360° Views of Taipei at Muzhi Mountain Peak

Hiking in Taipei has fast become one of our favourite activities, and just when we think we’ve found our favourite, we’re made to eat our words. The Four Beast Hiking Trails in Xinyi are home to some really great ones, with views that just keep getting better and better. Our newest discovery along this circuit is the Muzhi Mountain trail, which starts (on one side) in a quiet area in Xinyi. We hadn’t heard much about this hike — certainly not compared to the others nearby — so we were very excited to check it out.

The most convenient way to get to the start of the hike (other than getting a taxi or Uber) will be to take the BL5 bus and then walk a couples of minutes. You can find all of this information on Google Maps. The bus ride is actually pretty nice, as it takes you to up to an area of Taipei that you probably haven’t been before, that has some neat houses and lots of trees. Head to the trail head (it’s on our map down below), which looks like this:

The beginning of this hike is awesome. It’s less manicured and way less popular than most of the other hikes we’ve done, so chances are you’ll be the only person there, wandering through crumbling paths in the Taiwanese jungle. It was epic. As usual, there were quite a few sets of stairs, but they weren’t very steep.

After a while, you will come to a rest area. Keep walking until you see a small path that veers off to the left, as there is a nice lookout point here.

Ta-da! Beautiful. Don’t stress if you miss it, as this is just one view of many to come. Once you’re done taking photos (be careful, it’s easy to slip), just head back to the main path and continue along it.

This section of the hike is pretty easy, and just as nice.

If you’re over the hike at this stage, take the path to the left, which will lead you back to Taipei. If you’re ready for more views, take the path on the right-hand side.

After a while, you will come to another rest stop, where you should take the path that goes up the stairs. There are lots of cute squirrels in this area, so if you’re lucky you might see them.

Stay on the path until you see a pair of shabby, overgrown stairs leading up to your right. They will lead you to a rock that has ropes on it for you to grab hold of. Watch your footing here. We strongly recommend you do not do this part if it is slippery underfoot.

Once you have climbed up to the top, you will be at the peak of Muzhi Mountain. There is enough space up there for quite a few people, but the best views are where the man is standing in the photo below. There are several seats for you to sit in. The breeze up here is cool and refreshing (keep this in mind in colder months).

The best part of Muzhi Mountain peak is the 360° views of Taipei that it offers. It is absolutely breathtaking. We stayed up here for ages, marvelling at the fact that we could see all around us, taking photo after photo, video after video. Just see for yourself:

While some of the other Taipei hikes (like Elephant Mountain, Tiger Mountain, Fuzhoushan Park, Zhongushan Peak, and our favourite, Jiuwufeng) offer some beautifully framed photos of Taipei with Taipei 101 in the foreground, Muzhi Mountain peak has the most expansive. It is so cool to be able to see Taipei from this angle, and for that alone, this hike is completely worth doing.

From the peak, you have a choice: go back and take a road that will lead you down to the city, or continue along the path that you were on, which will lead you to Nangang Mountain and then onto Jiuwufeng Peak. If you have the energy to keep going, we suggest the latter: the views will continue to be amazing, and the Jiuwufeng hike is well maintained, has places to stop for water, and will eventually lead you towards Houshanpi Station on the blue line. You could also follow signs on the path to end up at Tiger Mountain.

We chose to continue onto Jiuwufeng, because that’s still our favourite hike in Taipei. The path is very well marked, so all you need to do is follow it. Keep your eyes on your left-hand side, as that’s where all the good views will be. They just keep coming!

We’re not going to go into much more detail about Jiuwufeng as we have written an entire post about it here, but check out the photo above for a sneak peak of what to expect. Whether you choose to extend your hike from Muzhi Mountain or not, this is an excellent, easy-to-follow trail with spectacular views. You can easily do it in an afternoon (we didn’t start until 3pm), and you don’t need to worry about what will happen if it gets dark while you’re walking, as the Jiuwufeng section of the hike is very well lit.

If you’re planning on doing the hike the other way around (the stairs are steeper if you start from the Jiuwufeng side, so you’ll get a better workout), we recommend you plan on finishing before it gets dark, as we didn’t see any lights on the Muzhi Mountain section of the hike. (If you do do it this way, continue down the stairs towards Nangang Mountain once you are at Jiuwufeng Peak. Then, just follow the signs.) Whatever you choose, this is a great trail with awesome views. Have fun!

What’s the vibe?

Breathtaking, 360° views of Taipei from Muzhi Mountain peak. The path is rather old and passes through thick vegetation, which is really fun and pretty. The path from Muzhi Mountain to Jiuwufeng and back down is much more popular and well maintained, but also offers great views.

Worth it?

Very much so! The hike was long, but relatively easy.

Would you go back?

We’ve already planned a date this week!

Last updated: September 2019