Many photographers come to Asia hoping to capture neon lights under a rainy sky, but finding this in Taipei is not as easy as places like Hong Kong. That's why I'm pointed you to a few of the best spots.
Dragon Restaurant
This place is located in the heart of the Red Light District in Taipei. There's a lot of small alleys and interesting people to shoot here. Even without the neon sign this place is worth checking out and wandering around. Just don't get too distracted...
📍 Address: No. 18之1號, Lane 105, Section 1, Zhongshan North Road, Zhongshan District, Taipei City, 10491
Xiang Lai Hotel, Danshui
I think this might be another mini red light district because there were a few shady looking places here. But the signs you see in this image are pretty good shooting material. There's also a glasses store right around the corner with a pretty big neon sign.
📍 Address: No. 22號, Lane 129, Zhongshan Road, Tamsui District, New Taipei City, 251
HongFan Seafood Bar/Restaurant
I've struggled to capture anything good from this place on my DSLR. So I came here and just shot with my phone for this article. The light here are really nice and there's tons of pedestrians/smokers which will allow for some good street shots.
📍 Address: No. 103, Section 1, Zhongcheng Road, Shilin District, Taipei City, 111
LED Street
The stores here are full of LED lights, Chinese lanterns, and other decorations that make for great backdrops. The photos in this post are all from one store because my photos from the others didn't turn out that well, but trust me when I say you'll have a good time shooting on this street.
📍 Address: No. 91號, Chang'an West Road, Datong District, Taipei City, 103
ZhongShan Spa
This is a famous brothel (allegedly) and spa run by the mafia (allegedly). The neon here is pretty beautiful and the reflections of it off all the S-Classes parked outside provide great shooting potential. The guard outside will look at you a little weird for shooting there but they're nice.
Shop Next To Wave Night Club
Who knows how long this shop will be around for. By the time you read this it could be gone because businesses in this area come and go with some frequency. This would be an amazing spot for some portraits or candid photos of people waiting in line for the club.
📍 Address: 7f, No. 12號, Songshou Road, Xinyi District, Taipei City, 110
City Chill Brunch Bar
This sign is located right in the heart of the Ximen Street Art Area with lots of clothing shops and rich kids' passion project shops. This street overall is an awesome spot for all kinds of photography.
📍 Address: 108, Taipei City, Wanhua District, Lane 96, Kunming Street, 22號1樓
Warm Life Hotel
I drive past this place quite frequently but for the life of me can't seem to get a good photo here. Perhaps its because of my setup. I don't have a telephoto lens and the neon here is pretty high up.
There's not really much else around here good for shooting so I wouldn't really recommend coming here just for this one sign, but I had to include it because I know there's potential somewhere for a good shot here.
📍 Address: No. 380號, Section 7, Chengde Road, Beitou District
Church Near Guting Station
This is an easy grab as it's within walking distance of Guting MRT Station. The only problem is that capturing the sign requires standing in the middle of a busy road. So be careful.
📍 Address: No. 95, Section 2, Hangzhou South Road, Da’an District, 106
Hai Pa Wang Restaurant
This is the only neon sign I've found in Taipei that resembles much of what you see in Hong Kong. Signs like these are becoming more and more rare as people switch to LED.
📍 Address: No. 287號, Chang'an West Road, Datong District, Taipei City, 103