Question 1

Is taking the HSR from Shangri-La's Far Eastern Plaza Hotel Tainan to Yangmingshan a good idea?

Accepted Answer

To take the High Speed Rail (HSR) from Shangri-La's Far Eastern Plaza Hotel Tainan to Yangmingshan, HSR is comfortable and quick but pricey and has difficult taxi access. From the earliest departure at 06:03 to the latest at 22:23, there are up to 75 high-speed rail from Tainan to Taipei each day. Assuming you depart from Shangri-La's Far Eastern Plaza Hotel Tainan (East District, Tainan City)  and head to the nearest Tainan HSR station, a taxi ride would cost about NT$300 and take approximately 24 minutes. After arriving at the HSR station, the time to walk in, purchase tickets, and wait on the platform is about 15 minutes. Then, take a 85-120-minute (104 min on average) HSR ride from Tainan Station to Taipei HSR Station. The ticket price is NT$1,350 per person, followed by a 15-minute walk to exit the station, wait for a ride at the taxi stand, and after a trip of about 32 minutes with a fare of NT$400, you will arrive at your destination at Yangmingshan (Beitou District, Taipei City). The entire journey, including transfers, takes a total of 3 hours and 10 minutes. Assuming 4 people traveling together, the average cost per person for the HSR and transfers is NT$1,530. However, in Tainan City, there are only just over 4,100 licensed taxis. The taxi density is 4.6% of that in the Taipei/New Taipei metro area. In other words, hailing a taxi on the spot is 20 times more difficult than in a major city like Taipei. Even if you are lucky enough to hail a cab, a minority of taxi drivers in Tainan City may not use the meter, and might overcharge or take detours, especially with passengers who appear to be from out of town. In contrast, if you use Tripool for a door-to-door private car service, the average cost per person is about NT$1,440, and the journey takes 4 hours and 8 minutes. For long-distance travel, the HSR is indeed faster, but it comes with an extra transportation cost of about NT$360. Therefore, for those who are not in a major hurry, booking with Tripool is the more cost-effective option. If you are traveling in a group of three or less, you can also consider Tripool's carpooling service to save up to an additional 50% on transportation costs.

Question 2

Is it advisable to rent a car and drive from Shangri-La's Far Eastern Plaza Hotel Tainan to Yangmingshan?

Accepted Answer

If you have a driver's license, do not mind driving yourself, and you do not need to use the travel time to rest in the car, there are about 10 rental car companies, such as 府城國際租賃, 合豐國際租賃, 昶亨跑車, available in the Shangri-La's Far Eastern Plaza Hotel Tainan - East District, Tainan City area. Typically, car rentals are billed by the day. A small sedan like a Toyota Corolla or Ford Fiesta costs around NT$1500 per day, while a 9-seater van like a Hyundai Staria or Volkswagen Caravelle starts at NT$4500 per day. Extra costs such as fuel (approx. NT$3/km), eTag tolls (approx. NT$1/km), roadside parking (approx. NT$40/hour), insurance, and potential fines are not included. Most rental agreements specify a daily mileage limit of 200-400 km, with surcharges ranging from NT$100 to NT$2,000 for exceeding it. Since the vast majority of rental companies do not offer one-way rentals, assuming you make a same-day round trip between Shangri-La's Far Eastern Plaza Hotel Tainan and Yangmingshan, the estimated cost for a sedan is NT$4300 or NT$7300 for a 9-seater van. This is, of course, cheaper than taking a taxi.  If you plan to sightsee along the way to Yangmingshan, renting a car for the day is certainly convenient and affordable, but it means the driver will not get to relax or fully enjoy the trip. Moreover, the rental location may be some distance from Shangri-La's Far Eastern Plaza Hotel Tainan, and you must adhere to their business hours for pickup and return. The rental process itself is tedious, often taking an extra 30 minutes for contracts and vehicle inspection. You may even need to refuel the car yourself before returning. If you encounter a dishonest operator, you risk being hit with various unjustified charges upon return.

Question 3

Would it be economical to take a taxi from Shangri-La's Far Eastern Plaza Hotel Tainan to Yangmingshan?

Accepted Answer

If you choose to take a taxi directly, in the Tainan City area, you can use apps to hail a cab from 55688 Taiwan Taxi, Uber, Line Go, Yoxi, etc., and if you cannot hail a cab on the street, you can also consider calling taxi fleets near Shangri-La's Far Eastern Plaza Hotel Tainan, such as 台一大車隊, 台南計程車 Taxi中華衛星大車隊, 台南包車府城國際 to try to book a ride. Based on the meter, the estimated fare is between NT$6,275 and 7,500, but you could save up to NT$1,700 by booking with Tripool instead. But if you cannot book in advance or prefer to hail a cab on the spot, be aware that in the whole Tainan City, there are only about 4,140 licensed taxis. The taxi density is just 4.6% of that in the Taipei/New Taipei metro area, meaning it is 20 times more difficult to hail a cab on the spot compared to Taipei or New Taipei. Furthermore, some taxi drivers in Tainan City flat-out refuse to use the meter. Nearly 17% of them will try to negotiate the fare on the spot—often asking far above the standard rate. If you’re not familiar with local pricing, you are an easy target. To avoid getting ripped off, it is strongly advised to book online in advance. Considering all factors, Tripool is your best choice for traveling from Shangri-La's Far Eastern Plaza Hotel Tainan to Yangmingshan in terms of both price and service quality.

Question 4

Why does tripool charge cheaper than other taxis?

Accepted Answer

For regular long-distance travelers, they find Tripool's price may be too low to be good. On the contrary, Tripool has a high standard for selecting drivers and vehicles. Besides dropping drivers who are low rated, we also send mystery shoppers regularly to test drivers' service. Tripool's drivers are not allowed to smoke in the cars, and they have to wear masks all the time during the pandemic. We don't compromise our service for a low cost. Tripool can provide excellent service with 70~80% of the market price because of AI algorithms. We use these to dispatch vehicles to increase efficiency. Tripool can use fewer drivers to serve more travelers, especially in high seasons like Chinese New Year, Christmas, and summer vacation. Fewer drivers mean better quality control. The price on tripool's website and app are dynamic. Generally, the earlier a ride is booked, the lower price it is. Most of all, all booking are 100% refundable as long as the cancelation request is made one day before noon, no matter what the reason is. If you are preparing to go from Shangri-La's Far Eastern Plaza Hotel Tainan to Yangmingshan, it's better to reserve it now to secure the best price.

Question 5

Do tripool and the drivers provide legal car-hiring services in Tainan City and Taipei City?

Accepted Answer

There are many gypsy cabs or illegal taxis in Line and Facebook groups. Their fares are cheap but with many risks. If the cabs are pulled over by polices, passengers cannot continue the trip. If there is an accident, none of the insurance companies will settle a claim. Worst of all, illegal drivers may conduct crimes without any trace. Don't put your life at risk for just saving a few bucks. On the other hand, tripool contracts with legal drivers without any criminal record. All vehicles provide up to $5 million in insurance. The easiest way to distinguish a legal vehicle is the car plate number. Unless the initial character of the car plate number is either T or R, the car is 100% illegal for taxi service.

Question 6

Does tripool provide charter tour services? Is there a price list that I can check first?

Accepted Answer

Tripool provides private day tours and charter services all around the island, including Yangmingshan and Shangri-La's Far Eastern Plaza Hotel Tainan. Tourists are welcome to choose from point-to-point transportation service to 2~12 hours private trip service. The price is 100% transparent without any hidden fee. What you see on the website/app is the actual price. There is no need to email us or even make a phone call to verify. The full-day service price may not be lower than other providers. But if you only need a few hours or just a one-way transfer service, we can guarantee that our price is the most competitive in the market and tripool is the best choice. We offer 5-seater sedans, SUVs, and 9-seater vans. If your group is more than 9, we can arrange a bigger bus for you.

Question 7

Can I request a refund for the cancelation of a ride from Shangri-La's Far Eastern Plaza Hotel Tainan to Yangmingshan?

Accepted Answer

Passengers can request free cancelation one day before by noon. 100% refundable for any reason. Just send us an email or fill up the cancelation form. No additional administration fee is guaranteed.

Question 8

How to book a hotel at the lowest price in Taiwan?

Accepted Answer

Fewer travelers book hotels through traditional travel agents, and most go through OTAs (online travel agents). It is easy to filter areas, prices, types of rooms, special needs on OTAs' websites. Still, customers can also get a 20~40% discount compared to hotels' official websites. The most popular OTAs in Taiwan are Booking.com, Agoda.com, Hotels.com, Expedia.com, and Trip.com. In general, travelers can make reservations on websites or apps. Once finishing the online payment, everything is set, and there is not necessary to double-check the reservation by phone. However, some hotels may oversell their rooms on multiple platforms. To avoid being rejected by hotels once you arrive, choose high-rated hotels with more reviews online or make a phone call to hotels to confirm again. For B&Bs (also called minsus), locals prefer to book rooms through B&Bs' websites or contact the hosts directly. Sometimes, the price is better than OTAs. The downside is that their websites don't accept foreign credit cards or guests have to do wire transfers. If you want to save all these troubles and find decent B&Bs, Airbnb and AsiaYo (a local brand) are the best alternatives.

項目	tripool 旅步	高鐵	租車	計程車
行程時間	250 mins	-	280-310 mins	265-280 mins
每人價格	NT$1,440/person	NT$1,530/person	NT$1,080/person	NT$1,570-1,880/person
優點	1–8 passengers Truly pickup anywhere Ride guaranteed No hidden fees	Comfortable seating No time wasted	Low-cost Flexible schedule	Meets urgent needs No upfront payment
缺點	Pre-booking only No cash	Tickets often sold out in peak season Multiple transfers needed Higher fare	Extra commute to car pick-up Time restrictions for pick-up and return Additional risk involved Requires same-day return or a multi-day rental	Inconsistent quality Difficult to find a ride Higher price Risk of overcharging

Shangri-La's Far Eastern Plaza Hotel Tainan→Yangmingshan

Your reliable partner for any journey, big or small

關於 tripool 旅步

我們的服務車款

五人座

七人座

九人座

合作夥伴＆企業用戶

Yangmingshan 接送常見問題

除了 Shangri-La's Far Eastern Plaza Hotel Tainan 到 Yangmingshan，還有⋯

立即下載 tripool App

到府接送直達服務

立即下載 tripool App

更多從 Shangri-La's Far Eastern Plaza Hotel Tainan 附近出發的路線

除了 Shangri-La's Far Eastern Plaza Hotel Tainan 到 Yangmingshan，還有⋯

Shangri-La's Far Eastern Plaza Hotel Tainan→Yangmingshan

Your reliable partner for any journey, big or small

關於 tripool 旅步

我們的服務車款

五人座

七人座

九人座

合作夥伴＆企業用戶

Yangmingshan 接送常見問題

除了 Shangri-La&#39;s Far Eastern Plaza Hotel Tainan 到 Yangmingshan，還有⋯

立即下載 tripool App

到府接送直達服務

立即下載 tripool App

更多從 Shangri-La&#39;s Far Eastern Plaza Hotel Tainan 附近出發的路線

除了 Shangri-La&#39;s Far Eastern Plaza Hotel Tainan 到 Yangmingshan，還有⋯

除了 Shangri-La's Far Eastern Plaza Hotel Tainan 到 Yangmingshan，還有⋯

更多從 Shangri-La's Far Eastern Plaza Hotel Tainan 附近出發的路線

除了 Shangri-La's Far Eastern Plaza Hotel Tainan 到 Yangmingshan，還有⋯