Dates are flexible. This day-by-day plan is provisional until you choose exact travel dates.
Your day begins with CI 054, the overnight flight from Brisbane to Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport, scheduled to arrive around 5:50am. After landing, allow roughly 2–3 hours for immigration, baggage collection, possible quarantine or customs queues, and reaching the public transport area. The Airport MRT is the easiest option: the express train to Taipei Main Station takes about 35 minutes, but budget around an hour door-to-door once you include walking, ticketing, and luggage. Use the station’s lockers or arrange an early bag drop at your hotel; avoid committing to an early check-in.
Take the MRT from Taipei Main Station to Longshan Temple for a gentle first look at Taipei. Spend about 45 minutes observing the incense-filled courtyards and local worshippers, keeping your voice low and avoiding photography during rituals. The temple is generally open from early morning into the evening, with no admission fee. From there, walk a few minutes to Bopiliao Historical Block, where red-brick arcades and preserved Qing-era façades make for an atmospheric 45-minute wander. Galleries and interpretation spaces commonly open late morning and may close on a recurring weekly day, so treat interior access as a bonus rather than a guarantee.
Return by MRT or walk toward Taipei Main Station for lunch at the station food court, or choose a nearby casual noodle shop such as Lao Shandong Homemade Noodles; allow NT$200–500 per person. After lunch, head back toward Ximending Walking District for about 1½ hours of easy browsing through pedestrian streets, independent shops, arcades, and snack stalls. Try pepper buns or a small serving of Taiwanese fried chicken rather than turning this into a full food tour. Keep the afternoon deliberately light: after an overnight flight, return to your hotel by late afternoon, organise luggage, confirm the next morning’s airport transfer, and sleep early for the onward flight.
Leave your Taipei hotel around 6:00am for Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport, allowing about 3–4 hours door to door for the Airport MRT, check-in, security, immigration, and the scheduled CI 100 flight. Keep your passport and onward booking accessible, and check the airline’s current baggage and terminal instructions before leaving; the airport MRT is generally the most predictable option at this hour. After landing at Narita International Airport around 1:30pm, allow at least 60–90 minutes for immigration, baggage collection, and ticketing before continuing into the city.
For a Ueno-based hotel, the Keisei Skyliner is the quickest practical choice, taking about 40 minutes to Keisei-Ueno and costing roughly ¥2,580; for Tokyo Station or areas along the JR network, use the Narita Express, about 55–65 minutes and approximately ¥3,250. Once luggage is dropped at your hotel, head to Ameyoko Shopping Street for an easy first taste of Tokyo: the busy market lanes around Ueno are good for grilled snacks, fruit, sweets, and casual browsing. Set aside about an hour, and expect many smaller stalls to close by early evening.
From Ueno, take the Tokyo Metro Ginza Line to Asakusa—roughly 10 minutes, plus walking—and continue to Senso-ji. Enter through Kaminarimon and spend about an hour around the temple grounds, where the atmosphere becomes especially pleasant as daylight fades. Browse Nakamise-dori afterward for rice crackers, traditional sweets, folding fans, and small souvenirs; shops have varying hours, commonly closing around 5:00–6:00pm, while the temple precinct itself remains accessible later. The temple grounds are free, but keep some cash for small purchases and note that this is a very popular area, so stay alert with luggage.
This is a very full arrival day, so avoid adding another distant attraction. If your onward flight to Brisbane is tonight, leave Asakusa or your hotel at least 3.5–4 hours before the confirmed international departure. From central Tokyo, choose the airport route based on your terminal and location: the Narita Express is convenient from Tokyo and Shinjuku, while the Keisei Skyliner is fastest from Ueno; allow extra time for walking through the station, purchasing tickets, and airport check-in. If the Brisbane flight is the following day, have dinner locally and keep the evening gentle—Tokyo station areas and airport rail services are much easier when you are not rushing with bags.
No packing list attached yet.