CC Travel Blog

Mar, 2008
I made a mistake in my Eastern Taiwan planning so I had to spend 2 days there and not even did all the things I wanted to do. If planned properly, for one day, you can enjoy the sceneries of mountains and the pacific coast of Eastern Taiwan as well as enjoy hot spring and still have time to make it back to Taipei by night train.

If Taroko National Park is not interesting to you, then I would suggest something even better.

First of all, you need a car. You can either rent one or hire a taxi. I strongly recommend hiring a taxi. The road system in Hualien is not that straight forward and a lot of roads don’t have proper signs or directions. Motorcyclers are another distraction for foreign drivers. Lastly, if you don’t have a driving license in Taiwan, you cannot buy driving insurance at all while renting a car. You can still rent a car with an international driving license or a US driving license, but you’ll be completely responsible for all the damages if something bad happens.

Renting a taxi on the other hand is cheaper, safer and a lot less tiring. We rented a taxi for half day and the price was $600NT for 2 people. I’ve heard that for 6 people and a full day, the price could be around $1800NT. It is all a negotiation, which is flexible and a lot cheaper than renting a car and buying gas on your own.

A local driver knows how to beat the traffic, where to make the turn, what to recommend to do and eat and acts as a free tour guide. Many of the taxi drivers are aboriginals and they like to talk about their tribe’s traditions and festivals, which is a great education experience.

Driving along the coast on Hwy 11, you can visit Henan Temple (和南寺), Baci Observation Platform (芭崎眺望台), Sinji Tunnel (新嘰隧道), Yuedong (月洞), Tropic of Cancer Marker (北回歸線標誌), Basiandong (巴仙洞) and then enjoy a good hot spring at Antong Hot Spring (安通溫泉) before heading back to Hualien. According to the locals, along the East Coast, Antong Hot Spring is the best one.

If you have time at night, visit the night market for some good food; stroll around downtown to shop for souvenirs or perhaps visit the Amis Cultural Viliage for their traditional festival dance performance (5:20pm, 7:20pm).