Maokong 貓空
Widely known as the most scenic spot in Taipei to drink quality, locally grown tea, Maokong is a quaint village located at the top of a mountain providing breathtaking views of Taipei City.
Tea aficionados will enjoy Maokong for its wide variety of teahouses and high quality selection, while others looking for a relaxing break from the busy city can sit back with a cup of tea and nice dinner, all while taking in the beautiful views of Taipei.
The best way to reach Maokong is to take the Maokong Gondola scenic cable car up the mountain from MRT Taipei Zoo Station, NT$120 each way for adults, NT$50 for children 6-12 and seniors over 65, with each adult allowed up to 2 children under 6 for free. Easycards are given a 20% discount on weekdays, and also receive a NT$20 discount when also used for zoo entry.
The Maokong Gondola was built in 2007 and retrofitted with Crystal Cabins (glass-bottom cars) in 2010 to provide more viewing angles and opportunities, also lowering the service interval to 3 minutes per car.
While the tea houses and shops on Maokong are open according to their own schedules, gondola service is contingent upon the weather situation for safety reasons, however is generally open from 8:30AM to 9PM (10PM on Fri & Sat). For more information and current status of the gondola, check out the official website.
Take the Brown Line 1 to the terminus station, Taipei Zoo (動物園). Transfer to the Maokong Gondola, a cable-car service that climbs up the mountain to the peak at Maokong.
Bus S10 operates between MRT Taipei Zoo and the peak at Maokong, with a stop at National Chengchi University (國立政治大學).
The Maokong Gondola (貓空纜車) is a 4.3KM cable car system that operates between MRT Taipei Zoo and the peak of Maokong, and includes the following 4 stops:
- Taipei Zoo (動物園), outside the Taipei Zoo
- Taipei Zoo South (動物園南), inside the Taipei Zoo
- Zhinan Temple (指南宮)
- Maokong (Sanxuan Temple) (貓空)
The full fare for the Maokong Gondola to the peak is NT$120, with partial fares NT$70 for 1 station traveled and NT$100 for two stations traveled.
Part of the Taipei MRT system, the Maokong Gondola accepts Easycard as payment, as well as tickets purchased at the window.
The Maokong Gondola closes at 9PM (10PM on Fri & Sat), while the Taipei Zoo South station closes at 4PM (same time as the zoo)
A recommended alternate method to visiting Maokong is to take the Maokong Gondola up the mountain, then take minibus S10 (NT$15 per passenger) back down the mountain to MRT Taipei Zoo Station for a ride that can only be described as...exciting.