Song Syue Lodge→Taoyuan Airport (TPE)

To take the High Speed Rail (HSR) from Song Syue Lodge to Taoyuan Airport (TPE), HSR is expensive, slow, and has difficult taxi access. From the earliest departure at 06:15 to the latest at 22:50, there are up to 72 high-speed rail from Nangang to Taoyuan each day. Assuming you depart from Song Syue Lodge (Xiulin Township, Hualien County) and head to the nearest Nangang HSR station, a taxi ride would cost about NT$4,700 and take approximately 199 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 28-34-minute (32 min on average) HSR ride from Nangang Station to Taoyuan HSR Station. The ticket price is NT$200 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 20 minutes with a fare of NT$400, you will arrive at your destination at Taoyuan Airport (TPE) (Dayuan District, Taoyuan City). The entire journey, including transfers, takes a total of 4 hours and 36 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$2,240. However, in Hualien County, there are only just over 1,000 licensed taxis. The taxi density is 0.5% of that in the Taipei/New Taipei metro area. In other words, hailing a taxi on the spot is 200 times more difficult than in a major city like Taipei, and since Song Syue Lodge 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 Hualien 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$1,550, and the journey takes 3 hours and 52 minutes. Choosing the HSR over a private charter will not only cost each person at least an extra NT$690 in fares but also waste an additional 44 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 are considering renting a car, unfortunately, there are likely no rental companies in the vicinity of Song Syue Lodge. If you do not want to spend extra time traveling to a nearby city to rent a car, nor spend a large sum of money on a taxi to Taoyuan Airport (TPE), then a direct Tripool private car is your best option.

If you choose to take a taxi directly, in the Hualien County area, you can use apps to hail a cab from 55688 Taiwan Taxi. Based on the meter, the estimated fare is between NT$4,230 and 6,300, which is not significantly different from Tripool. By comparison, Tripool offers a fixed, transparent fare that will not change due to traffic or detours. But if you cannot book in advance or prefer to hail a cab on the spot, be aware that in the whole Hualien County, there are only about 1,010 licensed taxis. The taxi density is just 0.5% of that in the Taipei/New Taipei metro area, meaning it is 200 times more difficult to hail a cab on the spot compared to Taipei or New Taipei. Furthermore, some taxi drivers in Hualien County flat-out refuse to use the meter. Nearly 32% 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 Song Syue Lodge to Taoyuan Airport (TPE) in terms of both price and service quality.

According to the latest Taiwan government announcement, all international inbound travelers cannot take public transportations but only wait for quarantine taxis. If you go to a quarantine hotel near Taipei, it takes around 5 to 10 minutes to leave the airport. Bad news for passengers who will travel down to Taichung or Kaohsiung, it may take up to one hour to wait for a quarantine taxi at the airport. There is no timeline for when the government will loose the regulation. Our suggestion is staying a hotel near Taipei. It is not only the waiting time at the airport for a taxi is shorter, but always it is easier to find an available room in Taipei. After 14-day quarantine, you are welcome to reserve a ride from the hotel to your home or dormitory. Tripool guarantees to provide private car service from anywhere to everywhere in Taiwan.

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.

Generally, international travelers have to reach the airport to check-in at least 2 hours before departure. However, we highly recommend having another 30 minutes buffer time. Taking a ride from Taichung City to Taoyuan Airport, for example, takes 1.5 hours to travel on a regular day. If your flight is 10 AM, it's better to schedule a taxi before 6 AM. After a plane landing, Taiwan citizens may take 30~40 minutes to collect their luggage but 60~90 minutes for foreigners. To avoid extra cost, reserving a taxi one hour later the arrival is ideal.

Tripool provides private day tours and charter services all around the island, including Taoyuan Airport (TPE) and Song Syue Lodge. 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.

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.