12 January 2016
On our last trip to Taipei, we enjoyed our private hot spring bath in Villa32 in Beitou and hence we included a visit to Beitou in our itinerary again. However, the private hot spring bath in Villa32 was under renovation, so I booked Grandview Resort instead.
We took the MRT to Beitou Station where there is a free shuttle to bring us to the Grandview Resort. Information about the shuttle and its schedule was sent to me via email from Grandview Resort after the booking. As we were early for the shuttle, we took some time to explore the area around the Beitou Station and chanced upon a stall selling delicious soya bean curd with peanut.
The shuttle van arrived promptly to take us to GrandView Resort, located on a high ground and a distance away from the Xin-Beitou Station. Upon arrival, we decided to enquire about the massage at the spa. We chose to do the traditional chinese massage since we are in Taiwan and booked a slot immediately after our soak in their private hot spring room.
The spring waters in Beitou contain minerals that are supposed to be good for the skin but bad for metals. We removed all jewelleries before entering the hot water. The temperature of the water could be controlled using the hot water tap (spring water) and cold water tap (tap water). The booking of the private room was for 90 minutes. 15 minutes before the end, the phone would ring to inform us of the timing.
The room was well furnished with a sofa, a day bed, toilet and shower area with all the amenities needed. Bottled bamboo charcoal drinking water was provided to keep us hydrated during the soak and a dessert was also provided. Our skin did feel smoother after the soak.
The massage at the spa was like other massage we had done before, except that I had a leg cramp on my right leg while the masseur was working on it. When told of the cramp, she told me to stretch my left arm straight above my head and the cramp went away immediately. I learnt something new today!
After completing the soak and massage, we took the shuttle van to the Xin-Beitou station to grab some lunch at the popular Man Lai Ramen noodle（滿來溫泉拉麵) near Xinbeitou station. There is a number queuing system which shows how popular this restaurant is.
Both the Miso Pork Char Siu ramen and Seafood ramen were good. We finished every drop of the flavourful soup. We also tried the fried tofu and onsen tamago or hot spring eggs. The eggs with runny yorks were served cold, topped with shredded seaweed and sauce. I would have preferred it to be warm. 65 degree C to be exact for hot spring eggs.
A visit to Beitou would not be complete without a visit to the Beitou Thermal Valley or Hell Valley. I missed it on my last trip because we came on a Monday when it was closed.
Beitou Thermal Valley was nice to visit on a cold breezy day where more steam could be seen rising from the jade green waters and swirling around in the breeze.
Other points of interest in Beitou are the public library and the Hot Spring Museum (also closed on Monday). The Beitou Hot Spring Museum used to be public bathhouse built and used by the Japanese. We had to remove our shoes and changed into provided sandals before entering the museum. It features displays of Beitou’s hot spring history, as well as the area’s rare hokutolite “Beitou stones”.
By the time we finished our visit to Beitou, it was about 4.30 PM. We headed to our next destination, the Longshan Temple since we had visited Danshui (also spelled as Tamsui) before in our previous trip.
Where we stayed at Taipei?
The most convenient place to stay while visiting Taipei would be hotels within walking distance to the Taipei Main Station. The Taipei Main Station is a transportation hub for regional and local trains, High Speed Rail (HSR), all the subway lines, airport limousine bus and buses to nearby towns. There are also many malls and eateries nearby.
In our visits to Taipei, we had stayed at the CityInn Hotel Taipei Station Branch III, and also Caesar Park Hotel, located right on top of the MRT Taipei Main Station.
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