Flight to Taiwan
Transpacific flight to Taiwan.
Taiwan 🇹🇼
Taipei, Taiwan
65–75°F (18–24°C) • Mild, occasional rain. Light layers.
Arrive Taipei · settle near a rail/MRT hub — Land 20:30 on Delta DL69; the Airport MRT reaches central Taipei in roughly 40–55 min. Check in and take a short neighborhood walk if energy allows.
1 · Art Meeting Dome (Cheng Tsung Fen) — A large-scale spherical bamboo installation drawing inspiration from traditional Taiwanese woven chairs. 2 · Architecture Jiantan MRT Station — A distinct MRT station designed like a massive dragon boat suspended by cables. 3 · Architecture Taipei Roofs (Akihisa Hirata) — Stacked, cascading outdoor terraces by Japanese architect Akihisa Hirata. 4 · Classic Chiang Kai-shek Memorial Hall — A national monument and prominent landmark erected in memory of Chiang Kai-shek. 5 · Art NTNU Art Museum — The National Taiwan Normal University’s striking architectural museum space. 6 · Classic Longshan Temple — One of Taiwan’s oldest and most renowned temples, a masterpiece of traditional architecture. 7 · Walks Dihua Street’s hidden back-courtyard cafes — start at Alchemist Dihua (Singapore specialty coffee, opened 2025, Yongle Market corner), then Ura.219 (No. 219, reservation-only courtyard garden + coffee, Wed–Sun). 8 · Classic Ningxia Night Market — Dinner after Dadaocheng.
9 · Art Juming Museum — Open-air sculpture museum; reconfirm access and opening hours. 10 · Architecture Wanli UFO Village ruins — Futuro and Venturo pod ruins; optional 30-minute detour if the gate is open, drive on if not. 11 · Technology Taipower North Exhibit Center — Free working reactor models at the Kuosheng plant entrance, Tue–Sun 8:20–16:20. 12 · Classic Yehliu Geopark — The famous Queen’s Head rock on the coast.
13 · Art New Taipei City Art Museum · Yingge — Priority pick: Kris Yao’s aluminum “swaying reeds” facade. Allow roughly 45–60 min each way from central Taipei plus museum time. 14 · Classic Yingge Old Street — Taiwan’s ceramics capital. 15 · Architecture Sanxia Qingshui Zushi Temple — Incredible stone carvings, a short ride away.
16 · Architecture Guandu Temple — Ancient Buddha Pit’s 28 guardian statues. 18 · Design Taiwan Design Museum — Songshan Cultural and Creative Park, plus Not Just Library, Eslite Spectrum Songyan and Huashan 1914 Creative Park if time allows. Check whether the Golden Pin winners’ exhibition opens during the trip. 19 · Classic Taipei 101 — Very close to Songshan Cultural Park. 16 · Walks Ancient Buddha Pit tunnel — Guandu Temple’s 100-meter tunnel. 17 · Art Jut Art Museum — Sou Fujimoto: Primordial Future Forest (Aug 15–Jan 3; admission NT$250), including the 1:5 reconstruction of the Expo 2025 Grand Roof Ring. 20 · Architecture Tao Zhu Yin Yuan (Agora Garden) — A twisting, DNA-shaped eco-friendly residential skyscraper by Vincent Callebaut. 21 · Architecture Lè Architecture Nangang — A striking office building by Aedas inspired by river pebbles covered in green moss. 22 · Architecture Taipei Music Center — A major pop music venue and cultural hub with a faceted, futuristic geometric shell.
Taichung, Taiwan
68–78°F (20–25°C) • Drier and sunnier than Taipei. T-shirts.
Nov 21 · TSMC Museum of Innovation (Hsinchu) + Calligraphy Greenway · Morning: THSR Taipei → Hsinchu for a reserved ~90-min visit to the TSMC Museum of Innovation (free, reservation required — reserve online from Oct 1, by noon the day before), then continue to Taichung for a light afternoon on Calligraphy Greenway. Allow transfer time between Hsinchu HSR station and the Science Park.
Classic: Chun Shui Tang (The birthplace of Pearl Milk Tea on the greenway) | Offbeat: Fantasy Story Green Ray (renovated waterworks dormitories nearby)
Nov 22 · National Taichung Theater + green corridor · Architecture-led day with generous walking time; add CMP-area art and independent coffee.
Classic: Fengjia Night Market (massive, loud, and iconic—near the theater) | Offbeat: Molecure Pharmacy (a breathtaking architectural pharmacy near the theater)
Nov 23 · 921 Earthquake Museum · Wufeng · Priority pick: the fault-sheared school and tensile canopy. Budget about 45–70 min each way by bus/taxi from central Taichung.
Classic: Wufeng Lin Family Mansion (traditional grand estate) | Offbeat: Guangfu Village (an abandoned military village taken over by artists, right next to the museum)
Nov 24 · Green Museumbrary + Shenji New Village · Use the SANAA complex as the day’s anchor if open; otherwise keep a slow creative-neighborhood day. Dumplings or beef noodles work well here.
Classic: National Taiwan Museum of Fine Arts | Offbeat: The roof walkways of Audit Village (Shenji New Village)
Taichung Green Museumbrary · SANAA-designed complex consisting of a public library and fine arts museum integrated with the park.
National Taichung Theater · Toyo Ito's renowned opera house featuring an extraordinary curved 'sound cave' concrete structure.
Xiangshan Visitor Center · A sleek, sweeping concrete visitor center by Dan Norihiko blending seamlessly into Sun Moon Lake.
Watermoon Tea House · A striking contemporary concrete structure by Behet Bondzio Lin Architekten focusing on light and shadow.
Tainan, Taiwan
70–80°F (21–27°C) • Warm and sunny. T-shirts and shorts.
Nov 25 · Settle in · Arrive from Taichung. Both HSR stations sit outside the old cores, so allow ~1¾ hr door to door.
Classic: Chihkan Tower (Fort Provintia, the heart of old Tainan) | Offbeat: Snail Alley (a quiet, winding literary labyrinth right around the corner)
Nov 26 · Tainan old lanes + shophouse fabric · Walk Shennong Street, temple lanes and preserved storefronts at an unhurried pace. Look for a focused beef-soup or dumpling specialist; ask about stock.
Classic: Anping Tree House (a massive banyan tree swallowing a warehouse) | Offbeat: Blueprint Cultural & Creative Park (former prison dorms turned into art spaces)
Nov 27 · Tainan Art Museum 2 + Hayashi area · Contemporary architecture and art, then a compact pedestrian loop through the historic center and a hidden courtyard cafe.
Classic: Hayashi Department Store (Taiwan's oldest dept store with a rooftop shrine) | Offbeat: Tainan Art Museum Building 1 (a beautiful Art Deco police station right next to Building 2)
Nov 28 · Madou Daitian Temple · Priority oddity: descend through the 18 Levels of Hell and emerge through the 38 m dragon. Allow roughly 1–1½ hr each way by public transport/taxi mix.
Classic: Madou Daitian Temple's 18 Levels of Hell (your anchor) | Offbeat: Tsung-Yeh Arts and Cultural Center (former Japanese sugar refinery offices nearby)
Nov 29 · Tree of Life · Jiangjun salt fields · White portal and radial brine pans at Qingkunshen. Treat as a weather-dependent half/full-day excursion and verify onward transport.
Classic: Jingzijiao Wapan Salt Fields (the famous sunset salt tiles) | Offbeat: Qigu Sandbar (a desert-like coastal dune accessible by boat)
Nov 30 · Tainan → Kaohsiung · Pier-2 evening · Ride south to Kaohsiung for the night before the early flight. Evening at the harbor: Pier-2 Art Center and the Kaohsiung Music Center waterfront.
Classic: Pier-2 Art Center at golden hour | Offbeat: Hamasen Railway Cultural Park after dark
Dragon and Tiger Pagodas · Twin pagodas located at Lotus Lake, famous for their vibrant colors and entering through the dragon's mouth.
National Kaohsiung Center for the Arts (Weiwuying) · A massive sweeping performance center designed by Mecanoo under a single undulating canopy.
National Taitung University Library · An iconic pyramid-shaped library building with a green roof that blends into the surrounding landscape.
Temple-Flame Tree (THSR Display Zone) · An architectural canopy and plaza structure near the high-speed rail, echoing local flora.
Fort Zeelandia · A 17th-century fortress built by the Dutch East India Company during their rule over western Taiwan.
Kaohsiung Music Center · A sprawling waterside music complex integrating striking modern hexagonal architecture.
Transit to China
Unique hybrid route via Taiwanese islands directly into Quanzhou.
China 🇨🇳
Quanzhou, China
58–70°F (14–21°C) • Mild and pleasant. Light sweater.
Dec 2 · Kaiyuan Temple + West Street + Maritime Museum · Start with the 13th-century Hindu carvings and old lanes, then use Quanzhou Maritime Museum to connect the city’s layered trading history. Finish with beef noodles or dumplings.
Dec 3 · Cao’an Temple + Quanzhou Museum · Make the rare Manichaean temple the cultural anchor, then return toward the city for a focused museum visit. Keep Xunpu Village as an optional swap-in, not a third stop.
Xiamen, China
58–70°F (14–21°C) • Mild, breezy coastal autumn. Light sweater.
Dec 5 · Shanhai Health Trail + Xiamen Museum · Take the elevated canopy walk and glass lookouts in the morning, then give the afternoon to Xiamen Museum rather than adding another long excursion.
Dec 6 · Dadeng Island battleground exhibits · Yingxiong Sandao’s giant loudspeaker, tunnels, small military-history displays and Kinmen views. Long cross-city outing: allow roughly 1½–2 hr each way depending traffic.
Shenzhen, China
55–72°F (13–22°C) • Mild and clear. Light jacket for night.
Dec 8 · Huaqiangbei + DJI showroom · Start with component markets, then work the upper floors for prototyping stalls and drone fabricators. Finish at a verified DJI retail showroom in the same cluster.
Dec 9 · MOCAPE + Gangxia North + ZEEKR Center · See Coop Himmelb(l)au’s chrome Cloud and Zaha Hadid’s metro concourse, then visit the flagship 极氪中心丨深圳皇庭广场 (ZEEKR Center | Shenzhen MixC World) at MixC World mall, Futian District.
Guangzhou, China
55–72°F (13–22°C) • Sunny but cooler evenings. Light jacket.
Dec 11 · Guangzhou Opera House + new Museum of Art · Zaha Hadid on the river, then Thomas Herzog’s water-lily pavilions in Haizhu. Confirm museum hours.
Dec 12 · Dongshankou + roast-meat mission · Leafy villas, creative storefronts and coffee at walking pace. Seek a roast goose/duck or char siu specialist and explicitly exclude seafood and mushrooms.
Dec 13 · Xiaozhou Village + Haizhuyong Bridge · Artist studios, canals and oyster-shell walls, with the motorway-split nail house as a short architectural oddity. Plan 45–75 min between areas.
Dec 14 · GAC AION / XPeng + buffer · Verify one current showroom cluster, then leave room for a return visit, laundry and packing. Claypot rice is the closing food target.
Flight to Malaysia
Southbound non-stop regional transit.
Malaysia 🇲🇾
Penang (George Town)
78–90°F (25–32°C) • Hot, humid, tropical showers. Linen & shorts!
Dec 16 · George Town heritage grid + Sun Yat Sen Museum · Walk Lebuh Armenian, clan-house facades and shaded five-foot ways, with one compact house-museum stop. Keep the rest of the day to coffee and slow exploration.
Dec 17 · Penang War Museum + Hin Bus Depot · Start early at the Penang War Museum in Batu Maung (1930s British fortress with tunnels and gun bays; open 9:00–18:00, allow ~2 hrs; bring water, a flashlight and anti-slip shoes; the guided Ranger tour is worth it). Afternoon: Hin Bus Depot contemporary art and independent shops, then drift north through residential streets. Choose roast chicken/char siu rice or dumplings; inspect sauces and fillings.
Dec 18 · Penang Hill + Edgecliff gallery · Ride up before the heat and crowds, add the compact Penang Hill Gallery at Edgecliff, then return for a quiet afternoon. Avoid stalls where shared seafood stock is unclear.
Dec 19 · Courtyards, coffee and shophouse details · A deliberately unstructured photo-and-sketch day through quieter lanes, with one destination cafe and no checklist.
Dec 20 · Pinang Peranakan Mansion + final buffer · Use the house museum as one clear cultural anchor, then leave the afternoon for laundry, a favorite single-dish stall revisit or a long shaded walk. Pack before dinner.
Flight to Europe
Overnight intercontinental connection via Singapore.
Belgium 🇧🇪
Brussels, Belgium
35–43°F (2–6°C) • Cold, damp winter. Heavy coat, gloves & scarf.Family anchor. Land Dec 22 morning, get rental car, head straight to mom's house to recover before Christmas Eve.