocolate brownies at Mr Brownie cost from 45 NTD to 60 NTD (around £1.50) as of 2026 so very good value.
You might like – Our guide to Yongkang Street, Taipei’s tastiest neighborhood >
Beef Noodle Soup restaurants in Ximending
Whilst in Taipei, one of the most delicious things to do in Ximending is try the local speciality dish, beef noodle soup.
As it so happens, two of the best loved and most popular beef noodle soup restaurants are located in and around the Ximending district.
43. Lao Shan Dong Homemade Noodles
Possibly the best beef noodles in Ximending, we love Lao Shandong Homemade Noodles and slurp them up every time we stay in Ximen.
This 70 year old handmade noodle restaurant has Michelin recognition and is located in the basement of the Wan Nian building in Ximending (it is right in the corner and could be easy to miss).
We both ordered a large bowl of beef noodle soup each for $220 NTD as it was only $20 NTD extra to make it bigger. The bowl was absolutely massive though and the smaller bowl would have probably suited me much better. Please note the restaurant is cash only.
We went at around 2pm on a weekday and were seated immediately. The dish was absolutely delicious and we loved the texture of the noodles, and the beef chunks were super soft.
44. Fuhong Beef Noodles Restaurant
We also love the nearby Fuhong Beef Noodle shop – the queues can be big but it is worth it. We go here every time we stay in a Ximending hotel and most locals slurp away at their noodles whilst watching the news on the big TV and peeling garlic cloves.
As it is quite a small space inside Fuhong Beef Noodles, it can get very cosy in there as you share tables – on one occasion, the chap next to us was very friendly telling us to add pickled cabbage to our beef noodle soup.
He also mentioned that the soft drinks were free from the vending machine at the front (bonus!) and that you can get free soup top-ups. So we did both!
The beef noodles at Fuhong are melt in your mouth marvellous, with handmade noodles and soft, super juicy slices of beef – and it was only around $70 NTD for a medium sized dish, no wonder it is so popular.
Taiwanderers Tip – Our favourite beef noodle place is still the nearby Liu Shandong Beef Noodles >
You might like: Taipei Night Market Michelin food tour in Ningxia Night Market >
45. Sushiro Sushi
A Japanese style sushi conveyor belt restaurant that was located next door to one of our Ximending hotels (Green World Zhonghua Hotel).
A popular chain restaurant in Taiwan, the place is always packed, often with a long waiting time (but sometimes there is no queue). The sushi was really delicious and fairly cheap!
46. Ximending Taipei Lantern Festival (February)
If you happen to be in Taipei just after Lunar New Year, Ximending is home to the annual Taipei Lantern Festival which usually runs for two weeks every February.
Free to attend, the Taipei Lantern festival usually runs from outside Beimen MRT Station all the way to Nishi Honganji Temple in Ximending, Zhongzheng District, along Zhonghua Road.
There are around 20 to 30 large scale illuminations and lanterns as part of the Taipei Lantern Festival. The vast majority of Taipei Lantern Festival illuminations take place on the east side of the road, parallel to the Ximending entertainment district.
Incidentally, this is not the be confused with the much bigger national Taiwan Lantern Festival which moves to a different Taiwan city each year (usually from mid February).
47. Costume Street Ximending
Once choc a bloc with dozens of costume hire shops and novelty fashion stores, it is fair to say that Costume Street has definitely seen better days. On our visit we found Costume Street only had several such stores – if anything, there were more chain restaurants than costume shops.
That said, if you are in need of a fun costume or novelty night time wear to explore Ximen, walk on by Costume Street and browse the brightly colour clothing rail.
You can rent everything from dance outfits to traditional Taiwanese dresses or even Halloween outfits and cartoon character costumes!
You might like – Things to do in Keelung (40 mins from Taipei) including Keelung Night Market
48. Shinjuku Plaza / Kicks Centre
Spring 2026 update – Shinjuku Plaza has now closed off all but the ground floor – and this is now mainly filled with tarot card readers and pop up gallery displays.
Although many travel guides refer to Shinjuku Plaza as a ‘must visit’ thing to do in Ximending, we think these may be referring to it in pre COVID times as today, it is a mainly empty and very run down shopping centre.
When we visited Ximen’s Shinjuku Centre, all but a handful of shop units were empty and vacant, and the building was in need of some TLC; it was just quite forlorn and faded.
On the second level, the only shop still trading was one solitary t-shirt kiosk – we aren’t sure if Shinjuku Plaza will be around much longer.
49. Hot Star Chicken Ximending (now closed)
Another VERY popular stall with Taiwanese youngsters – they sell huge spicy chicken schnitzels (the size of your face – seriously!).
In the latest 2024 Netflix Taipei episode of Somebody feed Phil, Phil Rosenthal is seen wandering the streets of Ximending eating a large Hot Star fried chicken!
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