Asia - 8-day Itinerary in Taiwan in May 2012: Advice Needed!

The 4 of us (all young adults) will be in Taiwan for a 8-day vacation in early May 2012. Will be on a budget tour. This is our brief itinerary.

Day 1 (Wed, 2 May):
Arrive at Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport at 11:55am.
Take public transport to Chiayi and then Alishan.
Stay over at Alishan.
Question: Do we have sufficient time to get to Alishan within half a day via public transport?

Day 2 (Thu, 3 May):
Catch sunrise at Alishan.
Forest trails at Alishan.
Proceed to Chiayi and then Taichung.
Fengjia night market, etc.
Stay over in Taichung.

Day 3 (Fri, 4 May):
Proceed to Nantou and then Sun Moon Lake.
Stay over at Sun Moon Lake.
Question: where to stay?

Day 4 (Sat, 5 May):
Proceed back to Nantou, then Taichung and then Miaoli.
Stay over in Miaoli.
Question: What's there to do in Miaoli? Farm stay?

Day 5 (Sun, 6 May):
Return To Taipei.
Stay over in Taipei (CityInn Plus, Ximending).

Day 6 (Mon, 7 May):
Proceed to Yilan, Guishan Island for whale watching.
Jiaoxi hot spring.
Luodong night market.
Return to Taipei City.
Stay over in Taipei (CityInn Plus, Ximending).

Day 7 (Tue, 8 May):
Taipei.
Stay over in Taipei (CityInn Plus, Ximending).

Day 8 (Wed, 9 May):
Taipei.
Catch return flight at 7:50pm.

Alternatively, instead of going to Miaoli on Day 4, we could go to Cingjing Farm (from Sun Moon Lake) and perhaps even Hehuanshan, then return to Taipei on Day 5.

What do you think of the above itinerary?


P.S.: we could read and speak Chinese.

--yes, sufficient time from Taiyuan to Chiayi with the high speed rail
--since you've quite an active schedule anyway, I'd make a point of getting to Tainan
--Tainan over Taichung, definitely
--personally, I don't get Sun Moon lake
--If you're going down to Yilan for whale watching, possibly you could then go on to Hualian for the night, and then both beaches and Taroko Gorge are 1/2-day excursions.

just some ideas.

I haven't been to most of the places you mention, but I have been to Taroko Gorge, which is well worth seeing.

--yes, sufficient time from Taiyuan to Chiayi with the high speed rail
--since you've quite an active schedule anyway, I'd make a point of getting to Tainan
--Tainan over Taichung, definitely
--personally, I don't get Sun Moon lake
--If you're going down to Yilan for whale watching, possibly you could then go on to Hualian for the night, and then both beaches and Taroko Gorge are 1/2-day excursions.

just some ideas.

Firstly, thanks for the reply.

Let's say if we leave the airport at 1pm, by what time could we get to Alishan via public transport (trains and buses)?

Tainan over Taichung meaning? Go to Tainan and don't go to Taichung? Reasons?

Any reason for advising against Sun Moon Lake?

We have already been to Hualien and Tarako Gorge. Definitely not covering these during this vacation.

--I'm really not sure about getting to Alishan. HSRR gets you to Chiayi by 3, but I'm not sure there are any buses that late. If 4 of you split a taxi, that ought to be fairly reasonable (if slightly crowded). Otherwise, of course you could put in some Taipei time at the beginning of your trip instead of the end, and head out to Alishan on a morning.

--I think Tainan has a lot more to see & do than Taichung--bigger temples (including the Confucius Temple & a great Mazu Temple), more historic spots, and (for me) a nicer old-Taiwany feel.

--I've been to Sun Moon Lake 3 times for various reasons, and it always seems wall-to-wall people. At the very least, avoid weekends there.

Day 1 (Wed, 2 May):
Arrive at Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport at 11:55am.
Take public transport to Chiayi and then Alishan.
Stay over at Alishan.
Question: Do we have sufficient time to get to Alishan within half a day via public transport?


Doubt it. Public transportation is convenient in Taiwan but takes a lot more time than you think (switching between trains/buses, high-speed rail out in the middle of nowhere). Probably can get to Chiayi and spend the night.


Day 2 (Thu, 3 May):
Catch sunrise at Alishan.
Forest trails at Alishan.
Proceed to Chiayi and then Taichung.
Fengjia night market, etc.
Stay over in Taichung.


Seems like way too much for one day. Relax around Alishan for the day, stay there for the night.


Day 3 (Fri, 4 May):
Proceed to Nantou and then Sun Moon Lake.
Stay over at Sun Moon Lake.
Question: where to stay?


It's been years since I was at SML but it was nice. So much has changed there I couldn't recommend a place. Getting more and more crowded there.


Day 4 (Sat, 5 May):
Proceed back to Nantou, then Taichung and then Miaoli.
Stay over in Miaoli.
Question: What's there to do in Miaoli? Farm stay?


Why Miaoli? It's a quiet place - not much happening (but sometimes I like that). It's going to be difficult if you don't have a car. Sanyi has Shengxing train station (勝興車站) and some neat old bridge ruins to the south.


Day 5 (Sun, 6 May):
Return To Taipei.
Stay over in Taipei (CityInn Plus, Ximending).

Day 6 (Mon, 7 May):
Proceed to Yilan, Guishan Island for whale watching.
Jiaoxi hot spring.
Luodong night market.
Return to Taipei City.
Stay over in Taipei (CityInn Plus, Ximending).


If going to Yilan and Luodong, find a nice little hotspring minsu in Jiaoxi. Don't rush back to Taipei.


Alternatively, instead of going to Miaoli on Day 4, we could go to Cingjing Farm (from Sun Moon Lake) and perhaps even Hehuanshan, then return to Taipei on Day 5.


I like that better.

Doubt it. Public transportation is convenient in Taiwan but takes a lot more time than you think (switching between trains/buses, high-speed rail out in the middle of nowhere). Probably can get to Chiayi and spend the night.


Spending the night at Chiayi or Taichung better?


Seems like way too much for one day. Relax around Alishan for the day, stay there for the night.


We don't have enough days to spare for 2 nights at Alishan.


Why Miaoli? It's a quiet place - not much happening (but sometimes I like that).


We just want to find a place for farm stay, getting close to nature and do other stuffs on our way back from Nantou to Taipei.


If going to Yilan and Luodong, find a nice little hotspring minsu in Jiaoxi. Don't rush back to Taipei.


Any minsu there your want to recommend?

Spending the night at Chiayi or Taichung better?

Taichung is better for nightlife and night markets. Chiayi is nicer for scenery and relaxing if you get away from town and into the mountain. That first night you might have to find a driver in Chiayi if you get there late and need to get up to the mountains. But I don't know if you can even find someone to take you if it's late.


We don't have enough days to spare for 2 nights at Alishan.


Well, it's a tight schedule that first day so maybe switch something around. Maybe stop in Taichung or Tainan the first night to enjoy some food and night markets. Go to Alishan the next day, spend the night, and head to SML the next day.

We just want to find a place for farm stay, getting close to nature and do other stuffs on our way back from Nantou to Taipei.

OK, you can probably find something there like that (sorry I don't know of places but TripAdvisor would be a good place to ask).


Any minsu there your want to recommend?

We really enjoyed this place: http://www.wretch.cc/blog/chilidan98/23238068

Some photos:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/timscreations/5438230395/in/set-72157625912923812/lightbox/
http://www.flickr.com/photos/timscreations/5438230857/in/set-72157625912923812/lightbox/
Typical view around Jiaoxi: http://www.flickr.com/photos/timscreations/5438229893/in/set-72157625912923812/lightbox/

Well, it's a tight schedule that first day so maybe switch something around. Maybe stop in Taichung or Tainan the first night to enjoy some food and night markets. Go to Alishan the next day, spend the night, and head to SML the next day.

haha... then now we have Tainan vs Chiayi vs Taichung for our day. Starting from afternoon, is there enough time to travel from Taoyuan Airport to Tainan? Worth the effort choosing Tainan over Chiayi and Taichung (considering that we have to stay over at Alishan the following night)?

Starting from afternoon, is there enough time to travel from Taoyuan Airport to Tainan? Worth the effort choosing Tainan over Chiayi and Taichung (considering that we have to stay over at Alishan the following night)?

Plenty of time to go to Tainan I think. The thing about a place like Tainan (or Taichung for that matter) is that you can still get there late and find plenty to do. Night markets get busy later in the night and even after they close you can always walk around and find something to eat in the middle of the night (one of my favorite things to do when I first get to Taiwan since jet lag is always keeping me awake). Tainan will put you closer to Alishan than Taichung. I hear the food is good there too, but in all my travels to Taiwan we always drove right past Tainan (my wife's father's family is there and she would rather not ever visit them).:D

Why not squeeze in a trip to Kaoshiung or Pingtung?

Why not squeeze in a trip to Kaoshiung or Pingtung?

Thanks for the suggestion, but we only have 8 days and we do not want to squeeze in too many destinations. We have a lot to cover already.