Raohe Street Tourist Night Market is a good place to experience a typical oriental bazaar at night. Raohe Street features many shops, department stores and street vendors. You can sample a variety of street food including tofu, ribs and other delicacies. The street is located near the station and the historic Ci You Temple. So if you want to spend an interesting and adventurous evening you know where to head.
This seemingly never-closing night market is just minutes away from the downtown area. The market is not only Taipei's largest but also one of the oldest. It springs to life in the evening hours with carnival games and a great selection of shops selling clothing, shoes, jewelry, tourist gifts, tools, pets and much more. Although the atmosphere can be a bit chaotic at times, the food here is tasty, with popular fare including tofu, Chinese sausage, and Portuguese egg tarts.
The Red House was originally built as a public market in 1908 and was declared a Class III Historic Site in the year 1997. Designed by the Japanese architect Kondo Juro, the Red House takes its name from the vivid hue of its distinctly western facade. Today, the building has been carefully restored and now houses a host of stalls featuring local designers and artisans selling one-of-a-kind products. Part of the Red House has also been converted into a theater that hosts indie acts, theatrical plays and live music concerts. Constantly abuzz with visitors in search of exquisite handmade products, traditionally-processed tea, and enthralling theater performances, this octagonal building and its cruciform annex have been given a new lease on life.
This huge store is Taiwan's leading department store in terms of overall revenue and popularity. It enjoys widespread name and recognition and is considered a major landmark. Sogo has something for everybody: men's, women's and children's apparel, restaurants and a food court, cosmetics and shoes. The layout is somewhat different than that of a usual shopping mall, but it is really just another version of the same thing.
If you enjoy wearing fine clothing and accessories, this luxury brand department store may become your favorite place to shop. Sogo is actually designed more like a shopping mall because each brand is separated into its own shop. Here you will find Bally, Celine, Gucci, Bulgari, Christian Dior, Tiffany's and Christian LaCroix, just to name a few. There are boutiques for both men and women. If you want to shop for a sofa as well, an IKEA furniture store is located in the basement.
Looking for good souvenirs or gifts? Why not give tea a try? Don't know where to buy them, you say? Wangs' Tea offers you a variety of choices: from tea leaves to tea bags; from prunes to tea cups. With its years of experience, experts can offer you some suggestions that would surely cater to your needs. Once inside the store, you'll smell tea being cooked, and you might even get a free try of them. When you do, ask to see how tea should be properly served – as it is believed to "rinse" the tea leaves by throwing the water you first soaked the leaves with. For the busy bees out there, you can get these online, too! - Maria Tan
ATT Show Box is the ultimate entertainment destination in the culturally-rich Xinyi District of Taipei. The venue not only consists of several performance spaces and auditoriums but also has eight whole floors full of shops and several spaces for conferences and seminars. This cross between a concert venue and shopping mall is a popular venue for a number of events, concerts and performances. Keeping with the times, most of the concerts which are held in the spacious halls are by renowned bands and artists of contemporary times. So, whether you feel like going on a shopping spree or wish to catch your favorite artist on stage, ATT Show Box is the place to be.
Royalty, business tycoons and movie stars all come here to splurge on jewelry and timepieces. The late Harry Winston, a native New Yorker, is still known as "The King of Diamonds", and the business empire he founded has an international reputation. High profile celebrities are known to "borrow" designs when they attend the Oscars each year, and even the Metropolitan Museum of Art and the Louvre have displayed Winston's exclusively crafted works. The stores, or "salons" as they are called, maintain a high profile, and this one in Taipei is no exception. You can expect impeccable service, and to be set back by several thousand dollars if you decide to secure one of the exquisite pieces on offer.
Tiger Surf Shop is a skating, surfing and lifestyle store for adventure junkies. It specializes in a range of Penny boards, longboards and skateboards in quirky styles and designs. Bold patterns and splashes of color define the surf and skateboards, available in colors like shocking pink, neon orange, sky blue, sun yellow, lavender and grass green. Tiger Surf Shop stocks the merchandise of famous international sports brands such as Bern Helmet, Bustin Boards, Hawgs Wheels, Triple 8 and the Australian sports company Penny Skateboards. It also sells trendy crew shirts, sports hats in both neutral and eye-popping colors, and whimsical graphic art and craft items. The knowledgeable staff help you select the brand best suited for your favorite outdoor activity, lifestyle and interests.
Zhongxiao East Road, or popularly refered as Zhongxiao Road, serves as a key road attached to the city's provincial highway 5. While linking the Nangang, Da'an, Xinyi, Songshan and Zhongzheng districts, it also remains a busy shopping district dotted with an array of malls, boutiques and departmental stores. Some popular names found on Zhongxiao Road include women's chic boutique Zara, Sogo Department Store and Uniglo's main outlet. Even the side alleys and inner streets hold some shops, along with cozy coffee houses, bakeries and noodle bars.
BTU stands for Business, Travel and Urban. And those three are exactly what this specialized store offers you, which is a place where you can find the best of the best bags. With over 15 brands including Nike, Ergo, Jack Wolfskin, Outdoor, Mendoza and Sanrio, this store is a haven for people of all ages looking for the right bag. In addition to that, it's very active online since their facebook page is updated almost every day with the latest news and promotions. This is surely a place for people who need a bag for business, travel or just to be urbanely chic! - Maria Tan
The Super Work Shop is full of apparel for skate boarding. With a full-size model from the movie "Spawn" in front, it is hard to miss this small shop. They claim that their collection is directly imported from USA. You will find lots of T-shirts, baggy and loose shorts, and flat-sole skateboarding shoes here. Accessories like hats and eyewear are also available. They even carry some all-terrain and big-wheeled skateboards.