Moving to Taipei || A Guide By Those Who Made The Move

The Ultimate 2025 Expat’s Guide to Moving to Taipei

Moving anywhere in the world can be both an exciting, and daunting task.

Depending on where you’re coming from, moving to Taipei may create a big distance between you and your hometown.

So, we’ve put a guide together including key information and facts on what to expect regarding the most important things that may be on your mind when preparing for a move abroad!

Let’s get stuck in…

Moving to Taipei || A Quick Introduction to Taipei

Moving to Taipei|| Currency

Moving to Taipei|| Timezone

Moving to Taipei|| Weather

Moving to Taipei|| Language

Moving to Taipei|| Things to do

Moving to Taipei|| FAQs

Moving to Taipei: A Quick Introduction to Taipei

Taipei has a population of 2.7 million and is located in northern Taiwan, off the east coast of Mainland China.

Taipei is a unique city that blends modern skyscrapers with traditional temples and night markets.

Surrounded by mountains, Taipei offers a mix of urban energy and natural beauty, with easy access to hiking trails and hot springs. It is known for its excellent public transportation, thriving tech industry, and rich cultural scene, including landmarks like Taipei 101 and the National Palace Museum.

Speaking of Taipei 101, the world’s tallest Starbucks is at the top, boasting a great view of Taipei city.

As for the weather, Taipei has a humid subtropical climate, with very hot, rainy summers and mild winters. Luckily, most of the city is designed to keep walkways covered, providing you with some much-needed shelter from both the sun and rain as you’re exploring the city.

The city is smaller than sprawling megacities like Tokyo or London and you can get from one side of Taipei to the other in about half an hour on the metro.

NOTE – LTL’s school is based in Da’an District, in central Taipei and close to both the blue and red lines.

Building Your Expat Life in China and Coping With People Moving Home || Part 1

Find out first how to make your expat life in China easier from the start, and how to deal with your friends moving home with LTL Language School.

Moving to Taipei: Currency

Currency: New Taiwan Dollar (NTD).

1 USD = approx 30 NTD (correct at time of publication)

The currency name is the “New Taiwan Dollar“, NTD or NT$ in its shortened form. 

The ISO code of the currency is TWD, which you will need for the currency rate online.

To refer to money in everyday conversation, local people use the word ‘kuai’, literally meaning ‘piece’.

This is the same as how it’s referred to in Mainland China (either that or Renminbi, more formally)

The highest denomination in cash is $2000 and the lowest is $100 although coins go as low as just $1.

Useful Conversions (true as of January 2025)

Dragon Boat Festival in Taipei || The Complete Guide 🐉

The Dragon Boat Festival 端午节 (duān wǔ jié), also called Double Fifth Festival, is celebrated on the fifth day of May of the lunar calendar.

Moving to Taipei: Timezone

Taipei falls into the CST (China Standard Time) time zone, or GMT + 8.

Moving to Taipei: Weather

Travel to this island in the tropical zone and you can forget about bringing your winter coats.

It has a beautiful warm climate throughout the whole year although experiencing Taipei weather in summer can be a tad too much, as humidity levels, as well as heat rise above comfortable for most.

Because of the tropical climate, leaving your winter coats behind is a good idea, but don’t forget your umbrellas!

Taipei’s weather can be very unpredictable, especially during typhoon season between July and September.

One minute a downpour, the next beautiful blue skies. Don’t forget to bring your umbrella with you in your bag!

The average amount of rainfall per year is 2,500mm and there are about 3-4 typhoons that hit the island per year.

Such typhoons have been known to have devastating impact, such as flooding, landslides, and causing damage to infrastructure.

Because Taipei is on an island, there is a constant sea breeze passing through meaning to doesn’t get too stuffy.

Taipei Temperature:

• Annual average – 22 °C
• Annual average lowest – 12 to 17 °C
• Spring average – 25 °C
• Summer average – 30 °C
• Autumn average – 20 °C
• Winter average – 16 °C

Moving to Taipei: Language

Apart from the fact that people in Taipei use Traditional Chinese instead of Simplified Chinese as their writing system, there are still several differences between Taiwanese Mandarin and Chinese Mandarin.

You can check out our blog all about Taiwanese Mandarin and get yourself fully clued up!

At LTL – our classes in Taipei are either taught using Traditional Chinese or Simplified Chinese.

Sign up and YOU have the power to choose what you want to learn.

Things You Have To Know About Taiwanese Mandarin

What is the difference between Taiwanese Mandarin and Standard Mandarin? What language do they speak in Taiwan? Your questions are all answered here.

A note on VPNs

An important note distinguishing Taiwan and Mainland China is the use of VPNs. Traveling to China for any period of time you’ll want to get yourself a VPN, whether free or paid.

Taipei’s internet, however, does not require the use of a VPN to access some of your favourite sites such as Facebook and Netflix.

So, surf away!

Things to do in Taipei

Luckily for you, Taipei is packed with things to do!

Even better still… we have dedicated not one, but two posts towards things to do in Taipei!

Our first post is about the top things to do in Taipei – the things on the bucket list you have to do. These include:

• Visit the Taipei 101
• Head to the Addiction Aquatic Development
• Visit the incredible night Markets

Check out our post to see the rest.

Things to Do in Taipei (2024 Update) | The Complete Guide

This is a must-visit city. Taipei is incredibly relaxed, very friendly, and boasts some rather incredible food across the city.

Our next post is about the quirkier, fun things to do in Taipei that usually slip under the radar. These include:

• Going for a knife massage
• Have your fortune told by a bird
• Sitting on a giant waterlily

See how those lists differ. We didn’t even mention the poo-themed restaurant either!

Something for everyone in Taipei!

Moving to Taipei || FAQs

Want more from LTL?

If you wish to hear more from LTL Language School why not join our mailing list.

We give plenty of handy information on learning Chinese, useful apps to learn the language and everything going on at our LTL schools!

Sign up below and become part of our ever growing community!

BONUS | Want to study the local Taiwanese dialect known as Hokkien? We provide Hokkien classes in person and online.