This guide is for Taipei visitors deciding whether the Maokong Gondola should be a quick one-way ride, a flexible tea-hills outing, or a view-focused cabin experience.
ByMomentBook Editorial·Published
This guide is for Taipei visitors deciding whether the Maokong Gondola should be a quick one-way ride, a flexible tea-hills outing, or a view-focused cabin experience. The useful decision is not simply “go or skip”; it is how to match the ticket, cabin type, operating day, and weather risk to the time you actually have.
The Maokong Gondola is operated as a recreational transit system, not as an always-running metro line. Official pages list fares and hours, but service can pause for wind, lightning, earthquakes, typhoon warnings, maintenance, and special announcements. If your Taipei schedule is tight, check the operating notice before buying a ticket and keep a second way down from Maokong in mind.
What to know first
The route links Taipei Zoo Station, Taipei Zoo South Station, Zhinan Temple Station, and Maokong Station, with two angle stations; the whole line is 4.03 km long.
From Taipei Zoo MRT Station, the official access route is a walk of about 350 m to the gondola's Taipei Zoo Station.
The operator's service rules put the Taipei Zoo-to-Maokong running time at 17-37 minutes, depending on operating speed. Tourism pages that say 20-30 minutes are useful only as a planning range.
Checked on 2026-06-10, a regular-cabin single-journey ticket is NT$180 and a regular-cabin one-day pass is NT$300. A crystal cabin costs an additional NT$50 per person per trip.
Stored-value cards such as EasyCard, iPASS, and iCASH can be used at the gates, but crystal-cabin surcharges, group tickets, and chartered cabins may still require station staff.
Standard hours are 09:00-21:00 on weekdays and 09:00-22:00 on holidays. Mondays are listed as maintenance days except national holidays and the first Monday of each month.
Service can temporarily stop for strong gusts, lightning on any route section, earthquakes above Scale 4, or land typhoon warnings that include Taipei.
White Maokong Gondola cabins crossing forested hills above Taipei
Source: Wikimedia Commons photo by momo, licensed under CC BY 2.0.
Decide between a single journey and a one-day pass
If you only want to ride up to Maokong, drink tea, and return by bus or taxi, the single-journey ticket is usually the cleanest choice. It is valid for one passenger and one journey on the day of activation, and the official ticket page says it is sold at ticket vending machines and information counters in all gondola stations. This works well when the gondola is the scenic way up rather than the whole activity.
The one-day pass makes sense when you plan to use the line as a flexible route, not just as one lift ride. If you want to ride up and down, stop at Zhinan Temple Station, or repeat the view section while the weather is clear, NT$300 is easier to justify than buying separate single journeys. The catch is operational: when passengers exit at Taipei Zoo Station, the ticket is returned, and anyone who needs to use it again must have staff stamp it for re-entry identification.
Discount tickets require caution for foreign visitors. The official pages mark discount tickets as limited to Taiwanese nationals, with eligibility including Taipei citizens, children aged 6-12, senior citizens aged 65 or above, certain Indigenous seniors registered in Taipei, disabled passengers, and one necessary companion when supporting documents are shown. Do not assume that a foreign senior, student, or child automatically receives the listed discount fare.
Stored-value cards are useful when you want to avoid a ticket-machine decision. EasyCard, iPASS, and iCASH can be tapped at the gate, which is convenient for a simple ride. They do not solve every decision, though. A group that wants to travel together, a family that wants a private cabin, or anyone specifically waiting for the crystal cabin should speak to station staff before entering the paid area.
Choose regular, crystal, or chartered cabin
The regular cabin is the least complicated option. The use regulations set capacity at eight passengers and a total weight limit of 640 kg. In crowded periods, staff may decide that cabin-sharing is necessary, so a small group should not plan around having the cabin to itself unless it buys the chartered option.
The crystal cabin, also called an Eyes of Maokong Gondola cabin, is for travelers who care about the glass-floor experience. It costs NT$50 more per person per trip on top of the ticket or pass, and the use regulations set capacity at five passengers and 400 kg. Choose it for the floor view, not because it is faster. Separate queues and peak-time demand can make the wait feel longer than the ride itself.
A chartered cabin is the practical answer when sharing a cabin would change the trip. The official ticket page prices it as an additional NT$600 per car per trip on top of the single-journey ticket or one-day pass. It can be worth considering for a nervous rider, a quiet family ride, a small filming plan, or a group that needs one cabin without unrelated passengers.
Groups need to plan by headcount and movement. Groups of 20 or more receive a 10% discount, and groups of 40 or more receive a 20% discount, but the discount is limited to one-day passes and passengers using group tickets must travel together. Once a group ticket is issued, refund flexibility is limited, so tour leaders should avoid splitting the group after purchase.
Time the ride around hours and weather
The published hours are only the starting point. The official hours page gives 09:00-21:00 for weekdays and 09:00-22:00 for holidays, then notes that festivals, special events, weather, and other circumstances can change operating hours. It also says the gondola is closed on Lunar New Year's Eve, which matters for travelers moving around the Lunar New Year period.
Monday needs a second look. The hours page says the gondola closes on Mondays for general maintenance except national holidays and the first Monday of every month. The operation-service stipulations say Monday maintenance can also be affected by special announcements. In practice, do not write “Monday open” or “Monday closed” into an itinerary without checking the current official notice that morning.
Weather rules are concrete enough to guide planning. Service can stop when gusts reach 16 m/sec for more than three seconds or exceed 18 m/sec, when lightning strikes any section of the route, when an earthquake exceeds Scale 4, or during land typhoon warnings that include Taipei, depending on actual conditions and school or work cancellation. The same mountain weather that creates dramatic views can also stop the line.
When service pauses, the rest of your day changes too. The official suspension page shows refund handling, passenger guidance, and shuttle-bus support during suspension, but it also says service resumes only after local conditions are assessed. If you are going up for dinner, sunset, or a late tea stop, keep a bus or taxi plan for the descent instead of assuming the gondola will be available at the exact time you want.
Use the Taipei Zoo route without over-planning
For most visitors, the simplest approach is to take the Wenhu Line to Taipei Zoo MRT Station and walk to the gondola's Taipei Zoo Station. The official traffic page gives the walk as about 350 m. Treat it as a short outdoor connection rather than an indoor transfer, especially with luggage, children, rain, or summer heat.
The passenger stations are Taipei Zoo, Taipei Zoo South, Zhinan Temple, and Maokong. The route bends through the hills in a shape roughly like the number 7, and the official route page lists 25 piers and 47 towers. You do not need to turn every station into a stop. The trip is easier if you choose one purpose: the zoo connection, a temple stop, or a tea stop at Maokong.
If you combine the gondola with Taipei Zoo, decide the order before you arrive. Families often find a zoo-first, gondola-afterward sequence easier, but heat and afternoon showers can change that. Travelers going mainly for tea and views may prefer a late-afternoon ascent, then a planned descent before the last part of the evening becomes dependent on weather.
Driving is possible but less predictable for short-stay travelers. The official traffic page points drivers to parking near Taipei Zoo Station, including the MRT Taipei Zoo Station underground lot, Taipei Zoo riverbank parking, and Muzha Depot parking on holidays. On busy weekends, parking can become the schedule bottleneck, so MRT access is usually the more reliable plan.
Rules that can change who should ride
Visitors with strollers, pushchairs, wheelchairs, or electric wheelchairs need to allow time for staff instructions. The regulations say these items must be kept immobile inside cabins and must not exceed 140 cm x 70 cm x 170 cm. The system has accessible facilities, but boarding and exiting can take longer when cabins are crowded or staff need to position mobility equipment safely.
Pets are allowed only under container rules. Animals must be in pet boxes, small cages, or small containers, with no head, tail, or limbs exposed. Each ticketed passenger may bring one container, and the main body of the container must not exceed 43 cm x 32 cm x 33 cm, excluding wheels, handles, or supports. Police dogs, certified guide dogs for visually impaired passengers, and guide-dog puppies in training are treated as exceptions.
Health can be a real planning factor. The regulations advise passengers with cardiovascular disease, hypertension, acrophobia, or physical discomfort to evaluate their condition before riding. The gondola moves high over terrain and cannot be exited between stations. For a nervous traveler, a regular or chartered cabin may be a better choice than a crystal cabin.
Behavior and baggage rules are part of the trip. Standing, jumping, rocking cabins, forcing entry, or interfering with passengers is prohibited. Hazardous and inflammable items can be refused or inspected. Think of the gondola as a public transport system with scenic value, not as a moving photo platform where safety instructions are optional.
Common mistakes
The first mistake is using old fare tables. Some older travel notes describe station-based fares, but the current English ticket pages list a regular single journey at NT$180, a one-day pass at NT$300, and a crystal-cabin upgrade at NT$50 per person per trip. Use current official pages rather than reviews when money or ticket choice affects the day.
The second mistake is treating Monday as a simple rule. Monday maintenance is the baseline, but national holidays, the first Monday of the month, and special announcements all matter. Write “check official notice” into the itinerary instead of building a Taipei day around a fixed Monday assumption.
The third mistake is assuming the crystal cabin costs only money. The surcharge is clear; the time cost is not. Separate queues, crowding, sunset demand, and weather pauses can make the crystal cabin a poor fit for a tight schedule. If the main goal is Maokong tea, regular cabin may protect the rest of the afternoon.
The fourth mistake is forgetting the descent. A weather pause after you reach Maokong can affect dinner bookings, airport transfers, or evening plans back in central Taipei. If another commitment follows the ride, visit earlier or keep the Maokong stop shorter.
Final checks before you go
On the day of travel, start with the official homepage and any operation bulletin. Check whether your date is a Monday, a national holiday, the first Monday of the month, Lunar New Year's Eve, a festival period, or a day with special-event hours. That one check prevents most avoidable wasted trips.
Then match the ticket to the actual ride pattern. Use a single journey for one direction, a one-day pass for repeated riding or mid-route stops, a crystal upgrade for the glass-floor experience, and a chartered cabin when sharing would make the trip worse. If you plan to tap in with EasyCard, iPASS, or iCASH, still ask staff before entering if you need a special cabin or group arrangement.
Finally, check weather and physical comfort together. Strong wind, lightning, earthquakes, and typhoon warnings can stop the system, while acrophobia or poor health can make a technically operating ride feel wrong. Maokong works best when the gondola, the tea-hills plan, and the return route all have a little margin.
