Taipei has improved significantly during the last decade: more relaxed, more fun, more freedom. Public rapid transit makes getting around the city easier than ever. Yet while the excellent planning and maps of the train system transport you from here to there with ease, once you leave the station you're back in a tangle of English transliteration that doesn't match your map, their map, or the street signs. So visitors may end up cabbing from a station to their destination anyway. It's just easier. Have your hotel write down the address in Chinese, or show the cabby a business card you've picked up.

Happily, clusters of rainbow life are now growing so that a few neighborhoods have at least a handful of venues within walking distance. Most notably, the Ximen area around the heritage Red House entertainment complex is now a full-fledged gay hot spot.

Super popular with gays from neighboring Japan, Korea and China, Taiwan is fast becoming a gay holiday destination for many.

Taipei's population is nearing 3 million (that's close to 120,000 Utopians).

• Lesbian listings
• Men in Taipei message forum
• Taipei Gay Scene Updates message forum

  Navigating the local gay scene is easy with our interactive Utopia Map of Gay & Lesbian Taipei:

The updated and expanded 2nd Edition of the Utopia Guide to Taiwan offers a fresh insider's glimpse at the gay and lesbian scene in 12 cities including Taipei, Kaohsiung, Tainan and Taichung. Listings include organizations, bars, discos, accommodations, spas, restaurants, and more. A special section highlights venues that are especially welcoming for women. Enjoy savvy comments and recommendations from local Utopians and gay travelers. Click here to order

Click here for Taipei hotels and accommodations.

Click here for Taipei bars and clubs.

• Eslite (Dunhua store)
  2/F, 245 Dunhua S. Rd, Section 1, (near Jen-Ai Circle), 2775-5977. Flagship store of this upmarket book chain is open 24 hours every day, with a fairly well-stocked gay and lesbian section. MRT Nan-kang line, Zhong-xiao Tun-hua station.
• Eslite (Xin Yi store)
  No. 11 Song-Goa Rd, Xin Yi, 8789-3388. The biggest book store in Taiwan. Open daily 10am-2am.
• Eslite (NTU store)
  98 Xin-sheng South 3rd Rd, 2362-6312. MRT Hsintien line, KungKuan station.
• GinGin's
  1/F No. 8, Alley 8, Lane 210, Roosevelt Rd, Section 3 (close to Taipower Subway Station and 10-minutes from National Taiwan University), Utopia Map, 2364-2006, email. Next to the gay Hours café and across from Love Boat lesbian shop. Gay and lesbian book shop with pride goods, DVDs, gifts, and gay magazines from the region. They welcome visitors from all over the world. Open daily from 11am-10pm. Friendly staff, some English spoken.

Click here for Taipei discos.

Click here for Taipei karaoke.

Click here for Taipei massage for men.

• 228 Park (formerly called New Park)
  Utopia Map. Evenings. Infamous setting of Taiwan's first gay novel, Crystal Boys, which was also made into the feature film, The Outsiders. Although the Internet has largely replaced parks as a method for social contacts, cruising still takes place in the evening all around, but mostly near the pagoda pond. The park is now open all night long.
• Eslite Bookshop, Dunhua store (see under Bookshops). Quite cruisy with Asian tourists (Japan, Korea, Hong Kong, Singapore) after midnight.
• Sha Lun Beach
  Tamshui, MRT Tamshui Line, Tamshui station. Then take a local bus to towards fisherman's wharf. Get off at the stop called Observatory Deck (one stop before the wharf). You will see a wooden deck facing the ocean. Cross through the hole in the wirte fence and you are in the cruisy woods. A fabled gay beach in Taiwan, but conflicting reports about whether it's still popular or not. Some nude sunbathing. Best on sunny days. Cruising takes place in the shrubs (the water is polluted) and many comments about how trashy the place has become. Not easily reached, so hopefully you'll meet a friend to guide you there.
• Youth Park swimming pool
  Shuiyuan Rd. Open May through Sept. Closed Mon. Very popular in summer. Go to the outdoor pool with the 3m depth lane. This is where local guys like to hit the catwalk in their new Speedos. No longer as popular following the close of the sunbathing area. On sunny days the outdoor pool is reported to become like a "gay resort." Check out the shower room and facilities. Wear your sexiest swimwear.
• Yuchen Park swimming pool
  55 Zhongpo South Rd, 2726-7381. Open May through Sept. Cruisy, but not as popular as the pool above.

XIMEN -- Red House

• O.S. (western and local food)
  Utopia Map, 2371-0360. The name stands for "Omelette and Spaghetti". This small, homey restaurant serves a local version of comfort food. Friendly and popular with gays, especially bears (perhaps attracted by the couple who run it).
• Taoyuan Street (dumplings and noodles)
  Utopia Map. Two blocks directly east of the Exit 1 MRT Ximen Station. This one block stretch of side-by-side shophouses offers a huge variety of hand made dumplings and noodles. Particularly famous are the beef noodle bowls, but there are also plenty of vegetarian treats.
• Trendy's Restaurant (shabu-shabu and sukiyaki)
  2F No.114-4, Sec. 2, Wuchang St (above the 7-11), 2314-6969, Utopia Map. Gay-owned and staffed restaurant opened by the owners of So Young Men Spa, two floors above. Vibrant, contemporary Asian design and excellent service from the hunky waiters! Order whatever hot pot ingredients you'd like and mix your own dipping sauce from more than a dozen savory and spicy items on their sauce buffet. A fun place to head with a group of friends or to book for your next birthday or special event. Walkable from Red House or nearby MRT stations. Utopia Member Discount

  
  OTHER AREAS

• Hours
  Right next door to GinGin's gay shop and across from Love Boat, Utopia Map, 2364-2742. This very popular gay café is run by a young gay couple. They also have a selection of music and books. Open 2pm-11pm daily except Tue.
• Shintori (Asian and Japanese)
  68 An He Rd, Sec. 2, Utopia Map, 2702-5588. Start with this main branch (the other six branches have different themes). Descend the Tadao Ando-like cement and bamboo Zen stairway and confront enigmatic iron doors with no handles. Hint: stick your hand in the Japanese stone lantern. Go ahead, ignore the frazzled wires, or you'll stand here until someone else comes along. Ah...the doors slide as if on Astroglide. Very James Bond (or Get Smart, perhaps?). Rock fountain burbles in an empty void. Cocktails shimmer in pin spots. Cold sake arrives on crushed ice in an aluminum petal. Select your favorite sake glass from a tray (perfectly Kyoto, ne?). Staff wear their red sashes low on the butt. Time to eat. Alas, Chinese flavors have colonized the Zen grub. Never mind: wall of lilies, wall of roses, wall of video. Gonnnnngggg.

  Tu Hsiao Yueh (southern Taiwan cuisine) No. 12, Alley 8, Lane 216, Sec 4, Jhongsiao E. Rd, Utopia Map, 2773-1244. There is a rags-to-riches story behind the success of Tainan's oldest restaurant, of which this is the capitol city's main branch. Conjurers of tan tsai noodles, a fragrant pork stew ladled out of a wasp-nesty-encrusted cauldren that looks like its been in continuous use since Yu Tou started dispensing his dish to fellow fisherman in 1895. Combined with fresh noodles, shrimp and a stew-infused, hard-boiled duck egg, the taste is complex and surprisingly mild, once spooned into your mouth, given the aromatic 5-spice watusi going on in your nose. Side dishes include stir-fried Ping-tong Areca flower and betel nut heart stir-fry; plump, juicy fried oysters dipped in spiced salt; and crispy intestine.

Click here for Taipei saunas for men.

XIMEN -- Red House
• Body Formula
  Red House, Utopia Map. Undergear shop.
• Forbidden Homme
  Red House, Utopia Map. Undergear shop.

  
  OTHER AREAS

• Sun Studio
  Well known gay-friendly tanning salon, established in 1992. Six convenient locations (see their website). Try their 7-minute stand-up tan booths. Handsome, polite staff and professional service.