Taiwan travel experience 2024

                  Channie Hoang Hoa Founder of Odayaka Vietnam

SCHEDULE SUMMARY

Day 1: DA NANG – TAO YUAN AIRPORT – TAICHUNG (2h45m flight + 150km by car)

Morning: Depart at Da Nang airport international terminal, board a direct flight to Taiwan.

Arrive at Taoyuan airport. Car picks up and moves to Taichung city

- Taichung Opera House: designed by architect Toyo Ito, inspired by the "cave houses" and "hole houses" of prehistoric humans, becoming a unique architectural building with winding walls and sloping troughs. one of a kind in the world. Due to the extremely complicated construction process, it was honored by international media as one of the "9 new symbols of the world".

- Dinner: Yu Ye Hotpot

- Overnight at Palmer Hotel

- Stroll around and check in to Taichung Station.

Miếu Văn Võ

Day 2: SUNRISE LAKE – VAN VO TEMPLE – RAINBOW VILLAGE – AUDIT VILLAGE (170km)

- After having breakfast at the hotel, I moved to Sun Moon Lake, the scenery on the way to the lake was very beautiful and poetic. This is the largest natural lake in Taiwan surrounded by vast green trees. This place was once Chiang Kai-shek's favorite vacation spot.

Fun activities at Sun Moon Lake: Biking to see the lake, taking a cruise, taking the cable car to see the lake, climbing mountains.

- From Sun Moon Lake, move up the mountainside about 10km to Van Vo Mieu: a place to worship Confucius (Van Mieu) and Quan Cong (Vo Mieu). In the temple, there is also a space to worship Nguyet Lao, a deity who takes care of human love affairs.

=> This area is very beautiful. If I have a chance to come back, I will spend 2 days here to enjoy the fresh, cool and pleasant atmosphere.

- Lunch at a restaurant near Sun Moon Lake

- Move to Rainbow Village: an area covered with bright colors and fun illustrations all over the walls and ground. Created by Mr. Huang Yung Fu with the desire to protect the village he was attached to, from being relocated due to urban development plans.

- Audit Village: Home to a series of eateries and cafes, selling cute souvenirs, a great place to go for ice cream on a sunny afternoon.

- Day 2's schedule ended around 6pm, then I met up with a few old friends in Taichung and walked together to the night market near the hotel. There is a very large night market in Taichung called: Phung Giap, everyone can visit.

Day 3: CAKE MUSEUM - Shi Lam Emperor's FLOWER GARDEN - DUONG MINH SON PARK - GIAI SHICH MEMORIAL MEMORIAL - 101 TOWER (256km)

In the morning, around 8am, I checked out of the hotel and moved to Taipei (150km).

The route is on the highway so you should take advantage of about 2 hours of sleep because starting today there will be many beautiful sights to visit.

- On the way to the city center, stop by Shu Shin Bou Wagashi Museum bakery to enjoy Taiwanese pineapple cakes and Japanese Mochi. There are many choices for people to buy as gifts.

-Guan De Shilin flower garden, also known as Song My Linh flower garden, is named after Chiang Kai-shek's wife. This is one of the places that she loved so much when she was alive.

- Continue straight on the road up to Duong Minh Son mountain. This is one of eight famous national parks in Northern Taiwan, gathering many parks, trails, and diverse flora and fauna. Especially famous for its volcanoes and hot springs.

- After going down to the city for lunch, move past the Chiang Kai-shek Memorial Hall: a famous national monument, landmark and tourist attraction erected to commemorate Great Marshal Chiang Kai-shek, former General President of the Republic of China.

- Taipei 10 Tower: Symbol of Taiwan, this was the tallest tower in the world for many years. Tickets can be purchased to the observatory on floors 89 & 101 for panoramic views of Taipei city and access to the world's fastest elevator

(Ticket price from 500k - 1 million depending on floor)

- Have dinner with steak noodles and return to the hotel to rest: Taipei Hotel Orchard Park

Note: The road to Duong Minh Son mountain is quite winding, so if you get motion sickness, you should prepare medicine or lozenges for this leg. The mountain is very beautiful, so if you have a self-sufficient schedule, you can spend a day here to explore more on foot.

Làng Cổ Cửu Phần

Day 4: ANCIENT VILLAGE Thap PEN – ANCIENT VILLAGE NINE PEN – TAY MEN DINH NIGHT MARKET (100km)

Today's schedule was a bit lighter, so at 9am I moved from the hotel to the ancient village.

- From the hotel through Shifen old town about 50km. Here, the custom of releasing lanterns has long become a typical cultural feature, attracting thousands of tourists here every year. The price of the lamp is about 250k depending on the color and different prayers.

- Walk about 1km higher to reach Shifen Waterfall. This waterfall is very beautiful, especially in the days after the rain.

- Go back to the parking lot, about 1 hour by car to reach Cuu Phan ancient village. This place is very beautiful but super crowded, especially on weekends. The check-in point in front of A Mei Tea tea shop is the setting in the movie Spirited Away.

Note: Prepare an empty stomach before coming here because it is a food paradise, every dish is delicious and attractive. Try all the dishes you like and buy cute souvenirs with tamarind seeds here, because the road to this village is quite arduous.

- Return to the city in the evening and go to Ximending night market, the largest night market in Taipei.

Phố Cổ Dihua

Day 5. DIHUA OLD TOWN - LONG SON TU - DAO VIEN AIRPORT - DA NANG (50km by car + 2h45m flight)

Today was the last day to prepare to return to Vietnam, so I woke up early to see the streets of Taipei a little more. Taiwanese people start the day quite late, around 9-10 am, so when you go out at 7 am, you can freely walk the whole road alone.

- Around the hotel where I stayed, there was the Presidential Palace and the Institute of Justice very close, so I went for a walk, less than 2km away, so I went to the gym. These are works from the Japanese period associated with many historical milestones, so I was very curious to see them.

- Next is Dihua ancient town: A street that sells traditional Chinese medicine, tea, ginseng, cordyceps, souvenirs, ancient beauty and super cool photos. It is known that people here are very cooperative with the government, they do not arbitrarily expand the house they live in, and have a common sense of conservation.

- The last point in the journey is Long Son Tu: the oldest temple in Taiwan dating back 300 years, built during the reign of King Qianlong. This place worships Avalokiteśvara Bodhisattva and more than a hundred deities of folk religions.

- Buy takeaway lunch and travel to the airport back to Vietnam

We invite you to see more photos from Channie Hoang Hoa's journey at the official fanpage on Facebook

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