TAIPEI | Excellent Stay at Ximen Corner Hostel

Overcast turned to drizzles when I jumped out of the airport bus at KuoKuang bus station. Making my way to my hostel on foot was the original plan. But rain required me to take the subway to Ximen Station. Drizzles continued to a light rain but luckily, Ximen Corner Hostel is just a 3-minute walk from the station.

Check-in time is too late for my arrival and since the bed was still occupied, I waited for 3PM. With this, I went directly to the hostel’s common lounge. What I did next was to sleep on the comfy couches and catch few minutes of sleep.

The lounge turned into a napping area for a traveler who had no nice sleep for the past 24 hours. The rain outside added a lazy mood and tried to convince me to stay indoors. It was late for me to notice that there are three arcade machines on the rear side of the lounge. The hostel offers a one-time free game on the arcade, all you need to do is check-in on the hostel using Facebook and leave a comment. Head to the front-desk to claim your free coin.

Chinese shows kept on playing on the television while I argue with my shutting eyes. Noticeable on one corner of the lounge is a cabinet full of signed photos of Marvel movies characters. Not sure if they’re up for sale because each item has a price tag on it.

My friends were scheduled to arrive midnight from the airport. We booked two double beds in a mixed dorm room. Actually it was my first time to stay in a hostel with bunks not only for single beds, but for double beds instead. For solo travelers, don’t fret because they also have single beds still on shared dormitories.

Double beds on mixed dorm have two pillows and a thick duvet. To maintain privacy, every bunk has curtains you can use to shade from the brimming room light. Since it’s a shared room and the management still wants to make your rest an undisturbed one, they offer free earplugs. In addition, each bed is provided with an ample space of locker with key. Two to three clothes hanger are also available.

Rooms, whether its dorm, have it’s en-suite toilet and bathroom. Quite good because you’re not sharing facility with everyone in the hostel. Don’t expect for bidets but expect for hot and cold shower. Towels and toiletries are not part of the package but if you forgot to bring one, visit the front desk for 50NTD towel rentals and toiletries for 10NTD each.

The reservation includes a light breakfast of bread, some spreads like peanut butter, herbed butter, and fruit jams. Free coffee and tea come with the breakfast. Water is free and you can just refill your water bottles before heading out to the streets. For midnight cravings of cup noodles, the vending machine also dispenses hot water.

Additional conveniences during our stay at Ximen Corner Hostel are free WiFi connection, luggage storage before/after check in/out, laundry, and hairdryer. The hostel also offers airport services for only 300NTD per way.

What I liked about the most on our stay was the very helpful hostel staff. In terms of navigating Taipei and going to its northern coast, the front-desk were very responsive to our questions. They even booked us a reservation for Starbucks at Taipei 101. We had no issues talking to them because they can speak English fluently. It also good to mention that the front-desk is open 24 hours.

We picked Ximen Corner Hostel for our first two nights in Taipei simply because the accommodation is near Ximending Shopping Center. Through an access road, the hostel is just three cartwheels from the hippie scene of Ximending. If Ximending attracts your inner motives of shopping for cheap apparels, eating some Taiwan’s must street-food, and vibrant scene, Ximen Corner Hostel perfectly fits your criteria.

XIMEN CORNER HOSTEL

No. 10, Lane 27, Chengdu Road, Wanhua District
Taipei City, Taiwan
Email: ximencorner@gmail.com
Contact No.: 02-2361-2061

Disclosure: Thanks to Ximen Corner Hostel for accommodating us on our stay in Taipei. All opinions stated on this post are my own.