The Taipei Botanical Garden was laid out by the Japanese forestry administration in 1921 and remains a research garden with more than a thousand plant species arranged in themed sections — a fern house, a bamboo grove, beds keyed to classical Chinese poetry. Its best-loved feature is the large lotus pond, which draws photographers in June and July when the flowers are at their peak.
Inside the grounds stands the Qinchai Xingtai, a rare surviving Qing-dynasty government guesthouse. The garden is free, shady and a calm retreat between Wanhua and the museum quarter; the National Museum of History sits on its eastern edge.