Taichung→We Come Hostel

To take the High Speed Rail (HSR) from downtown Taichung to We Come Hostel, HSR is comfortable and quick but pricey. From the earliest departure at 06:05 to the latest at 23:03, there are up to 105 high-speed rail from Taichung to Taipei each day. Assuming you depart from Xitun District, Taichung City and head to the nearest Taichung HSR station, a taxi ride would cost about NT$300 and take approximately 20 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 43-69-minute (57 min on average) HSR ride from Taichung Station to Taipei HSR Station. The ticket price is NT$700 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 12 minutes with a fare of NT$200, you will arrive at your destination at We Come Hostel (Datong District, Taipei City). The entire journey, including transfers, takes a total of 2 hours and 2 minutes. Assuming 3 people traveling together, the average cost per person for the HSR and transfers is NT$870. That said, a minority of taxi drivers in Taichung 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$780, and the journey takes 2 hours and 9 minutes. For long-distance travel, the HSR is indeed faster than a car by 8 minutes, but it comes with an extra transportation cost of about NT$270. Therefore, for those who are not in a major hurry, booking with Tripool is the more cost-effective option. If you are traveling with just one other person, you can also consider Tripool's carpooling service to save up to an additional 50% on transportation costs.

Although you can choose to rent a car to drive from Taichung to We Come Hostel, the cost can be significant. Rental companies typically charge by the day. A small sedan like a Toyota Yaris or Nissan Kicks starts at NT$1500 per day, while a 9-seater van like a Ford Tourneo or Volkswagen Transporter costs around 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 fines are not included. If your daily mileage exceeds 200-400 km, there will be an additional surcharge of NT$100-2,000. Since the vast majority of rental companies do not offer one-way rentals, you either need to make a same-day round trip between Taichung and We Come Hostel or rent the car for multiple days. In this case, the estimated cost starts at NT$3000 for a sedan and NT$6000 for a 9-seater van. Booking a one-way private transfer with the Tripool app is the most affordable and convenient option for traveling to the hotel.

If you choose to take a taxi directly, in the Taichung 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, such as 大都會衛星車隊, 龍興計程車行永福站無線車隊, 聯美汽車行 to try to book a ride. Based on the meter, the estimated fare is between NT$3,975 and 4,800, but you could save up to NT$2,500 by booking with Tripool instead. Some taxi drivers in Taichung City flat-out refuse to use the meter. Nearly 27% 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 Taichung to We Come Hostel in terms of both price and service quality.

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.

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.

Once the booking process is completed and getting an order ID, the reservation is confirmed. Tripool promises a private car will pick passengers up on time. All the essential information, such as the driver's name, mobile number, car model, and car plate number, will be sent via SMS and email. If the driver is not at the pick-up location, passengers can contact the driver via mobile phone. The driver may be away due to a lack of parking space and waiting nearby. Suppose there is some serious emergency or traffic jam to delay the trip. In that case, tripool will rearrange a driver to reduce passengers' waiting time.

If you are looking for a private car or a taxi from Taichung to We Come Hostel, input the pick-up and drop-off locations (or addresses) on our website. You will get an actual quote in just three seconds. Follow the yellow buttons, fill up your travel information, and choose the payment methods. Once you get the order ID, you will get an SMS and a confirmation email, and your order is all set. We will provide the driver's contact and the car information one day before the ride at 8 PM. We will fulfill your reservation 100%, guaranteeing that our driver will show up. It's recommended to finish the booking one day before noon. Tripool still accepts orders by 6 PM if you have an urgent request, and the latest order can come in by four hours in advance.

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.