Banqiao

Banqiao (板橋區), also known by its historical spelling Panchiao and its alternative spelling Banciao, is a district and administrative capital of New Taipei, Taiwan.

Get in

By rail

Banqiao has a Taiwan High Speed Rail station and is on the blue line (Yongning side) of the MRT.

• 1 HSR Banciao Station (高鐵 板橋站), No. 7, Section 2, Xianmin Boulevard. The station connects the Taiwan High Speed Rail, TRA, and Taipei Metro systems. (updated Jun 2019)

The city is also on the Taiwanese Railway System, which is cheaper than the Taiwan High Speed Rail, but much slower.

By bus

• 2 Banqiao Bus Station (板橋公車站). (updated Jun 2019)

See

Arts & culture

• 1 Lin Family Mansion and Garden. One of the best examples of Qing-era Chinese architecture in Taiwan. It was built in 1888.  
• 2 Banqiao 435 Art Zone (板橋435藝文特區), No. 435, Zhongzheng Rd, ☏ +886 2 2969 0366. Daily 09:00-17:00. (updated Jun 2019)

Parks & nature

• 3 Xinhai Constructed Wetland (新海人工溼地), Section 4, Huanhe West Road. (updated Jun 2019)
• 4 Stone Sculpture Park (石雕公園), Lane 50, Wufeng Road. A park near the wetlands with a number of statues. (updated Jun 2019)
• 5 New Banqiao Central Park (新板萬坪都會公園), No. 1A, Xinfu Road, ☏ +886 2 2968 6911. (updated Jun 2019)
• 6 Lin Family Mansion and Garden (林本源園邸), No. 9號, Ximen Street, ☏ +886 2 2965 3061. Daily 09:00-17:00. Constructed in 1847, it is regarded to be Taiwan's most complete surviving example of traditional Chinese garden architecture. (updated Jun 2019)
• 7 Jiangzicui Scenic Riverside Park (江子翠景觀河濱公園), ☏ +886 2 8969 9596. (updated Jun 2019)

Temples

• 8 Cihui Mazu Temple (板橋慈惠宮), ☏ +886 2 2965 0014. (updated Jun 2019)
• 9 Jieyun Temple (板橋接雲寺), No. 69, Ximen Street, ☏ +886 2 2966 1403. (updated Jun 2019)
• 10 Shenqiu Fude Temple (福德宮). (updated Jun 2019)
• 11 Saint John's Church (板橋天主堂), No. 430, Bancheng Road, ☏ +886 2 2966 6446. (updated Jun 2019)

Museums

• 12 Taiwan Toy Museum (臺灣玩具博物館), No. 435, Zhongzheng Rd, ☏ +886 917 567 617. Daily 10:00-17:00. (updated Jun 2019)

Do

Sports

• 1 Banqiao Stadium (板橋體育場). A walkable distance from Banqiao station, the stadium has a seating capacity of 30,000. The stadium hosts a number of events (mostly football). (updated Jun 2019)

Buy

• 1 Banqiao Flower Market (板橋花市). Tu-Su 09:00-17:00. A long market selling plants and gardening ware which is located under an elevated roadway. (updated Jun 2019)

Eat

• Andy Cuisine Restaurant (泰味廚房), Huaxing Street No. 58. This is the main restaurant but they have other branches at the Xinpu MRT stop and Jiangzicui MRT stop. Food is out of this world. Curries, Bbq'd chicken/pork, salads are good. Spicy though, just ask for "xiao la" (pronounced "shaow la") if you would like it not as hot. It's off two MRT stops on the Yongning-Nangang MRT station just minutes from downtown Taibei. (updated Jan 2024)

Night markets

• 1 Nanya Night Market (南雅夜市). Daily 15:00-01:00. (updated Jun 2019)

Drink

• 1 G+9, No. 232, Guoguang Road, ☏ +886 2 2965 1900. 09:30-23:00. Fried chicken, ribs, and craft beer. (updated Jun 2019)

Sleep

Although Banqiao is one of the most urbanized areas in New Taipei City, it is still a small town. There are no major chain hotels and it would be easier to find a hotel and stay in Taipei and visit Banqiao for a couple of hours as it only takes a few minutes to go from downtown Taipei to Banqiao. There are, however, some small hotels that are relatively unknown to foreigners. The prices are often lower in these hotels.

• UZ Hostel (原宿時空膠囊旅館), B1, No. 22, Lane 50, Section 1, Zhongshan Rd., ☏ +886(02)6637-0603. Check-in: 15:00-00:99, check-out: 00:00-11:00. Easy access from Taipei Main Station by MRT (Blue Line), less than 5 min walk from MRT Fuzong Station, 24-hour front desk, within 10-min walk from Banqiao Station, the Lin Family Mansion and Garden, Nanya Night Market, and 3 supermarkets.
  
  It’s a capsule hotel-style hostel in the basement floor of a multi-tenant building. Separate male and female dorm rooms, and 2 mixed capsule dorm rooms. All showers and toilets are in the separate male or female sections. Capsule door can be locked with a card key. There’s a TV and a small table inside of each capsule. They have the futuristic space-themed capsules. N$599-1,400. (updated Oct 2019)