The Museum of Drinking Water
The Museum of Drinking Water is one of those random-sounding museums that could either be terrible or unexpectedly interesting. We have to admit that we laughed a little when we first heard of it, but upon reflection, we decided that drinking water is something we often take for granted, and could be fascinating to learn about. We went with high hopes that were promptly shattered.
The museum is housed in a pretty old building that used to be a pump room for Taipei’s first water treatment plant. It was built in 1908 in a Baroque style, and is easy on the eye, with some good angles to photograph. It’s actually a popular place for brides to take their pre-wedding photography.
You should enter the museum from the right — the storyboards are designed to be read from the right-hand side, and it’s a little confusing if you mess it up and do it from the left (speaking from experience).
There isn’t much to see inside, just a lot of cool, original equipment on display that you can walk around and examine up close. There’s also a brief history of water treatment in Taipei, told in the form of a children’s story. We won’t spoil the fun by telling you here, but if you’re really interested there’s some information on their website. The equipment is pretty neat and there were a few things we were interested to learn, but keep your expectations low.
The one really nice thing about the museum is that it’s very breezy inside, and usually pretty uncrowded. That counts for something!
The entire complex is home not only to this museum, but a series of water-related “attractions” such as a water park (for families), a recreational area, and an ecology hiking trail. Since we didn’t know about the other stuff, we missed out on it when we went. How disappointing.
What’s the vibe?
Small museum located inside a pretty old building. The inside is cool and breezy, with lots of old machinery. Most information and all multimedia is in Chinese, but there are some English signs too.
Worth it?
Not really. Entry is NT$50 (NT$80 during July and August) and overall it’s pretty small and uninteresting. There are better museums out there for free!
Would you go back?
Not even once.
Visited June 2018.
| Museum of Drinking Water |
| Chinese Name: 臺北水道水源地 |
| Hours: September - June 9am - 6pm, July - August 9am - 10pm. Closed Mondays. |
| Phone: 02 8369 5104 |
| English Address: No. 1, Siyuan St, Zhongzheng District, Taipei City, 100 |
| Chinese Address: 100台北市中正區思源街1號 |
