Taipei : Beitou Hot Spring

The hot-spring water of Beitou, a district of Taipei City is available in a large number of hotels lining Singyi Road, Wencyuan Road, Cyuanyuan Road. The area also includes the Hot Spring museum, water park, and Hell Valley, among other attractions.

Second night in Taipei, we went to Beitou, just for the hot spring. I stayed in Chyuan Du Spring Hotel (泉都溫泉會館) at NT$1790/ room/night. This hotel is just a stone throw away from Xin BeiTou subway station.

Inside, many rooms come with their own hot spring baths. Relax for as long as you can stand their piping hot acidic sulphur waters. People with high blood pressure, heart disease or open wounds should not enter the baths.

Due to the smell of sulphur and the constant rising of steam, the Beitou valley had the appearance of a witch's cauldron, and so the aboriginal inhabitants of the area named it 'witch'.

There are so many hot springs in new Beitou. You don't even have to worry! The price is also reasonable. Bathing in the hot spring water has a relaxing and refreshing effect. It helps to relieve muscle pains, nervous pains, digestive problems, arteriosclerosis and other ailments.

According to the ingredients in the hot spring water, the curative effect of the hot springs also varies. The tourists can choose the most suitble kind in accordance with their needs.

Firstly, chloride springs where the skin will be very smooth after soaking. It also has curative effect on the skin diseases, rheumatic fever and nerve pain. Second is the Sodium bicarbonate springs which is suitable for drinking and bathing and also has curative effect on athlete's foot, arthritis and nerve pain. Lastly, Sulfate springs is rich in minerals and has curative effect on skin diseases.

Hot Spring Valley 地熱谷:

The photo below shows Hot Spring Valley (地熱谷), which is the source of the hot springs in Beitou. Hot springs are what Beitou is famous for and the Beitou Hot Spring Museum (北投溫泉博物館) is built in a restored public bath house.

There are few different versions of how Hell Valley is formed; some say it is a collapsed volcano crater; others say it's formed by underground hot spring coming off surface cracks. Nevertheless, its misty looks makes it a perfect photo spot.

It’s a natural hot sulfur spring where the water temperature can reach up to 100°C (212°F) . Unfortunately, this place is closed due to safety issue. Therefore we can only view it from far.

In fact one needn’t even pay to reap the therapeutic benefits of Peitou’s spas and numerous Beitou hot springs: just join the locals sitting on the edge of the pavement, shoes and socks removed, feet dangling in the steaming sulphurous waters running alongside the road.
Behind me is the Taipei Library which built with modern design in the lush garden.

After checked - out at 1.00pm, we proceed to Ximending.