I went to Taiwan tourism office today. The guy told me got a travel agency affiliated with them (MST Travel) selling HSR train ticket for RM 280, valid for 3 consecutive days unlimited use.
I called the agency & the lady told me the ticket also has been upgraded i.e. no need to pay extra for seat selection. Do u think its worth buying?

HSR ticket is expensive even if book advance online right? But we are not sure if we will travel so many places using HSR in 3 days.

I'm going with my hubby next month 17-26 & we are planning few days in Taipei & few days outside Taipei but not decided whether Taichung or Tainan.

Ya lor, at first I thought its worth it. Now I'm not sure already. The lady said if u select seat (like air asia) then need to pay NT 100 extra on top of your train ticket.

And her ticket is open date, means u dont have to select departure date when u buy from her. She will issue a voucher to u & u need to show the voucher & passport to the HSR counter to redeem a 3 days booklet. Once u redeem on that day, u can use the HSR unlimited in 3 days.

Hi, regarding changing currency, is it advisable to change taiwan dollar in Msia first? I'm not changing a lot, about RM2000. The exchange rate I saw few days ago is NT100 = RM10.80.

If I want to change rm3k, is it advisable to change all to USD here then change back to NT at taoyuan airport?
A money changer near my office quote 10.70.
Means I will get abt NT32,100?

Option 1:
Rate is rm10.70 for TWD100. Means 100/10.70=TWD9.345
If change rm3000 to TWD, i get TWD 28,035.
========
Option 2:
If change RM to USD then change TWD at Taiwan airport:
for RM1000, I get ~USD326 (rate is RM3.06 for USD1)
If change RM3000, I get USD980.

Based on exchange rate in bank of Taiwan, they will buy USD 1 at TWD28.635 so i get TWD9335.
(326x28.635)

So, if change USD980 to TWD, I get 980x28.635=TWD 28,062. Assume there is TWD30 fee, so I get nett TWD28,032.

So, if change everything here, I get TWD28,035.
If change in Taiwan, I get TWD28,032.
In the end, I get lesser if follow option 2. Am I right or wrong?

Ok thanks for confirming I'm right

Wow so last min..good luck!

Based on my experience, the rate is cheaper if u email the hotel/minsu directly..rather than going thru agoda, etc.
U get to nego with the hotel/minsu for better rates bcos of your long stay.

Are the stuff in fengjia night market like boots, jacket cheaper compared with shilin, raohe, etc?
Im going to taichung on my day 2 & I want to buy boots & winter jacket leh!
I'm only going to other night markets in Taipei like raohe, Huaxi, gongguan and not forgetting on the last few days of my trip.
I've limited budget to spend so I don't want to buy something similar at higher price if I can find cheaper elsewhere. Pls advise!

This post has been edited by sugarbaby: Jan 15 2013, 10:36 AM

Wow not bad the price! Within my budget.

Just came back from my 10 days trip with hubby. Though its the 1st time I went there & my Chinese sucks, I enjoyed every moment of it. Taiwanese are very nice & friendly. Transportation & facilities are great too. Love the food & cheap clothes, shoes.
Went to taipei's popular places like beitou, danshui, jiufen, yehliu, wufenpu, ximending, Taipei 101, CKS memorial hall, Shinkong, longshan temple, Zhongxiao Fuxing areas, din tai fung.
Also booked a cab & went to Taichung - Hehuanshan snow mountain, Green Green Grassland, Sun Moon Lake. And also went to Hualien visit Taroko National Park & explored Hualien town.
Not forgetting night markets like shilin, raohe, fengjia (Taichung) & ziqiang (Hualien).

Taipei can be explored with MRT, bus & trains. But outskirts like Taichung, Hualien definitely need a cab because the distance from one place to another is far & it saves time to have booked a cab.

Can I introduce a very nice, friendly & honest cabby here? A friend intro him to me & I booked him for 2 days 1 night trip to Taichung. His rate is very reasonable ( I've asked 8 other cabbies for quotation).
He picked us from our hotel in Taipei & sent us back to Taipei as well. Drove us to many interesting places, use his own money to buy local snacks for us to try, didnt bring us to buy stuff from shops to earn commission. In fact, he gave us tips to save money & even returned "extra money" to us. For instance, the ferry ride at Sun Moon Lake to Shueshi, Itashao and Syuanguang piers costs NT300 per person if you buy at the counter. But it costs only NT100 if a local Taiwanese agent buys for you. So, we actually save NT200 per person there! And he also helped us booked a hotel near fengjia night market for NT1100. Actually it's NT1300 per night and agents get NT200 commission with the hotel. But he gave us back the NT200 as he doesn't want to earn our money. He wants us to spend more at fengjia instead

And he even lent me his extra phone to call him cos he doesn't want me to use my own phone since roaming charges are expensive.

Anyone interested can whatsapp him at ‪+886 932 006 277‬ (mr. Liao 廖先生) or add him in facebook (candy92815@pchome.com.tw). He's 30s, energetic & can explain lots of stuff about Taiwan. And he drives a brand new Toyota wish & Hyundai 9 seater that have wifi too.
Just say Jessica Lee recommends & he'll give you a good rate.
I'll definitely book him again when i go Taiwan next time!

This post has been edited by sugarbaby: Feb 5 2013, 01:55 AM

I love jiufen so much! Weather was cold when I went there, about 13 degrees. I was breathing out smoke too. But so many tourists there, can get a bit crowded. We spent 5 hours there. Very nice place!

Yeah, but still not enough lar. I'm definitely going back again. I miss all the night market food & their mixed rice a.k.a bento. The rice & dishes are nice & cheap. 4 dishes with vege & meat only NT6.

I stayed at Hope Hotel. Just opposite taipei main station. Very convenient for us bcos its within walking distance to MRT, TRA, HSR & bus station. Got so many shops selling cheap food & clothing surrounding the hotel. Rate per nite NT1500.
I didn't stay at SML. I stayed a nite at fengjia night market area & our cab driver drove us to SML the next day.
Visit wufenpu & XMD after 3pm would be better. After wufenpu, must walk to raohe night market. Lots of yummy food there!

This post has been edited by sugarbaby: Jan 31 2013, 12:53 AM

We reached there about 1.30pm. Took TRA to Ruifang then bus 1062. Walked until 6pm+.
We tried the popiah with ice cream & peanuts, yam balls dessert (taste quite ok, similar to snowflake's texture), super sweet pink guava, BBQ big mushroom and sausage. We walked up and down the alleys too. It was fun exploring the place. Too bad the sky gets dark faster during winter, but the night view was very nice too, with beautiful lanterns along the shops.

Yes he covers whole Taiwan in fact. But his schedule is very tight, cos many people booked him for his personalised service. Different from many Taiwan cabbies. He won't just drive you to a place & let u walk on your own. He will walk & explain the place to you & also buy local snacks for u to try.
For my trip to Taichung, not only he treats me lots of makan, he also treats me some olden days games that we play when we were small. Really brings back lots of sweet memories
Rate depends on where u want to go & how u arrange with him. U better whatsapp him for details lah

Thanks kiawin! Yes I enjoyed Taiwan a lot! I only have praises for this country.
At first I was worried cos I'm English ed, speak & read little Chinese. And I heard taiwanese's English not so good. But turned out I was wrong! I managed to communicate with them just fine & the people, food, clothes, transport there are just great!

I took the taroko express train to hualien. About 2 hrs journey. Very nice scenery, especially the Pacific Ocean when u r about to reach hualien. I sat on the left side of the train (lucky!) so I get to see the amazing view. The right side of the train just can see mountain only.
I booked the tic online, one way per person is NT418. We rent scooter NT800 for 2 days & went to taroko gorge, about 45 min ride from town. Also went hualien town. If u r going with family, better hire a cab. Transportation at hualien is not convenient.

I skipped YMS cos I read the park is quite big & u need a bus to explore the place. By foot is quite tiring.
I reached beitou about 11am+, had a yummy lunch at 24hour small eatery 北投24小吃店 - lu rou fan & other side dishes. Then walked to hot spring areas - the museum, library & all d way to hell valley (smells awful due to sulfur). We didnt book any hot spring hotel to soak. But we did soak our feet in a big drain, together with lots of people. it was fun!
Then took mrt to Danshui in afternoon to fisherman wharf & lovers bridge. Danshui's old street itself has so much to explore. We don't have enough time there!
We rushed to take the ferry to lovers bridge to see the sunset. Very nice place to walk around. At night, we took the bus back to the old street & explored the area again. Got a night market there too. So many shops selling nice food & decorative stuff.

So I think if u include YMS in as well, will be kinda rushing lor.

This post has been edited by sugarbaby: Feb 2 2013, 07:45 PM

Cingjing & Hehuanshan are very beautiful! Should go there!