Travel period: 28th May 2017 - 4th June 2017 (8 Days / 7 Nights)
Geography
This is trip with grandparents. 2 old folks, 2 adults and 2 kids (age 5 and 8)
The main target of this trip is to reach the south-most point of Taiwan in Kenting (墾丁), Pingtung County (屏东县) which is a 435 km, 5 hours drive from Taoyuan International Airport. The plan is to split the journey and limit each drive to less than 2 hours as we are travelling with kids and old folks.
We are covering 5 areas along the Eastern shore of Taiwan during this trip.
Air Tickets - Tigerair
No matter how much gimmick (read: Hello Kitty theme flights) or promotions there are for other airlines, I just wont bite as flight timing is the top most important consideration for me, because:
(Unless of course if the promotional rates is so much cheaper than Tigerair).
Thus, we are taking Tigerair, our first choice for flights to Taiwan (Taoyuan International Airport) again.
We paid S$432 each for 5 pax, including hot meals, seat selection, check in baggage (total 60 kg outbound and 65 kg inbound) and S$20 admin charges each. YES!! Total S$100 in total of admin charges for using my credit card. Just because I used the Tigerair phone App to complete the booking and I didnt realize that there was no option to select payment by AXS. So admin charges of S$100 (payment via credit card) vs S$6 (payment via AXS, you can select this option if you use their website)... dont say I never warn you ah!
Travel Visa
No visa needed for tourist visiting Taiwan.
Car Rental
Click here to get information on how to apply for international driving license and different car rental options. We rented our ride from Ching Bing (庆宾租车), so we can collect the car directly at Taoyuan International Airport, Terminal 1 and return directly at the Terminal too. They are running a promotion which gives a 45% discount for Singapore passport holders. We paid a total of NT13,860 (S$665) for 7 days of rental (which includes 1 GPS, 1 child seat and 1 wifi egg) for a Mazda 5 2.0 7- seater.
Accommodation
If possible, I prefer to book our accommodations through Hotels.com.
Reasons:
Taichung (台中)
We are only going to stopover Taichung for 1 night, mainly to visit the biggest night market in the whole of Taiwan, Fengjia Night market (逢甲夜市). Thus, we wanted an accommodation that is within walking distance to the night market. We decided on In Sky Hotel (星享道酒店), 400m to Fengjia Night market.
Shortlisted accommodations:
Kaohsiung (高雄)
We are staying 2 nights in Kaohsiung and The Tree House Design Hotel (樹屋旅店) is recommended by a good friend as it is 300m walk to Liuhe Night Market (六合夜市).
Address:
3F., No. 132, Liuhe 2nd Rd., Qianjin, 80141 Kaohsiung, Taiwan
高雄市六合二路132號
Phone:
886-7-287-8800
Shortlisted accommodations:
Kenting (墾丁)
Our main selection criteria is that it must be a beach-front resort. There isn't many to choose from, though many minsu (民宿) are sea-facing (beautiful sea view too!) It happened that Caesar Park Kenting (墾丁凱撒大飯店) has a pretty high rating on Hotels.com and most importantly, there's a good promotional rate! So I quickly booked it. I found out later that there's a game arcade and children indoor playground within the area and the night market is within walking distance too! Looking at the pictures, I guess we'll be spending most of our time chilling by the poolside or on the beach. Praying for good sunny weather when we are there.
Address:
Kenting National Park, No. 6, Kending Road, Hengchun Township, Pingtung County, Taiwan 94644
屏東縣 94644 恆春鎮墾丁路6號
Contact:
+886-8-8861888
Shortlisted accommodations:
Tainan (台南)
We decided to stay in a minsu (民宿) in Tainan and after much research, Deely House seems like a very popular choice. Do note that they have 2 guest houses in 2 locations. We decided to book the Snow White Theme room in Deely House II (迪利小屋親子民宿二館(臨安館)). I thought it was quite costly for 1 night (S$400 per night, 1 room for all 6 of us) but it looks so fun and such novelty will only works for our kids at this age. In a few years time, I dont think they will find it exciting to stay in such rooms anymore. For now, they are totally excited about it and had been telling their grandma about the room and deciding on their own that they will take the upper deck bed.
Address:
No. 72, Section 1, Lin'an Road, West Central District, Tainan City, Taiwan 700
台南市中西區臨安路一段72號
Update: I understand that Deely House II had shifted. Please check on their Facebook page for exact details
Contact:
+886 988 789 912
Websites that are helpful for researching on minsu:
Itinerary
Day 1: 28th May 2017, Sunday
Singapore - Taiwan, Taoyuan
Taoyuan - Taichung
Taichung
Taichung - Kaohsiung
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Alternative places visit in Taichung:
Geography
The main target of this trip is to reach the south-most point of Taiwan in Kenting (墾丁), Pingtung County (屏东县) which is a 435 km, 5 hours drive from Taoyuan International Airport. The plan is to split the journey and limit each drive to less than 2 hours as we are travelling with kids and old folks.
We are covering 5 areas along the Eastern shore of Taiwan during this trip.
- Taoyuan County - Taichung City | 140 km, 1.5 hours drive
- Taichung City - Kaohsiung City | 178 km, 2 hrs drive
- Kaohsiung City - Pingtung County (Kenting)
- Pingtung County - Tainan City
- Tainan City - Taoyuan County
Air Tickets - Tigerair
No matter how much gimmick (read: Hello Kitty theme flights) or promotions there are for other airlines, I just wont bite as flight timing is the top most important consideration for me, because:
- I HATE red-eye flights,
- I HATE very early morning flights and
- I HATE arriving at a destination after sun down.
(Unless of course if the promotional rates is so much cheaper than Tigerair).
Thus, we are taking Tigerair, our first choice for flights to Taiwan (Taoyuan International Airport) again.
We paid S$432 each for 5 pax, including hot meals, seat selection, check in baggage (total 60 kg outbound and 65 kg inbound) and S$20 admin charges each. YES!! Total S$100 in total of admin charges for using my credit card. Just because I used the Tigerair phone App to complete the booking and I didnt realize that there was no option to select payment by AXS. So admin charges of S$100 (payment via credit card) vs S$6 (payment via AXS, you can select this option if you use their website)... dont say I never warn you ah!
Travel Visa
No visa needed for tourist visiting Taiwan.
Car Rental
Click here to get information on how to apply for international driving license and different car rental options. We rented our ride from Ching Bing (庆宾租车), so we can collect the car directly at Taoyuan International Airport, Terminal 1 and return directly at the Terminal too. They are running a promotion which gives a 45% discount for Singapore passport holders. We paid a total of NT13,860 (S$665) for 7 days of rental (which includes 1 GPS, 1 child seat and 1 wifi egg) for a Mazda 5 2.0 7- seater.
Accommodation
If possible, I prefer to book our accommodations through Hotels.com.
Reasons:
- I am used to their website layout/structure and it's easier/faster for me to navigate through compared to other sites.
- There's many promotional prices and secret prices for members
- Collect 10 nights stay to redeem 1 free night (We managed to redeem 1 free night for this trip)
- Lowest price guarantee policy - you can always check back to see if there's any cheaper price and get the difference back. (Note: I had tested this many times and managed to rebook at a lower price! But do note that this is not an automatic process, you will have to do your work in actively checking varies booking sites for lower prices. We used a voucher we got from the price difference for this trip)
Regardless of how you make your reservations, remember to check if you can get cash back from shopback.sg. (I can get about 6% cash rebate from my reservations for this trip.)
Taichung (台中)
We are only going to stopover Taichung for 1 night, mainly to visit the biggest night market in the whole of Taiwan, Fengjia Night market (逢甲夜市). Thus, we wanted an accommodation that is within walking distance to the night market. We decided on In Sky Hotel (星享道酒店), 400m to Fengjia Night market.
Address:
No.18, Fuxing N. Rd., Situn Dist., Taichung, 40741, Taiwan
西屯區 福星北路18號 台中市, 40741, 台灣
Contact:
04-27062208
 |
In Sky Hotel (星享道酒店)
Double Room (Mars)
S$195 per night, inclusive of breakfast, free wifi and free parking
(pictures from Internet)
|
Shortlisted accommodations:
- La Vida Hotel (逢甲商旅) - 400 m to Fengjia Night market
- Hotel Cube (默砌旅店) - 900 m to Fengjia Night market, shuttle bus to Fengjia provided
- Beacon Hotel (碧根行館) - 0 m to Fengjia Night market
- ICASA Hotel by Cosmos Creation - 500 m to Fengjia Night market
- Airline lnn Green Park Way (頭等艙飯店台中綠園道館) - 3.2 km to Fengjia Night Market but next to Taichung SOGO
We are staying 2 nights in Kaohsiung and The Tree House Design Hotel (樹屋旅店) is recommended by a good friend as it is 300m walk to Liuhe Night Market (六合夜市).
Address:
3F., No. 132, Liuhe 2nd Rd., Qianjin, 80141 Kaohsiung, Taiwan
高雄市六合二路132號
Phone:
886-7-287-8800
 |
The Tree House Design Hotel (樹屋旅店)
Classic Double Room (1 Japanese futon bed) / Comfort Double Room, 2 Twin Beds
S$400 for 2 room types for 2 nights, inclusive of breakfast and free wifi
(pictures from Internet)
|
Shortlisted accommodations:
- Bamboo Business Hotel
- Harmonious Hotel
- Airline Inn - Kaohsiung Station
Kenting (墾丁)
Our main selection criteria is that it must be a beach-front resort. There isn't many to choose from, though many minsu (民宿) are sea-facing (beautiful sea view too!) It happened that Caesar Park Kenting (墾丁凱撒大飯店) has a pretty high rating on Hotels.com and most importantly, there's a good promotional rate! So I quickly booked it. I found out later that there's a game arcade and children indoor playground within the area and the night market is within walking distance too! Looking at the pictures, I guess we'll be spending most of our time chilling by the poolside or on the beach. Praying for good sunny weather when we are there.
Address:
Kenting National Park, No. 6, Kending Road, Hengchun Township, Pingtung County, Taiwan 94644
屏東縣 94644 恆春鎮墾丁路6號
Contact:
+886-8-8861888
 |
Caesar Park Kenting (墾丁凱撒大飯店)
Deluxe Guest Room (景觀客房), 2 double beds, Max 4 pax
S$224 per night, inclusive of breakfast, free wifi and free parking
(pictures from Internet)
|
Shortlisted accommodations:
- Chateau Beach Resort Kenting (墾丁夏都沙灘酒店) (beach-front)
- Ocean Paradise Resort (海境渡假民宿) (good seaview but not within the Kenting area and very expensive!)
Tainan (台南)
We decided to stay in a minsu (民宿) in Tainan and after much research, Deely House seems like a very popular choice. Do note that they have 2 guest houses in 2 locations. We decided to book the Snow White Theme room in Deely House II (迪利小屋親子民宿二館(臨安館)). I thought it was quite costly for 1 night (S$400 per night, 1 room for all 6 of us) but it looks so fun and such novelty will only works for our kids at this age. In a few years time, I dont think they will find it exciting to stay in such rooms anymore. For now, they are totally excited about it and had been telling their grandma about the room and deciding on their own that they will take the upper deck bed.
Address:
No. 72, Section 1, Lin'an Road, West Central District, Tainan City, Taiwan 700
台南市中西區臨安路一段72號
Update: I understand that Deely House II had shifted. Please check on their Facebook page for exact details
Contact:
+886 988 789 912
 |
Deely House II (迪利小屋親子民宿二館(臨安館))
Snow White Theme Family Room (3 double beds, Max 10 pax)
S$400 per night, inclusive of breakfast, free wifi and free parking
(pictures from Internet)
|
Websites that are helpful for researching on minsu:
Itinerary
Day 1: 28th May 2017, Sunday
Singapore - Taiwan, Taoyuan
- take off at 8.55 am from Singapore Changi Airport - Terminal 2
- touch down at 1.45 pm in Taoyuan International Airport - Terminal 1
- collect luggage and wait for PapaM (flying in from Shanghai directly)
- pickup rental car at Terminal 1
Taoyuan - Taichung
- Drive to Taichung, 140 km, 1.5 hours drive
- ETD: 4:00 pm | ETD: 5:30 pm
Taichung
- check-in, In Sky Hotel (星享道酒店)
- head to Fengjia Night market (逢甲夜市) for dinner and shopping
- If arrive early - Tea break (7.5 km, 20 mins drive from hotel)
Miyahara 宮原眼科 (confectionery in an old bank building | Opening hours: 10 am - 10 pm
Address: No. 20號, Zhongshan Road, Central District, Taichung City, Taiwan 400
Contact: +886 4 2227 1927
Day 2: 29th May 2017, Monday
Taichung
- breakfast in hotel
- 9:00 am | check out of hotel
- 10:00 am | Fruit picking | 26 km, 35 mins drive from hotel新峰農場 | Duration 1 hourWebsite: https://www.facebook.com/新峰農場-酋長女兒的家Address: 426, Taiwan, 台中縣新社鄉大南村中和街二段264號Contact: +886 4 2581 1938
- 11:30 am | Sight-seeing (lunch option) | 17 km, 35 mins drive from 新峰農場Lavender Cottage 薰衣草森林(新社) | Duration: 2 hours including lunchWebsite: http://www.lavendercottage.com.tw/Address: 台中市新社區中興街20號Contact: 04-25931066
- 2:00 pm | Sight-seeing (lunch option) | 22 km, 40 mins drive from Lavender CottageCarton King Creativity Park 紙箱王創意園區 (台中‧大坑) | Duration: 60 minsWebsite: www.cartonking.com.twAddress: 406台中市北屯區東山路二段二巷二號Contact: 04－22398868
- 3:00 pm | Sight-seeing | 21 km, 25 mins drive from 紙箱王創意園區Rainbow Military Dependents' Village 彩虹眷村 | Duration: 30minsWebsite: http://www.1949rainbow.com.tw/Address: 408, Taiwan, Taichung City, Nantun District, 春安路56巷 1949Contact: +886 920 162 888
Taichung - Kaohsiung
- drive to Kaoshiung (190 km, 2 hrs drive from 彩虹眷村)
- ETD: 3:30 pm | ETD: 5:30 pm
Kaohsiung
- check-in The Tree House Design Hotel (樹屋旅店)
- head to Liuhe Night Market (六合夜市) for dinner and shopping
- Sight-seeing | 300 m, 5 mins walk from 六合夜市Formosa Boulevard Station (美麗島站) | Duration: 30minsAddress: 800, Taiwan, Kaohsiung City, Xinxing District, Zhongshan 1st Road, 115號
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Alternative places visit in Taichung:
- Summit Resort (along the way from Lavender Cottage)新社莊園 | Duration: 60 minsWebsite: http://www.summit-resort.com/Address: 台中市新社區協成里協中街65號Contact: 04-25825628
- Mushroom picking farm (along the way from Lavender Cottage)阿亮香菇園(新社香菇園) | Duration: 30 minsWebsite: http://www.aliang.com.tw/Address: 台中市新社區協成里協中街131號Contact: 04-25810893 / 0920-266165
- Fan-shaped train depot (closed on Monday)扇形車庫 | Duration: 60 minsWebsite: http://www.railway.gov.tw/Address: No. 1, Section 1, Zhangmei Road, Changhua City, Changhua County, Taiwan 500Contact:+886 4 762 4438
- Flower market - further north of Taichung city
Website: http://www.flowerjs.com.tw/
Address: 421, Taiwan, Taichung City, Houli District, 三豐路五段333號
Contact: +886 4 2557 6926
- Yi Zhong Jie (street shopping)
一中街
Address: No. 51, Yucai North Road, North District, Taichung City, Taiwan 404 (to 一中街 carpark)
Useful websites for accommodation recommendation, itinerary reference/tips and attraction background information:
- Round Taiwan Round | Purple Lavender Private Tour
- ourlittlesmarties blog | Taiwan Day 4 – Taichung City Tour
- 青青小熊旅遊札記 | 台中二日遊 / 一日遊推薦
- Just An Ordinary Girl | Trip to Taiwan 台湾: 11D10N Round Island Tour Itinerary
- doublehellos blog | Taiwan Day 5: Taichung
- darrenbloggie | 台中半日游 Half Day Tour in Tai Chung
- life-as-mrslee | ChangHua Fan Shaped Depot (彰化扇形车库)
Day 3: 30th May 2017, Tuesday (Public Holiday: Dragon Boat Festival)
Kaohsiung
- breakfast in hotel
- 9:30 am | Sight-seeing (lunch option) | 1 km, 3 mins drive from hotel佛光山普賢寺 | Duration: 5 hours including lunchWebsite: http://web.fgs.org.tw/Address: 高雄市大樹區興田里興田路153號Contact: +886-7-6561921
- 2:30 pm | Sight-seeing | 7 km, 15 mins drive from 佛光山普賢寺Lotus Pond (Dragon and Tiger Pagodas) 龍虎塔 | Duration: 1 hourAddress: No. 9, Liantan Road, Zuoying District, Kaohsiung City, Taiwan 813Contact: +886 7 581 9286
- 4:00 pm | Sight-seeingThe Pier-2 Art Center 駁二藝術特區 | Duration: 2 hoursAddress: No. 1, Dayong Road, Yancheng District, Kaohsiung City, Taiwan 803Contact: +886 7 521 4899
- 6:00 pm | Shopping (dinner option)Dream Mall 统一梦时代购物中心Website: http://www.dreammall.com.tw/Address: 806, Taiwan, Kaohsiung City, Qianzhen District, 中華五路789號Contact: +886 7 973 3888
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Alternative places visit in Kaoshiung:
- Kaohsiung Martyrs' Shrine 忠烈祠 | Duration: 1 hour
- Kaoshiung Street Shopping新崛江Xin Jue Jiang / 玉竹商圈 Yu Zhu Shang QuanAddress: 800, Taiwan, Kaohsiung City, Xinxing District
- Kaoshiung Street Shopping新崛江Xin Jue Jiang / 玉竹商圈 Yu Zhu Shang QuanAddress: 800, Taiwan, Kaohsiung City, Xinxing District
- 瑞丰夜市 Rui Feng Night Market
- DIY - Dessert | Duration: 1.5 hoursYannick 高雄亞尼克旗艦店Website: https://www.yannick.com.tw/Address: 高雄市左營區華夏路1416號(近高鐵站)Contact: (07) 348-1837
Useful tips from websites:
- Round Taiwan Round | Kaohsiung - A Sacred Conversation Private Tour
- doublehellos | Taiwan Day 3 and 4: Kaohsiung
- wahbiang | 海角七號之旅 I – Kaohsiung Journey
- Travel King | Kaohsiung Travel
- 青青小熊旅遊札記 | 高雄住宿推薦》FunBus溜滑梯親子民宿．一起走進童話新樂園
- 青青小熊旅遊札記 | 高雄下午茶推薦》全台最大亞尼克旗艦店，親子自助DIY去
- Miwa ✈ Hello World | 【高雄景點】旗津風景區-走上燈塔看海景.逛老街吃美食
Day 4: 31st May 2017, Wednesday
Kaohsiung
- breakfast in hotel
- 9:00 am | check out of hotel
- 9:30 am | Sight-seeing (lunch option) | 1 km, 3 mins drive from hotelCijin Island | Duration: 3 hours including lunchWebsite: http://web.fgs.org.tw/Address: Drive through via 過港隧道Attractions: Cijin Lighthouse 旗後燈塔, Qi Jin Old Street 旗津老街, 旗津天后宮
- drive to Kenting (110 km, 2 hrs drive from 過港隧道)
- ETD: 2:30 pm | ETD: 4:30 pm
- along the way | ActivitiesGo-Kart 喜哈哈 PK玩家F1賽車場 (not suitable for below 110cm) | Duration: 30 minsWebsite: http://uukt.com.tw/kenting/142Address: No. 29-2, Hengnan Road, Hengchun Township, Pingtung County, Taiwan 946Contact: +886 8 888 3933
Kenting
- Check-in Caesar Park Kenting (墾丁凱撒大飯店)
- Explore Kenting Street Night Market (墾丁大街)
Day 5: 1st June 2017, Thursday
Kenting
- Kenting Sand ATV (墾丁九棚飆沙) | Activities | Duration: 30 minsWebsite: http://www.zozo.twmail.cc/zo3.htmAddress: 港仔大沙漠 (九棚大沙漠) 屏東縣滿州鄉港口村茶山路380號 屏東縣港仔村港仔路151-3號 (32.8公里處)
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Alternative places visit in Kaoshiung:
- Sail Rock (船帆石) | Duration: 30 minAdmission: FreeWebsite: http://ktnp.gov.tw/Address: 屏东县恒春镇船帆路600号 (look for direction signs nearby to No.600, Chuanfan Road, Hengchun, Pingtung Country)Contact: +886 8 886 1321(07)5210368
- Sand Island (砂岛), Shadao Ecological Reserve | Duration: 30 mins
Admission: FreeAddress: look for direction signs along the way to No.224, Shadao Rd., Hengchun Township, Pingtung County 946
- South Most Point in Taiwan - This is our main aim of this journey!Eluanbi Park- White Lighthouse (鹅銮鼻公园) | Duration: 3 hoursAdmission: NT40 per adult, free for children below 115cm, special rates applyYou can also skip the whole park and drive straight to the south-mot point (Admission: Free)Address: 屏东县恒春镇鹅銮里鹅銮路301号
- 出火 | Duration: 30 minsNote: Try to visit after darkAdmission: Free
- Kenting National Park official website (Itinerary reference and attraction background information)
- Wahbiang | 海角七號之旅 III – Kenting Journey
- Double Hellos | Taiwan Day 1 and 2: Kenting
- Peanuts Travels | Kenting On A Scooter (机车走墾丁)
- 青青小熊旅遊札記 | 墾丁二日遊景點
Day 6: 2nd June 2017, Friday
Kenting - Tainan
- Drive to Tainan
- Check-in Deely House II
- Dinner in Night market
- Fun Taiwan | 台南民宿．租屋．旅館
- Tripadvisor | 台南民宿
- 青青小熊旅遊札記 | 台南住宿推薦
- Walkerland | 台南景點
- 124巷花園。台南民宿
- http://blog.sina.com.tw/gokenting/
- Just An Ordinary Girl | Trip to Taiwan 台湾: 11D10N Round Island Tour Itinerary (Itinerary referance)
- Trip101 | Best Night Markets In Tainan
Day 7: 3rd June 2017, Saturday
Tainan - Taoyuan
- Check-out Deely House II
- Drive to Taoyuan
- 大溪花海
- Dinner in Shopping mall
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Alternative places visit in Taoyuan
Useful tips from websites:Alternative places visit in Taoyuan
- 天御花园 (LOVE)
- 天空步道
- 大溪老街
Day 8: 4th June 2017, Sunday
Taoyuan - Singapore
- Home Sweet Home
Expenditure
| Items |
Expenditure (S$)
| Remarks |
| Flight |
2,160
----------------- Total: 2,160 | For 5 pax including check-in baggage, hot meals and seat selection (www.tigerair.com) |
| Car Rental |
665
----------------- Total: 665 | NT13,860 for 7 days (which includes 1 GPS, 1 child seat and 1 wifi egg) for a Mazda 5 2.0 7-seater Ching Bing (庆宾租车) |
| Accommodation |
388
398
723
400 260 ----------------- Total: 2,169 | In Sky Hotel (星享道酒店), 2 rooms, 1 night The Tree House Design Hotel (樹屋旅店), 2 rooms, 2 nights Caesar Park Kenting (墾丁凱撒大飯店), 2 rooms, 2 nights Deely House II (迪利小屋親子民宿二館(臨安館)), 1 room, 1 night Hotel Kuva Chateau, 1 room, 1 night (used Hotels.com free night stay) |
| Misc spending |
2500
| Exchange NT (cash spending on food, transport and shopping) |
| Total |
7494
| (excluding credit card expenses on food and shopping) |