Taiwan Hotel Reviews
Getting a rental car online was virtually impossible, so we ended up getting a car with a driver to take us over the North-Cross-Island Highway. Though the roads were treacherous and we only averaged about 35 kph the views and stops here and of the Taroko Gorge and our return up the East Coast Highway were amazing. Our stay at the very "grand" Grand Hotel helped make our stay in the surprisingly nice, interesting and diverse city of Taipei wonderful.
Getting a rental car online was virtually impossible, so we ended up getting a car with a driver to take us over the North-Cross-Island Highway. Though the roads were treacherous and we only averaged about 35 kph the views and stops here and of the Taroko Gorge and our return up the East Coast Highway were amazing.
The Shilin night market is probably the main attraction. Don''t forget to try the fried chicken there as it is the best ever.
The city of Taipei itself is not too large. In all frankness, I think Taipei can be toured in about 2 full days. The Taipei subway is a great way to travel around Taipei. It''s affordable, fast, and clean. It''s so much better than the NYC subway system that I take to commute daily. I was in Taipei for about two days. I visited the Chiang Kai Shek Memorial Hall and two night markets. Chiang Kai Shek Memorial Hall is a noteworthy place to visit and it is beautiful. The night markets were fascinating and it was a mecca for exotic foods and drinks. But in all honesty, I think that if you''ve visited one night market, you''ve visited them all.
The Baiyang Waterfall trail is beautiful and easy (strollers can even make the journey) with wide trails and beautiful overlooks. The restaurant beside the post office is good for a quick meal and more predictable and fresh than some of the other restaurants. There is an ATM in the post office.
Ask for Thai restaurant (not takeout) just around the corner. If you can''t take Chinese food anymore, visit Pig&Whistle British Pub in downtown. however don''t order Mexican food in there. Indian Spice Shop is pretty good too. If you are looking for gifts, you must go to Handicraft Mart in Taipei. And don''t be afraid of trying food on the street, cheap, fresh and very good.
Taipei is a nice place to visit. Weather is good and people are certainly friendly when answering queries. Jiu Fen is a very nice place to visit where there are alot of things to buy and a lot of unique food to savour. The place is clean also. We thoroughly enjoy the place with it''s scenery. Would definitely visit Taipei all over again and perhaps would wander further south of Taipei to places like Alishan!
Arriving at the main International Airport (CKS) we boarded the service bus to Taipei Station (we are not backpackers and I am 64). This turned out to be the best choice as the last stop is around the corner (about 300 yards) from the Cosmos Hotel entrance. We tried a coach trip to the scenic north coast, a bit dissapointing, so we went independent! After that and boarded the excellent MRT to the end of the line at Danshui which seems to be a bit of a local holiday town. Very interesting. We spent an evening at the Shilin night market and surrounding area, where we enjoyed amongst other things the best food of our visit to Taipei. Once again the MRT provided our transport. We were in Taipei for only three nights and quite enjoyed it. we did not experience any problems.
I had one day. I visited the National Museum on a friend''s recommendation. It was very interesting and a worthwhile place to see. I also stopped by the Chiang Kai Shek Memorial. Climbing up the stairs to get to the top was reminiscent of a certain scene from Howl''s Moving Castle. I don''t want to give any spoilers here, so if you''ve seen the movie you''ll know! The food from the market areas was cheap. I didn''t find it to be all that delicious though.
I was on a business trip, and did not have much time for sight seeing, however I can recommend a visit to the Grand Palace Museum for an impressive collection of extremely ancient Buddhist artefacts. Also worth a visit is the Confucius Temple, and many other Buddhist temples, within walking distance of the hotel.
As non-escorted tourists to Taiwan we were something of a rarity. We did tours to the Wulai Aboriginal Village (half-day) and the Taroko Marble Gorge (full-day). Both were good and the scenery in the Taroko Gorge is beautiful. We booked both of these directly with Edison Travel Service via the internet which worked out much cheaper than booking through a travel agent at home. Taipei has one of only three alpine railways in the world and with my husband being a train enthusiast, this was a "must do" for us. Despite much searching on the internet we couldn''t find a tour that suited so we decided to do it on our own. The train goes from Chiayi to Alishan which is a small mountain village absolutely full of tourists at the weekends. The best hotel (a bit pricey but by far the best in the town) is Alishan House, we had a scenery suite which was decorated Japanese style, very upmarket. Everybody gets up at an unbelievably early hour to take yet another train up the mountain to watch the sunrise. It was freezing cold and not worth the effort for the sunrise we saw. Maybe some days if there is some cloud around it is prettier.<br> <br> Anyway, despite the disappointment of the sunrise the trip to Alishan was well worthwhile. It is a pretty place. I booked the accommodation by phone a couple of months in advance and then had the problem of booking train tickets from Taipei to Chiayi and Chiayi to Alishan. Most travel agents I contacted couldn''t help but Zion Travel Service in Taipei were most helpful. Our bookings were made by Lilia and she was fantastic. Spoke perfect English and gave us wonderful service. Our tickets were waiting for us at our hotel in Taipei, complete with a diagram showing us where to go at Chiayi railway station and an English interpretation of our tickets for the Taipei to Chiayi trip. On our last full day in Taipei we ventured up to Jouifen which is a small village north of Taipei and worth the trip. Lots and lots of shops selling souvenirs, food, etc. Very crowded but good. We took the train from Taipei to Ruifang, then a bus to Jouifen. On the return trip we took the bus all the way. We were very lucky at Taipei railway station to come across 2 local couples who had lived in the USA for 10 years and thus had perfect English. They also were on their way to Jouifen so we travelled along with them and their children. Like all Taiwanese, we found them very friendly and helpful.<br><br>In conclusion, we really enjoyed our time in Taiwan and would recommend it. Taxis in Taipei are plentiful and cheap. The reception staff at the Santos Hotel were extremely helpful in advising us how to travel around and on a couple of occasions we got them to write things in Chinese for us to show bus drivers, taxi drivers etc. As it turned out we didn''t need this most of the time - we could mostly find someone who spoke English. If you are considering a trip to Taiwan you may find as we did that the internet is the best place to get info. I am happy to answer questions that other travellers might have.
Staying in Taipei can be an interesting affair, you are often amazed by the many kinds of street food in those night markets! Don''t worry if there''s nothing to munch even at wee hours especially during the weekends! Nothing to do after midnight?? Check out the 24hr karaoke everyday! Every night! The most preferred karaoke hang out outlet is HOLIDAY KTV, cheapest price in town and buffet snacks 24hrs! What else can beat that??!?!!! Shopping I''ve yet to comment on dude...it''s a paradise man. So girls.. wear your most comfortable shoes... because you''ve tons of shops to visit and guys prepare yourself to carry those bags!! Getting around by taxi is easy...taxis everywhere!! Who cares about taking train?? Buses?? Save it!! Don''t worry it''s not expensive, it''s affordable. Range between 100-200TWD.
Highly recommend the Taipei zoo (on the MRT line). For someone coming from North America, it was fascinating to see the wildlife from this end of the world. We arrived at 9AM and found ourselves to be the only visitors to the zoo! Danshui is a great place to walk around. Indian Beerhouse is an interesting experience - kids would get a kick out of the hundreds of dinosaurs that decorate the place - kegs of beer and food''s not bad either.
Found Taipei easy to get around in using the MRT. Train stations very clean and lots of helpful people. Recommend visiting Taipei 101 and the Living Mall. Many good places to eat in the food courts.
We were only in Taipei for a layover and as such didn''t get to see much of the city. We wondered around the area close to the hotel and were very happy to find a restaurant called "Malibu West" right beside the hotel. The food was excellent and the staff very friendly. When we returned to Taipei two weeks later for another lay over there was no question about where we were going for dinner. It really was one of the best meals of our entire 2 1/2 week holiday. The night market that is very close to the hotel had some very interesting things for sale. There were also many variety stores nearby.
We bought a pass for the MRT and then each day it was quick and easy to catch a train to explore (a 2 or 3 minute walk to catch a train.) We had a small map of the mrt system (both english/chinese) and found the signage for the stations very user friendly for english speakers.<br> <br> There were 2 small supermarkets near the hotel (one in the railway mall) and diagonally across the road was a department store. 2 stations away (on the blue line to Kunyang, alight at Zhongxaio Xinsheng), or about a 20 minute walk down the road running past the hotel was an IT region, with lots of computer shops. 5 stations away, (on the red line to Danshui, alight at Jiantan) was the Shilin night market (VERY crowded, but lots of food stalls).
Shih Lin night market is a fantastic place to visit, particularly if you are staying at the Grand Hotel. For ladies who are shoe fanatics, you will enjoy the wide range of shoes you get at the market with each pair going for only NT$390 at various stores.
We purchased 3 different tours such as -- 1/2 day city tour which covered main tour points which is must, National Palace Museum houses many acheological items over 4,000 years old and many more art work; folk craft tour covered one of oldest temple with beautiful carvings, pottery place Ingee, old town and shopping; Pitou, rock formation and Jifun, town on the peak of the mountain which apperes in many movies and pass by the abandoned gold mine. We took MRT to cental city visited few more temple, night market, department store but seeing worthy is Taipei 101, world''s tallest building standing on the land known with most frequent severe typhoon and earth quake. City center is very hi-tech and modern. We visited one end of MRT station Dunsui. Nice town with Red Castle turned into college and cathedral, mall like shop street, beautiful waterfront walk paved and many shops along the walking park.<br> <br> People were very helpful and many spoke English so well. Taxi ride is very reasonable but most of the driver did not understand English. Many restaurants we tried were on the guide book and they were better than hotel restaurants. Any type of wraps filled with various ingredients, soup, noodle dish, meat & seafood dishes both Taiwan and Shanghai style are everywhere and good. Coffee shops are very nice both atmosphere and what they serve.
It was not a relaxing 4-day-stopover, but the food was excellent, the people are friendly, and there are some top-notch sights. You can visit the National Palace Museum and it''s worth visiting the Huashi Night Market to see snake handlers playing with live cobras, to sample snake soup or a cup of snake bile, or to pick up an aphrodisiac made from powdered cobra''s gall bladder. The Taipei 101 (the highest building in the world) is good to make some photos. There are also a lot of very big and cheap department stores for computer and computer-accessories.
Hsinchu isn’t called the “windy city” without reason. A windbreaker and maybe more are required any time. I suggest women leave the billowing skirts for another destination, unless they are prepared for the rise.