Help! 10 Days in Taiwan!

[shawniiex]

Hello everyone!
Going on a 10 days trip in December! Really need some advice on how to spend the time there! Need to book hotels ASAP le

Day 1: 12pm landing -> Train to Hualien -> Check in -> Walk around
Day 2: Hiring Driver to Hehuashan -> Taroko Gorge -> Hualien
Day 3: Hualien -> Qingjing Farm -> Lavender Cottage -> Taichung check in -> Fengjia Night Market
Day 4: Not sure what else to do in Taichung, or just take TSR up to Taipei
Day 5: Taipei 101 ->Wufenpu -> Raohe Night Market
Day 6: Danshui 淡水區 -> Shilin Night Market
Day 7: Yangmingshan -> Ximending
Day 8: Hiring driver to Jiufen old street -> Houtong Cat Village awhile
-> Shifen old street ->Shifen night lantern -> Shifen waterfall
Day 9: not sure what to do, maybe a theme park?
Day 10: Shopping for 太阳饼 and other local goods around Taipei area -> Train to airport 8pm flight.

Okay! So i kinda got two days to fill up. Plus i'm not sure if the other days are... light/heavy enough, heavy in a sense will my day be properly spent.

Going with my dad and sister and gf, think dad wanna go countryside more because mom really wanted to go such places but she passed on last year.

Any suggestions or alterations to the plan is definitely welcome!

Also, don't know if we should just drive to Jiufen area ourselves, would be quite fun driving there as well.

 

[Andrew833]

Hello everyone!
Going on a 10 days trip in December! Really need some advice on how to spend the time there! Need to book hotels ASAP le

Day 1: 12pm landing -> Train to Hualien -> Check in -> Walk around
Day 2: Hiring Driver to Hehuashan -> Taroko Gorge -> Hualien
Day 3: Hualien -> Qingjing Farm -> Lavender Cottage -> Taichung check in -> Fengjia Night Market
Day 4: Not sure what else to do in Taichung, or just take TSR up to Taipei
Day 5: Taipei 101 ->Wufenpu -> Raohe Night Market
Day 6: Danshui 淡水區 -> Shilin Night Market
Day 7: Yangmingshan -> Ximending
Day 8: Hiring driver to Jiufen old street -> Houtong Cat Village awhile
-> Shifen old street ->Shifen night lantern -> Shifen waterfall
Day 9: not sure what to do, maybe a theme park?
Day 10: Shopping for 太阳饼 and other local goods around Taipei area -> Train to airport 8pm flight.

Okay! So i kinda got two days to fill up. Plus i'm not sure if the other days are... light/heavy enough, heavy in a sense will my day be properly spent.

Going with my dad and sister and gf, think dad wanna go countryside more because mom really wanted to go such places but she passed on last year.

Any suggestions or alterations to the plan is definitely welcome!

Also, don't know if we should just drive to Jiufen area ourselves, would be quite fun driving there as well.

Your day 2 and day 3 is all over the places, you should look at the map. I'm also planning to go cingjing, Hehuashan and Taichung. Cingjing and Hehuashan are in the same area with about 1 hr journey apart, both are in the centre part of tw.

 

[xchampsx]

Your day 2 and day 3 is all over the places, you should look at the map. I'm also planning to go cingjing, Hehuashan and Taichung. Cingjing and Hehuashan are in the same area with about 1 hr journey apart, both are in the centre part of tw.

yeah i recommend you to ask your driver to go taroko gorge, then hehuanshan for sunset, then drop you guys off at qingjing and you guys stay a night there, instead of at hualien. qingjing has more of the countryside feels. and then it will be faster/easier to go down to taichung the next day. maybe can spend 2 nights at qingjing too

 

[xchampsx]

Day 1: 12pm landing -> Train to Hualien -> Check in -> Walk around

can go dongdamen night market

Day 2: Hiring Driver to Hehuashan -> Taroko Gorge -> Hualien
Day 3: Hualien -> Qingjing Farm -> Lavender Cottage -> Taichung check in -> Fengjia Night Market
Day 4: Not sure what else to do in Taichung, or just take TSR up to Taipei

can go sun moon lake, then at night go yizhong street

Day 5: Taipei 101 ->Wufenpu -> Raohe Night Market

can try formasa cheng lu rou fan for lunch/tea

Day 6: Danshui 淡水區 -> Shilin Night Market

danshui is more like a 4pm place to go to watch the sunset. can try going elsewhere before this, like beitou valley in the morning for the hot springs

Day 7: Yangmingshan -> Ximending
Day 8: Hiring driver to Jiufen old street -> Houtong Cat Village awhile
-> Shifen old street ->Shifen night lantern -> Shifen waterfall
Day 9: not sure what to do, maybe a theme park?

this day can be spent at qingjing, so everything move one day up

Day 10: Shopping for 太阳饼 and other local goods around Taipei area -> Train to airport 8pm flight.

just my 2 cents

 

[shawniiex]

Your day 2 and day 3 is all over the places, you should look at the map. I'm also planning to go cingjing, Hehuashan and Taichung. Cingjing and Hehuashan are in the same area with about 1 hr journey apart, both are in the centre part of tw.

Hmm yeah, because i was thinking one shot accommodation at the same place. if not quite troublesome need keep bringing the luggages around. haha

 

[shawniiex]

yeah i recommend you to ask your driver to go taroko gorge, then hehuanshan for sunset, then drop you guys off at qingjing and you guys stay a night there, instead of at hualien. qingjing has more of the countryside feels. and then it will be faster/easier to go down to taichung the next day. maybe can spend 2 nights at qingjing too

just my 2 cents

yay thanks, took your considerations into account already.

so we don't need to stay one night at hualien before taroko?
hahaha dont really need stay in countryside luh, just a consideration only.

is there anything else notable in taichung besides fengjia?

 

[Andrew833]

yay thanks, took your considerations into account already.

so we don't need to stay one night at hualien before taroko?
hahaha dont really need stay in countryside luh, just a consideration only.

is there anything else notable in taichung besides fengjia?

You land at 12pm, so you reach hualien already quite late. Can stay at jiaoxi hot spring hotel for a night then next morning go hualien, taroko, cingjing. Stay 1 night at cingjing, next morning go hhs see sunrise.

 

[tewem]

Hmm yeah, because i was thinking one shot accommodation at the same place. if not quite troublesome need keep bringing the luggages around. haha

You can try booking the 清境国民宾馆, I have stayed there previously, it's very close to the farm as well as the little Swiss garden. Free tickets to the farm, previously I have booked

http://www.cingjing.gov.tw/en/

Are you familiar with left-hand drive?
If not, don't really recommend you to drive there esp. near to Cingjing mountainous area.

 

[calkel20]

You land at 12pm, so you reach hualien already quite late. Can stay at jiaoxi hot spring hotel for a night then next morning go hualien, taroko, cingjing. Stay 1 night at cingjing, next morning go hhs see sunrise.

Hualien to taroko to cingjing.
Stay one night at cingjing, sunrise at hehuanshan, means walk 回頭路。
Go about 1hr, see sunrise, head back cingjing, shag!

 

[calkel20]

You can try booking the 清境国民宾馆, I have stayed there previously, it's very close to the farm as well as the little Swiss garden. Free tickets to the farm, previously I have booked

http://www.cingjing.gov.tw/en/

Are you familiar with left-hand drive?
If not, don't really recommend you to drive there esp. near to Cingjing mountainous area.

Honestly, 中橫 is relatively ok.
The stretch from cingjing to hehuanshan is more challenging.
Hehuanshan to taroko side also may not be so good if you are not familiar.

 

[xchampsx]

yay thanks, took your considerations into account already.

so we don't need to stay one night at hualien before taroko?
hahaha dont really need stay in countryside luh, just a consideration only.

is there anything else notable in taichung besides fengjia?

Erm, you have to stay one night on your first stay.
Thereafter the next day, you can go straight to Taroko, Hehuanshan, then Qingjing in that order in a straight line.
you can choose to go HHS to see sunset or sunrise, so depends on how you want it to be.

you can refer to here for more food to eat in taichung
https://somethingjoyfullife.wordpre...e-yuan-台灣香蕉新樂園-yizhong-street-night-market-一/

 

[xchampsx]

Hualien to taroko to cingjing.
Stay one night at cingjing, sunrise at hehuanshan, means walk 回頭路。
Go about 1hr, see sunrise, head back cingjing, shag!

没办法啊
no other way to catch the sunrise.

 

[calkel20]

没办法啊
no other way to catch the sunrise.

Means go the other way round.
Stay cingjing and go hehuanshan and towards taroko gorge.

 

[xchampsx]

Means go the other way round.
Stay cingjing and go hehuanshan and towards taroko gorge.

only possible if they get a driver, then continue to taroko after HHS
but driver will have to wake up super early to fetch them from mingsu
not many will do that

unless TS follow you, stay at the lodge.

 

[Andrew833]

Means go the other way round.
Stay cingjing and go hehuanshan and towards taroko gorge.

She/he is coming from hualien so only one way lol.

 

[Andrew833]

没办法啊
no other way to catch the sunrise.

Agree, also cingjing sunrise not as beautiful as hhs

 

[shawniiex]

WOW. Thanks for all the replies. Really appreciate it. So much more than i expected.
Seems like consensus is sunrise at HHS. but more of how to execute it. hahaha.

I guess... After landing in Taipei, we'll go straight to Qingjing? Train to Taichung then driver from there to Qingjing? Next day, Qingjing -> HHS (Sunrise) -> Taroko -> Qingjing?
From what i can see so far, i think that's the best way. LOL

Also yeah familiar with left hand drive, but definitely not gonna drive that area.
Thinking more of driving at Jiufen Shifen area from Taipei. Or just get a driver?

 

[calkel20]

only possible if they get a driver, then continue to taroko after HHS
but driver will have to wake up super early to fetch them from mingsu
not many will do that

unless TS follow you, stay at the lodge.

Ya lor.
If not so early, the drive is damn tired.
Season or not, the weather in the mountains can change anytime.
We were so blessed with weather.

 

[calkel20]

She/he is coming from hualien so only one way lol.

That is why tell them to do the other way.
If not, skip it.
Taiwan cannot be conquered overnight or less in a trip.

 

[calkel20]

WOW. Thanks for all the replies. Really appreciate it. So much more than i expected.
Seems like consensus is sunrise at HHS. but more of how to execute it. hahaha.

I guess... After landing in Taipei, we'll go straight to Qingjing? Train to Taichung then driver from there to Qingjing? Next day, Qingjing -> HHS (Sunrise) -> Taroko -> Qingjing?
From what i can see so far, i think that's the best way. LOL

Also yeah familiar with left hand drive, but definitely not gonna drive that area.
Thinking more of driving at Jiufen Shifen area from Taipei. Or just get a driver?

Jiufen to shifen no need driver one la.
Can do public.
Transport is easy peasy there.