Xiangshan Park — Attraction in Taipei

Friends brought us to their neighborhood park for a nice afternoon walk to see the Taipei skyline. This is a quiet park with basketball courts and large children's play ground. Well maintained toilettes that even designed to have washing area for small kids. It's great for the residents (who can afford to live in this hood). There are plenty young and old residents either playing or just getting their sun lights with busy tourists just walking by or through the park to the Xiangshan Mountain top for the Taipei skyline view. Grass is "somewhat" maintained and does have plenty room for improvement, at least for this richy neighborhood standards. I did not see garbage can around but you can toss your trash in the restroom area. I saw ONE drinking fountain near the children's playground. I assume it would be nice if I can have a cup of coffee and croissants in the morning on the few sitting benches or an afternoon picnic lunch but I only saw couple of tables. I'm unclear about the local laws and not sure I can sit on the grass for a really nice picnic with Taipei 101 building...

It is right outside of the MRT station, easily accessible to the public. It provides a welcoming entrance to people who are walking towards Xiangshan hiking trail. You usually will see a lot of hikers walking to or from the trail. Other than a passage for the hikers, the park has amenities such as a children's playground and basketball courts. There are many people walking or running on the park loop throughout the day. There are kids running and playing on the grass or adults doing Tai chi or martial arts on the hard grounds. There are plenty of activities for any sort of age, and I believe people would enjoy the park for relaxation and...

This is where the trail up Elephant Mountain starts and stops. The park itself is quite small and peaceful, but I think most tourist come here to walk up the Elephant Mountain. The walk is mostly on stairs and takes about 20 minutes, but since it is usually hot in Taipei, you will break a sweat. Bring something to drink and something to wipe your neck with. It's also good to bring mosquito repellent, at least if you visit in the evening. Once at the top, the view is very nice, especially of Taipei 101. Well...