Taipei 101 - An Engineering Marvel

Formerly known as Taipei World Financial Center, Taipei 101 is an engineering marvel.

The building was the world's tallest in 2004 until it  was overshadowed by Burj Khalifa in Dubai in 2009. It has 101 floors. It was awarded the LEED platinum certification in 2011, which is the highest award according to the  Leadership in energy and Environmental Design (LEED) rating system. It is the tallest and largest green building in the world. It is designed and built to withstand the typhoon winds and earthquake tremors that are common in the area east of Taiwan.

It holds Guinness World Record for having the fastest elevator going from the 5th floor to the 89th  in 37 seconds.
 

The indoor observatory is located at the 89th floor where one can have an unobstructed view of the city in all directions. There are refreshment, souvenir shops, and photography services available.

jar made of jade at the jade souvenir shop

A huge tuned mass damper is located at the 88th floor. The damper is suspended within the building which will offset the force of winds and help 101 stand upright.

how a damper works

An outdoor observatory is located at the 91st floor and can be accessed via stairs from the 89th floor. It is well fenced to prevent any accidental fall.

At the basement of 101 is a market place and the famous Din Tai Fung restaurant. The market place has a supermarket and food court. 

 Should you want to sample the famous xiao long bao, be early to line up at DTF . Otherwise, the line gets long at lunchtime.

How to get to Taipei 101:
Take the MRT red line going to Xiangshan and alight at Taipei 101 station.
Tickets are available at the 5th floor of the mall for NTD600 for adult, NTD540 for student with ID and free for children under 115cm.
Reserve your ticket online to get a discount and avoid long lines.

You may be interested in:
Yehliu-Juifen-Shifen Day Tour

Lovely City Inn Branch 1 Taipei Main Station

City Inn Branch 1 has a great location because it is within 5 minute walk from Taipei Main Station. It is very accessible and the roads leading to the hotel are smooth and you will have no problem with your wheeled luggage. Direction to City Inn branch 1

The reception area is small but the staff are so friendly and cheerful. Check in was a breeze. We just presented our printed voucher and with a quick verification our key cards were handed to us. I noticed the Tripadvisor certificates displayed at the lobby.

 Our room was compact, but have enough space to move around. The beds are comfortable and pillows spotless. There's LCD TV, good wifi connection, safety deposity box.  . We have a mini ref as well.

Complimentary bottled water are replenished daily together with the UCC coffee.

 

 The en-suite bathroom is decent , very clean, no molds and have a strong hot/cold shower. I like the frosted glass wall. The towels smell fresh and clean.

At the 2nd floor,  there's a free laundry and a little kitchen area with a microwave, coffee machine (free), iced tea vending machine and large refrigerator for guests' use.

Every floor has a sitting area  with bowls full of free mints and odd wafer-based snacks.  Each floor has different colorful wall painting

There is weighing scale for your baggage and a chart of airline's allowable baggage.

Our reservation did not include breakfast. But no worries, the hotel is surrounded by plenty food stalls, a 24 hour convenience store, Starbucks, McDonalds. The food stalls open early and they are selling fresh dumplings, pork and vegetable buns, roti like bread, sandwiches.

fresh buns, gyoza, and roti like bread

Family Mart is selling tea eggs and many food item like yogurt and egg flan.

Overall, this little hotel is excellent and staff service is commendable. Will recommend to friends who will be travelling to Taipei.

Next   Taipei 101