New Taipei

As a geologically active country on the Pacific ring of fire, Taiwan has hundreds of hot springs. Whole towns have sprung up around some of the springs, populated with public baths and hot springs hotels.

As a Christmas treat I checked into a hot spring hotel in Jiaoxi. These hotels have private spas in each of the rooms, with the bathroom taking pride of place with full length windows overlooking the mountains. Wanting to make the most of this amazing hotel I spent most of my time chilling in the spa, with some local snacks, beer, and spirits.

Jiaoxi is also a nice town to explore, with a good night market selling delicious street food and even mulled wine! It ran alongside a stream fed by hot springs lit up with Christmas decorations which was quite effective at putting me in the Christmas spirit despite my better intentions. The hotel even had Charlotte Church on the telly at breakfast!

After a few days of pure relaxation I got back on the train and headed to Jifuen, an old mountain town that supposedly inspired the Studio Ghibli animated film Spirited Away. This makes the town very popular with tourists, and trying to navigate the famous old street was a nightmare as it was often packed with tour groups and day trippers. So after seeing this street once, which is mostly lined with souvenir shops anyway, I did everything I could to avoid it from then on! Luckily the town had many interesting and picturesque back streets which were fun to explore. Exploring the town felt a bit like snakes and ladders, if I came across a flight of stairs I took it to see where they took me, and the winding streets would often lead me back to where I started when I least expected it. It was also very wet when I was there, which meant that there was constantly heavy clouds covering the town, occasionally lifting slightly to give atmospheric views out over the mountain towards the sea.Read more