Taiwan, Taipei - Weekend Flower Market

Taipei is full of pleasant surprises. One of these has to be the Weekend Flower Market known locally as the Jianguo Holiday Flower Market (directly translated from mandarin). 

Orchids, Jianguo Holiday Flower Market, Taipei, Taiwan (2016)

Opening Hours

This market is only open on Saturdays and Sundays and is located beneath the Jian Guo flyover at Xinyi Road. Also located at opposite ends of the Flower Market are the Weekend Jade Market and Weekend Artists Market.

Operating hours for the Flower Market are usually between 9am to 5pm although the closing hours can sometimes extend by about an hour due to the stall owners having to pack up their stuffs after a busy business day.

Apart from its opening hours over the weekends, this area usually serves as parking lots as evident by the parking gantries and the road markings on the ground.

Jianguo Holiday Flower Market, Taipei, Taiwan (2016)

Local family shopping for flowers and plants, Jianguo Holiday Flower Market, Taipei, Taiwan (2016)

Getting There

Finding your way to the Jianguo Holiday Flower Market is extremely easy and convenient. Take the MRT (a.k.a. subway, metro etc.) to the Daan Park Station (red line). Alight at this station and head for Exit 6. There are signs both in Mandarin and English throughout the MRT Station. Upon exiting the MRT Station, turn left and walk straight. You will reach a traffic junction and see a flyover at the traffic intersection. The Flower Market is just beneath the flyover. Wait for the traffic lights to be in your favour, cross the road and turn left. You have arrived at your destination!

What To Expect

As the name suggests, this is a flower market and you can find lots and lots of flowers and plants here. These include many varieties of Orchids, aquatic plants such as Water Hyacinths and Water Lettuces as well as many other flowers of various species and sub-species. Cactuses and succulents can also be found here.

Spider Orchids, Jianguo Holiday Flower Market, Taipei, Taiwan (2016)

Water Hyacinths, Jianguo Holiday Flower Market, Taipei, Taiwan (2016)

Aquatic plants, Jianguo Holiday Flower Market, Taipei, Taiwan (2016)

Succulents for sale, Jianguo Holiday Flower Market, Taipei, Taiwan (2016)

Succulents for sale, Jianguo Holiday Flower Market, Taipei, Taiwan (2016)

Beautifully decorated pots of cactuses, Jianguo Holiday Flower Market, Taipei, Taiwan (2016)

Buyers and seller, Jianguo Holiday Flower Market, Taipei, Taiwan (2016)

A stallholder in-between sales, Jianguo Holiday Flower Market, Taipei, Taiwan (2016)

Dizzying array of flowers for sale, Jianguo Holiday Flower Market, Taipei, Taiwan (2016)

Besides flowers, other items on sale here include flower arrangement and garden accessories, fertilisers, seeds and ornaments for your floral displays and gardens.

Items that add splashes of colours to your gardens, Jianguo Holiday Flower Market, Taipei, Taiwan (2016)

Ornaments for the aquarium, Jianguo Holiday Flower Market, Taipei, Taiwan (2016)

Even if you are not here to shop for flowers, you can still spend a good few hours marvelling at the huge assortment of flowers and plants on display. And the most important aspect of visiting any new cities or places is that you get to mingle with the locals and observe the way they shop and spend their weekends. :-)

With the amount of items available here, you may even be able to find some cool gardening ornaments as souvenirs for yourself, family and friends back home.

These little stuffs are cute, affordable and perfect as souvenirs and gifts, Jianguo Holiday Flower Market, Taipei, Taiwan (2016)

Ornaments for floral arrangements on display, Jianguo Holiday Flower Market, Taipei, Taiwan (2016)

These items can be used both as ornaments for the home, office or garden, Jianguo Holiday Flower Market, Taipei, Taiwan (2016)

For me, visiting this market for the first time and on only my second visit to Taipei has been a wonderful experience. I had come with the intention just to see and enjoy the weekend market atmosphere. But I ended up buying ornaments for my apartment including clay sculptures of a Corgi, two Piglets and many beautifully crafted porcelain pieces of fishes and tortoises. Some of these will certainly serve as cool souvenirs for folks back home.

Beautifully crafted porcelain animals, Jianguo Holiday Flower Market, Taipei, Taiwan (2016)

Souvenirs for folks back home, Jianguo Holiday Flower Market, Taipei, Taiwan (2016)

Advices and Tips

Before you buy any flowers or plants here, tourists are advised to check whether your respective countries allow the import of fresh flowers and/or plants. Different countries have different policies with regards to the importing of fresh flowers and plants even if it is only a bunch of flowers or a single plant. It is better to check to ensure you are allowed to bring these items home rather than to get into trouble with your respective Immigration and Customs Authorities. You certainly do not wish to end your holidays on a low by getting into some trouble (however minor they may be) with the relevant Authorities in your respective home countries.

All transactions at this market are in cash only. If you intend to make some purchases here, be prepared to have some local currencies with you.

Do note that some stall holders are particular about tourists snapping photos of their products and stalls. For stalls where the owners had put up notices of "No Photography", please respect their wishes and refrain from taking those snapshots for your Instagram moments.