Kenting→花莲东大门夜市: chartered cars are the fastest

To take the High Speed Rail (HSR) from Kenting to 花莲东大门夜市, HSR is expensive, slow, and has difficult taxi access. From the earliest departure at 05:50 to the latest at 22:10, there are up to 87 high-speed rail from Zuoying to Nangang each day. Assuming you depart from Kenting (Hengchun Township, Pingtung County) and head to the nearest Zuoying HSR station, a taxi ride would cost about NT$3,600 and take approximately 144 minutes. After arriving at the HSR station, the time to walk in, purchase tickets, and wait on the platform is about 20 minutes. Then, take a 105-145-minute (125 min on average) HSR ride from Zuoying Station to Nangang HSR Station. The ticket price is NT$1,530 per person, followed by a 10-minute walk to exit the station, wait for a ride at the taxi stand, and after a trip of about 224 minutes with a fare of NT$5,200, you will arrive at your destination at 花莲东大门夜市 (Hualien City, Hualien County). The entire journey, including transfers, takes a total of 8 hours and 43 minutes. Assuming one person traveling alone, the total transportation cost is NT$10,330. However, in Pingtung County, there are only just over 400 licensed taxis. The taxi density is 0.3% 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, and since Kenting is not located in a downtown area, it may be impossible to find a taxi at all. Even if you are lucky enough to hail a cab, a minority of taxi drivers in Pingtung 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, it will only cost NT$7,920, and the journey takes 6 hours and 51 minutes. Choosing the HSR over a private charter will not only cost at least an extra NT$2,410 in fares but also waste an additional 112 minutes on transfers and waiting. Book with Tripool now!

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 春山汽車租賃, 富群小客車租賃, 和欣小客車租賃, available in the Kenting - Hengchun Township, Pingtung County 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 Kenting and 花莲东大门夜市, the estimated cost for a sedan is NT$4100 or NT$7100 for a 9-seater van. This is, of course, cheaper than taking a taxi. If you plan to sightsee along the way to 花莲东大门夜市, 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 Kenting, 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.

If you choose to take a taxi directly, in the Pingtung County area, you can use apps to hail a cab from 55688 Taiwan Taxi and Yoxi. Based on the meter, the estimated fare is between NT$5,950 and 8,900, but you could save up to NT$1,000 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 Pingtung County, there are only about 370 licensed taxis. The taxi density is just 0.3% 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 Hualien City, Hualien County are also not easy to find. It is recommended to plan ahead. Furthermore, some taxi drivers in Pingtung County flat-out refuse to use the meter. Nearly 29% 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 Kenting to 花莲东大门夜市 in terms of both price and service quality.

Among these options, Uber is the only one with broad and reliable coverage in Taiwan, available in major cities such as Taipei, Taichung, and Kaohsiung. Grab does not operate in Taiwan. Didi previously entered the market but has since exited. Bolt has just launched in Taiwan and is currently limited to Taipei. Lyft is not available in Taiwan. If you are choosing among these five, Uber is by far the most practical and widely used option in Taiwan. However, for longer intercity transfers, airport rides, or day trips, tripool is often a better choice—offering transparent pricing, professional drivers, and coverage across Taiwan.

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.

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 Kenting to 花莲东大门夜市, it's better to reserve it now to secure the best price.

Tripool will send a receipt through the third-party system one week after the ride. If passengers need to claim reimbursement for travel expenses, there is a blank to fill with the company's title and tax ID. It's legal, and there is no extra 5% for the receipt. Once the receipt is received via email, it can be printed out for reimbursement or saved as a PDF.

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.