8 Days Taiwan Trip [Day 6-8]: Exploring Hualien + Taroko Gorge

Click here to see :
Day 1 – 2 of Taichung + Sun Moon Lake
Day 3  of Taichung : Exploring Taichung
Day 4-5  of Taipei : Exploring Taipei

8 Days Itinerary in Taiwan:
Day 1 – 3: Taichung + Sun Moon Lake
Day 4 – 5: Taipei
Day 6 – 7: Hualien
Day 8: Taipei

Brief Summary of the whole trip:

Day 1 – Reached Taoyuan International Airport

Day 2 – King’s Garden, Sun Moon Lake, Formosa Cultural Village, Xuanzang Temple, Fengjia Night Market

Day 3 – Rainbow Village, Carton King, Mushrooom Farm, Zhongshi Flower Farm

Day 4 – Yehliu, Golden Waterfall @ Jinguashi, Jiufen old Street, Shifen Sky Lantern, Keelung/Raohe Night Market

Day 5 – Free and Easy around Zhongshan district, Ximending district, Ningxia Night Market

Day 6 – Train to Hualien, Free and easy around minsu, Night Market

Day 7 – Taroko National Park – Qingshui Cliff, Changchun Shrine (blocked), Shakadong Trail, Swallow Grotto Trail, Jinheng Bridge, Xiangde Temple @ Central Cross-Island Highway, Seven Star Lake

Day 8 – Back to Singapore

– Booking of Train Tickets Drama –

The drama started a week ago before we departed from Singapore to Taiwan, when my husband came into our room and told me that he failed to get any express train tickets to and back for Hualien – Taipei trip. As it was our first time trying to book the tickets, we were unsure of how the system works. By the time we got the hang of it, all the express train tickets were fully booked! Local train tickets were not available for online booking and so, we didn’t know what to do.

So I reached out and asked our Hualien Minsu (Glenivy Bed and Breakfast) owner for help and he was so kind to actually help us book express train tickets from Taipei to Hualien by booking two trains tickets where we need to transfer midway. We never thought of doing that and thankfully he booked the the train tickets of the same train code. So actually, we just need to change seat numbers (if needed) without having to alight from the train.

Instead of booking Taipei to Hualien directly, we got 2 express train tickets (same train code) which goes from Banqiao to Yilan, and then from Yilan to Hualien.

But the minsu owner told us that the tickets from Hualien back to Taipei Main station/other stations in Taipei were fully booked. Hence, we were considering getting train+bus combo tickets which means taking train from Hualien to Yilan and then take bus to Taipei. But during our stay at Taipei, we watched the Taiwan news where there was a road jam which can delayed for hours because of their holidays so we ditched the idea and decided to take “standing” tickets of the Express train instead. The Standing train tickets (Hualien to Taipei) cannot be booked online or purchased at Taipei Main Station. It has to be booked at Hualien Station itself, so we purchased the tickets the moment we reached Hualien station. Problem solved!

Confused on how to book the train tickets?

You can read more information HERE which I find it quite useful for a confused first-time traveller like me!

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–  Day 6 @ Hualien –

Day 6

We booked out of our apartment and headed out early to reach Banqiao Station to catch the express train which will take us to Hualien station. Train ride was about 3 hours so by the time we reached, it was already noon.

We rushed off to buy our return tickets back to Taipei, getting the “standing” tickets instead as the seating tickets were all fully booked. “Standing” tickets back to Taipei can only be purchased at Hualien station’s ticketing counter.

Finally we arrived at our minsu via cab where the minsu’s staff was waiting for us. Thankfully, he allowed us to deposit our luggages inside as we were like 2 hours earlier before the check-in time.

The rooms were pretty! After staying in our previous small apartment with bad facilities, this was a nice change! It was too bad that we could only stay for a night before we headed off for the Taroko Tour and went straight to Taipei. We decided to explore around after getting some tips from the Minsu’s staff as he gave us a map and highlighted certain places that we can visit in Hualien City Center.

We aimed for this popular shop, Zeng Ji Mochi 曾记麻吉, which sells mochi, one of Hualien’s culinary snacks.  The first outlet we went was pretty crowded. We walked and found another outlet at a more ulu place which has no crowd at all. They have a range of flavours to choose from like red bean, sesame and peanut. Their freshly made mochi were pretty soft and chewy, but have to be consumed within 24 hours so we couldn’t pack home. Instead, they have pre-packed mini mochi which we bought home, not as good as the freshly made ones but still tastes good.

We decided to try the famous Gongzheng Street Bao Shop (公正包子店) which had garnered a long queue! We were comtemplating between whether to sit in and dine or takeaway. Eventually, we decided to dine in and I’m glad we did! Imagine eating the buns, dumplings and noodles on the go…not a very good idea!

We decided to try their steamed dumplings, noodles and xiao long bao. To my surprise, the xiao long bao came in traditional pau version, unlike the ones served in Singapore where the pork filling are stuffed inside a very thin skin (much like dumplings). The pork fillings in the pau was really tender and oozing with juice so I would recommend this dish! I also quite like the dumplings as well, dipped with the sauces they provided. The noodles are pretty much average, so I suggest you should just go for more dumplings or the xiao long bao when you visit!

We shopped around and bought a few more snacks, before we headed back to our accommodation to dump our things as the sky got dark. After resting for a while, we decided to go to Dongdamen Night market which was comfortably near our accommodation. It was pretty much like Feng Jia Market, but smaller and definitely much more livelier due to the on going dance and singing performances.

Located at the downtown area in Hualien, it offers a range of activities such as games like shooting darts and archery to selling delicious local snacks and chinese cuisine.  Let the pictures do the talking before I ended this section for Day 7!

–  Day 7 @ Taroko Gauge –

Day 7

We woke up to the healthy breakfast provided by the minsu, who delivered the pre-packed breakfast of salad. sandwiches and herbal tea.

We actually booked a driver from them (4500 NTD) for 9 seaters to make space for our luggages as our last stop will be the train station since we would be taking train back to Taipei. According to the local taxi driver when we booked a cab to drive us to or minsu, he said it was quite pricey and will be cheaper to hire a local cab driver to drive around Taroko. Not sure if it is true but you can consider that alternative too.

Day 7 – Taroko National Park – Qingshui Cliff, Changchun Shrine (blocked), Shakadong Trail, Swallow Grotto Trail, Jinheng Bridge, Xiangde Temple @ Central Cross-Island Highway, Seven Star Lake

National Taroko Park : Taroko Gauge was the landmark gorge of the park carved by the Liwu River.

First stop was the Qingshui Cliff which I can tell you that the nature is remarkably beautiful! The pictures here really do no justice as it was best to view it personally in real life. Actually, the whole trip’s pictures all don’t do justice at all! That’s how breathtaking this place was!

The driver told us that the path to Changchun Shrine was blocked due to a landslide so we cannot go there and hence, we can only view from far.

We headed to the next stop which was the Shakadong Trail (砂卡噹步道), famous for its crystal-clear turquoise water strewn with imposing marble boulders. Due to the time constraint, my family didn’t went down to check it out, but instead, my husband and I went for a short while to take a look. According to the sign board, the trail was about 1.5 km long which will take probably about 2 hours to finish 2 ways. We only walked a while and took some pictures before we U-turned back to our car.

Initially, we did not know why there was a lot of rocks and landslides covering certain areas as we walked along the trail. Then I read from somewhere that it was because of the destruction caused by Typhoon Saola in 2012. It was still remarkable being there though!

Next destination was the Swallow Grotto Trail, helmets had to be worn due to the danger of falling rocks. Swallow Grotto was named because you can find sparrows flying in high speed in the gorge.  According to the information board which I read from, it was because of the rising air currents in the gorge that carry insects, inviting the swallows to catch insects in their flight. Potholes can also be seen on the rocks itself which were said to be the nesting grounds for swallows. So do keep a lookout for them when you travel there!

At the other side of the Liwu river, my tour guide pointed out a shape on the rock which can be easily seen which looks like a huge human head in profile. People called it the “Indian Chief Rock” because it made out to looks like an Indian chief wearing a headdress. This was carved out by the flowing river over time, cutting through the marble (softer rocks) and created the Indian Chief Rock. Amazing masterpiece, isn’t it?

We lunched somewhere near the Jinheng Bridge under the wooden terrace, but as what I know, lunch options at Taroko Gauge are very pricey!

And indeed, the set meal we got was like 290 NTD which is like SGD$14.  I desperately wanted to get a coffee to perk me up but decided against it as it costed SGD $6 per cup! Food was not so fantastic in regards to the price but it still tastes good for me. I would advise you to bring a packed lunch box or drinks before you come trekking at Taroko Gauge.

We also walked through the Tunnel of Nine Turns before driving up to Tianxiang to visit the Xiangde Temple after crossing the Pudu Bridge.

We actually climbed up halfway in the temple which the view from the temple look down over the Tianxiang terraces and lovely gorge scenery. I was too tired to climb further and the view from where I was, was already breathtaking enough!

We ended the day by going to the Seven Stars Lake 七星潭 , which I have no idea why it is called a lake when it looks like an ocean to me. It was a beautiful pebbled shore stretched  to the Pacific Ocean, and it was not very crowded too.

And the most 辛苦 (exhausting) moment was taking train back to Taipei, by standing all the way for 3 hours! As the train was crowded, we could not even move from our spot and had to stand still for 3 hours until my legs went all numb and I just stoned all the way. So, best to try and get the seating tickets or avoid Taiwan’s national holidays at all costs if you want to book express train!

We were exhausted and famished by the time we reached our hotel. Checked in, rest and quickly get out to fill our tummies at the nearby eatery before we called it a night and Home sweet home the following day!

I finally end this post of our whole Taiwan Trip!