• Asia,  Taiwan,  Transportation,  Travel

    Taipei to Hualien Using a Combo Ticket (Bus and Local Train)

    Booking the express train from Taipei to Hualien isn’t always a walk in the park. Worst case scenario that tickets are sold-out, the other option is the combo – bus + train. The combo ticket is not available online. Reservation or advance booking is not possible. It has to be bought in person at the bus ticketing counter on the day of travel. The bus company will provide you with tickets for the two legs of the trip: Bus from Taipei to Luodong Local train from Luodong to Hualien   Based on my research, there are two bus companies that offer the combo ticket. Your choice will most likely depend on where…

  • Asia,  Taiwan,  Transportation,  Travel

    Seven-Day Vacation in Taiwan: 2 Days in Taipei

    As I’ve mentioned in my introductory post about my seven-day vacation with friends in Taiwan, two days were allotted for Taipei. Since I’ve already explored parts of Taipei before, I had to come up with something else to do.   Getting to Taipei City from Taoyuan Airport Our flight’s ETD from Manila was 23:40 of January 31 with ETA of 2:05 February 1 at Taoyuan Airport Terminal 1. With this arrival time, our options to reach Taipei City is to take either a taxi or a public bus. We opted to take the Kuo Kuang Bus 1819. This bus has a stop at both terminals 1 and 2 of Taoyuan…

  • Asia,  Taiwan,  Transportation,  Travel

    My Experience with Booking a Train between Taipei and Hualien

    If you’re planning a visit to the Taroko National Park, your adventure will probably start with booking a train ticket between Taipei and Hualien. The ideal ride to take is either the Puyuma Express or Taroko Express which goes for, more or less, two hours of travel time. Booking opens 14 days in advance. But, if the opening of ticket sales for your travel date falls on a Saturday or Sunday, it will already be up for grabs by Friday. I learned that the hard way.   My friends and I scheduled a day trip in Taroko for February 3. With the 14-day rule in mind, I was expecting ticket…