Taipei is an easy city with children. The MRT is simple and free for under-6s, and the big family sights are cheap. The short version:
- Ride the MRT. Children under 6, or under 115 cm, travel free with a paying adult.
- Go to the zoo. Taipei Zoo is NT$100 for adults and free for under-6s, and the Maokong Gondola starts next door.
- Spend a day in Shilin. The Children's Amusement Park, the national science center and the astronomy museum are neighbors on the same bus route.
- Avoid Mondays for sightseeing. The science and astronomy museums close (outside holidays), and so does the gondola.
Getting around with kids
- Fares. Children under 6 (valid ID needed if taller than 115 cm), or under 115 cm, ride the Taipei Metro free with a paying passenger, up to four children per adult. Visiting children aged 6 and over pay the adult fare: the child discounts are tied to Taipei and New Taipei children's cards.
- Strollers. You can take a stroller on the MRT; the luggage size limits don't apply to them. Take the elevator rather than the escalator.
- Elevators and priority seats. Taipei Metro asks passengers to give way at the elevators and give their seats to people with disabilities, older and pregnant passengers, and passengers with young children, including anyone with a "baby on board" badge.
- Family Areas. 140 of the high-capacity trains have a Family Area in the car, and the Metro runs brightly painted family-themed trains, recently on the Blue (Bannan) Line.
- No food or drink past the gates or on trains, not even water. The fine is NT$1,500 to NT$7,500, so give the kids their snack before you tap in.
→ The MRT: fares, rules and how to ride · The EasyCard
Taipei Zoo
The big one. Taipei Zoo (臺北市立動物園) costs NT$100 for adults, NT$50 for children 6 to 11 and is free under 6. It has a Giant Panda House, Koala and Penguin houses, a Children's Zoo and a NT$5 shuttle train up the hill, and it rents strollers. Open 09:00 to 17:00 (last entry 16:00). MRT: Taipei Zoo Station (Brown Line, BR01).
A day in Shilin: rides, science and stars
Three family sights sit close together in Shilin, all reached by bus Red 30 (紅30) from Jiantan Station (Red Line, R15) or Shilin Station (Red Line, R16). The science center's bus stop is a four-minute walk from the amusement park. A joint ticket for two or three of them (the Taipei Science and Art Park ticket) is also sold.
Taipei Children's Amusement Park
The Taipei Children's Amusement Park (臺北市立兒童新樂園) is a small city-run theme park with a Ferris wheel, teacups, bumper cars and other gentle rides. You pay a small entry fee and then per ride, or buy a day pass.
- Hours Outside school vacations: Tuesday to Friday 09:00 to 17:00, weekends and national holidays 09:00 to 18:00, closed Mondays. Winter and summer vacations and long holiday weekends: daily 09:00 to 20:00 (the last day of a long weekend to 18:00). Closed Lunar New Year's Eve
- Entry NT$30; NT$15 for children 7 to 11 and students (foreign students with an ISIC card); free 6 and under
- Rides NT$20 or NT$30 a ride; One-Day Fun Pass NT$200 with entry and unlimited rides on the 13 big rides (suggested for children 100 cm and taller). Under-2s and children under 85 cm ride free with a paying adult
- MRT Jiantan Station (Red Line, R15) exit 3 or Shilin Station (Red Line, R16) exit 1, then bus Red 30
National Taiwan Science Education Center
The National Taiwan Science Education Center (國立臺灣科學教育館, NTSEC) has four floors of permanent exhibitions, from physics, chemistry and math to the human body and semiconductors, plus a big-screen theater, the immersive Black Box theater and the Air Bicycle ride. It lends strollers and wheelchairs free of charge and has a breastfeeding room.
- Hours Tuesday to Friday 09:00 to 17:00 (tickets until 16:00); weekends, national holidays and school vacations 09:00 to 18:00 (tickets until 17:00). Closed Mondays, except national holidays and school vacations
- Entry Permanent exhibitions NT$120; students NT$90; free 6 and under. Air Bicycle NT$80 extra (riders must be taller than 127 cm); theaters NT$150
- MRT Shilin Station (Red Line, R16) exit 1, then bus Red 30, Red 12 or 557; or Jiantan Station (R15) exit 3, then bus Red 30 or 41
Taipei Astronomical Museum
Nearby, the Taipei Astronomical Museum (臺北市立天文科學教育館) has an exhibition hall on space, a Dome Theater and a 3D Theater with family shows, the Cosmic Adventure ride, and an observatory where you can look through the telescope from 10:00 to 12:00 and 14:00 to 16:00 (and on Saturday evenings, 19:00 to 21:00).
- Hours Tuesday to Friday and Sunday 09:00 to 17:00; Saturday 09:00 to 20:00. Closed Mondays, unless the Monday is a national holiday
- Entry Exhibition hall NT$40; NT$20 for children 6 to 11 and students; free under 6. Dome or 3D Theater NT$100 (NT$50 under 12); Cosmic Adventure NT$70 (NT$35 under 12; children under 6 must ride with someone 12 or older)
- MRT Jiantan Station (Red Line, R15) or Shilin Station (R16), then bus Red 30 to the museum; or about a 20-minute walk
Parks and fresh air
Da'an Forest Park (大安森林公園) is about 26 hectares of trees, lawns and ponds in the middle of the city, with its own station, Da'an Park (Red Line, R06). It is free and the easiest place in town to let children run. → Da'an neighborhood guide
The Maokong Gondola (貓空纜車) is a ride kids love, up over the hills from the zoo to the tea farms. Children under 6 ride free with a paying adult, up to two per adult, and the glass-floored Crystal Cabins cost NT$50 more per person. It usually rests on Mondays. → Maokong Gondola guide
When it rains
Have an indoor plan for wet days. The Shilin science center and astronomy museum are made for wet days, and the zoo's indoor houses (pandas, koalas, penguins, reptiles and insects) are a fair rainy-day loop with the shuttle train. The National Palace Museum is free for anyone 17 and under. → A rainy day in Taipei · Taipei museums
Food with kids
Feeding children in Taipei is easy. Convenience stores (7-Eleven, FamilyMart, Hi-Life, OK Mart) are on almost every block, most open 24 hours, with water, snacks and cheap meals, so you are never far from a quick fix. Food courts in department stores and malls offer a wide choice under one roof. Carry a refillable bottle. Remember the MRT rule: eat before you go through the gates. → Food guide · Practical basics
Summer and holiday camps
Staying a few weeks, or living here? Taiwan's school holidays bring a full season of day camps for children: science, coding, sports, the arts and Mandarin. Camps.Asia, a verified list of kids' camps, covers camps in Taipei and camps in New Taipei, with ages, prices and the language each camp is taught in. Two that fit this page: the science center's school-holiday camps (NTSEC on Camps.Asia) and the zoo's children's classes (Taipei Zoo on Camps.Asia). Most are in Chinese, so check the language before you book.
Good to know: bring your child's passport. Free and child tickets at the zoo, the museums and on the MRT often need proof of age, and without ID you pay the full price.
Sources
MRT child fares, strollers and elevators from Taipei Metro's Regulations for Use of the Taipei Metro System (amended February 2026), Metro etiquette, Family Areas in cars and Metro tickets. Taipei Zoo from its ticket page and opening hours. Taipei Children's Amusement Park hours and fees and transport. National Taiwan Science Education Center opening hours, ticket prices, transport and English site. Taipei Astronomical Museum opening hours, tickets, transport and English site. Gondola fares from the Maokong Gondola. Da'an Forest Park from Taipei Travel. Checked October 2026.