雲林科技大學→Budai Harbor

It is not recommended to take the High Speed Rail (HSR) from 雲林科技大學 to Budai Harbor. HSR is expensive, slow, involves transfer hassles, and has difficult taxi access. Even during peak days, there are only 27 trains from Yunlin to Chiayi a day, running from the first at 06:47 to the last at 23:12. After the last train until early morning, you will still need to look for other transportation options. Assuming you depart from 雲林科技大學 (Douliu City, Yunlin County) and head to the nearest Yunlin HSR station, a taxi ride would cost about NT$400 and take approximately 29 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 10-13-minute (12 min on average) HSR ride from Yunlin Station to Chiayi HSR Station. The ticket price is NT$150 per person, followed by a 5-minute walk to exit the station, wait for a ride at the taxi stand, and after a trip of about 37 minutes with a fare of NT$700, you will arrive at your destination at Budai Harbor (Budai Township, Chiayi County). The entire journey, including transfers, takes a total of 1 hour and 38 minutes. Assuming 5 people traveling together (and have to split into two taxis), the average cost per person for the HSR and transfers is NT$590. However, in Yunlin County, there are only just over 200 licensed taxis. The taxi density is 0.4% of that in the Taipei/New Taipei metro area. In other words, hailing a taxi on the spot is 300 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 Yunlin County 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$580, and the journey takes 1 hour and 9 minutes. Choosing the HSR over a private charter will not only cost each person at least an extra NT$10 in fares but also waste an additional 29 minutes on transfers and waiting. Book with Tripool now! 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.

If you have a Taiwanese driver's license, are confident in your driving skills, and you do not need to rest in the car (since you will be the one driving), and most importantly, if you plan to make a same-day round trip, then iRent, which allows you to pick up and drop off a car on the street in the Yunlin County area, is likely your cheapest option. After registering on the iRent app, you can rent a small car for NT$115-205 per hour with an additional charge of NT$3.2 per kilometer. The estimated cost from 雲林科技大學 to Budai Harbor is between NT$1100 and NT$1650 (the price difference depends on weekday/weekend rates, car model, and how soon you make the return trip after reaching your destination). Although the estimate already includes potential eTag tolls and a roadside parking fee of NT$40 per hour, you are responsible for any additional car insurance and potential traffic fines. Furthermore, iRent by Hotai only offers basic models like the Toyota Yaris, Prius C, and Vios—functional, yes, but far from the comfort you'd expect for anything beyond a grocery run. If your group has more than four people, larger 7-seater or 9-seater vehicles are not available. Moreover, the most common complaint about self-service car-sharing services is the vehicle's condition; you might open the door to find trash left by the previous user or unrepaired dents. Every rental feels like opening a blind box—sometimes fine, sometimes frustrating. Additionally, you might occasionally face issues like the previous user not returning the car on time for your reservation, or being unable to find a parking spot when you need to return it. This poses a significant risk for those in a hurry or traveling with other passengers. Finally, while picking up and dropping off the car on the street seems convenient, it is restricted to specific operational zones. The available parking spots may still be some distance away from your actual departure or arrival point, making it very inconvenient in rainy weather or when carrying luggage.

If you choose to take a taxi directly, in the Yunlin County area, you can use apps to hail a cab from 55688 Taiwan Taxi, and if you cannot hail a cab on the street, you can also consider calling taxi fleets near 雲林科技大學, such as 華麗計程車, 久安汽車行, 斗六計程車 to try to book a ride. Based on the meter, the estimated fare is between NT$1,415 and 1,700. However, in the whole Yunlin County, there are only about 200 licensed taxis. The taxi density is just 0.4% of that in the Taipei/New Taipei metro area, meaning it is 300 times more difficult to hail a cab on the spot compared to Taipei or New Taipei. If you plan to make a return trip on the same or next day, be aware that taxis in Budai Township, Chiayi County are also not easy to find. It is recommended to plan ahead. Furthermore, some taxi drivers in Yunlin County flat-out refuse to use the meter. Nearly 35% 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. Although a metered taxi from central 雲林科技大學 to central Budai Harbor might be cheaper, you still face the risk of not being able to find a cab—or ending up with a driver who refuses to use the meter. If your group has more than four people, splitting into two taxis is inconvenient. In this case, Tripool, which offers pre-booking and reliable quality, might be a more suitable option for you. Considering all factors, Tripool is your best choice for traveling from 雲林科技大學 to Budai Harbor in terms of both price and service quality.

Tripool provides 5-seater sedans, SUVs, and 9-seater vans for private car service. Toyota, Ford, Volkswagen are the most used brands, and there are also a few Lexus, Tesla, and Mercedes-Benz. All vehicles are legal, in good condition, non-smoking, and with up to $5 million insurance. If you have special requests or passengers are more than 8, tripool can arrange a VW Crafter, a 20-seater minibus, or a 40-seater tour bus. Please fill up the request form on our homepage, and we will provide a quote.

Passengers can request additional stops for a ride from 雲林科技大學 to Budai Harbor. Every 5 km of additional distance for a stop charges NT$200, whether it is along the way or not. It's necessary for the driver's extra time.

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.

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 雲林科技大學 to Budai Harbor, it's better to reserve it now to secure the best price.

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.