Taitung→Qigu Salt Mountain

It is not recommended to take the High Speed Rail (HSR) from Taitung to Qigu Salt Mountain. HSR is quick but pricey and has difficult taxi access. Although there can be up to 76 trains from Zuoying to Tainan a day, running from the first at 05:50 to the last at 22:55, once service ends for the night until early morning, alternative transportation is still required. Assuming you depart from Taitung City, Taitung County and head to the nearest Zuoying HSR station, a taxi ride would cost about NT$5,900 and take approximately 235 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 11-15-minute (12 min on average) HSR ride from Zuoying Station to Tainan HSR Station. The ticket price is NT$140 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 50 minutes with a fare of NT$900, you will arrive at your destination at Qigu Salt Mountain (Qigu District, Tainan City). The entire journey, including transfers, takes a total of 5 hours and 21 minutes. Assuming one person traveling alone, the total transportation cost is NT$6,940. However, in Taitung County, there are only just over 400 licensed taxis. The taxi density is 0.2% of that in the Taipei/New Taipei metro area. In other words, hailing a taxi on the spot is 400 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 Taitung 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$6,450, and the journey takes 5 hours and 45 minutes. For long-distance travel, the HSR is indeed faster than a car by 24 minutes, but it comes with an extra transportation cost of about NT$490. Therefore, for those who are not in a major hurry, booking with Tripool is the more cost-effective option.

Whether going from Taitung to Qigu Salt Mountain or to anywhere in Taiwan, tripool can be your driver for long-distance traveling. You can reserve a ride online for all kinds of purposes, such as a private day trip, attending a wedding, checking out from a hospital, going hiking/camping, moving, a business trip, picking up your pet, or airport transfer. As long as your reservation is made one day before by 6 pm, tripool guarantees a car for you tomorrow. If you need a receipt for a business trip, you can provide your company's title and tax ID on the checkout page. We will send the receipt which is accepted by the government via email within a week.

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 阿吉小客車租賃, 標竿小客車租賃, 捷陞小客車租賃, available in the Taitung City, Taitung 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 Taitung (Taitung City) and Qigu Salt Mountain, 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. But if you only need a one-way trip and will return a day or more later, then renting a car is very inconvenient. Moreover, the rental location may be some distance from your home/office/starting point, 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 Taitung 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, such as 山馬(三馬)計程車, 台東縣大台東計程車, 知本計程車 to try to book a ride. Based on the meter, the estimated fare is between NT$6,295 and 9,400, but you could save up to NT$3,000 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 Taitung County, there are only about 350 licensed taxis. The taxi density is just 0.2% of that in the Taipei/New Taipei metro area, meaning it is 400 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 Qigu District, Tainan City are also not easy to find. It is recommended to plan ahead. Furthermore, some taxi drivers in Taitung County flat-out refuse to use the meter. Nearly 47% 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 Taitung to Qigu Salt Mountain 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.

According to the law in Taiwan, all passengers have to fasten seat belts, no matter what ages they are. For a baby below 4-year-old or a young child who cannot comfortably be on the seat with a seat belt, it is necessary to use a car seat or a safety booster. There is a check box for renting a baby car seat or a child safety booster on the check-out page. Each rental fee is NT$300. If you need multiple car seats/boosters or you need an infant car seat, please check with our online customer service first. Tripool encourages parents to bring their car seats and boosters, and, of course, it is free of charge.

Customers are always looking for a lower price with better service. There are Taiwan Taxi, Metro Taxi, Line Taxi, and Uber for short-range service in the Taiwan taxi market. There are CallCarBar, JoinMe, Car Plus, Easy Rent for long-range private car services. And for charter day tour services, there are KKDAY and Klook. Tripool focuses on long-distance point-to-point transportation and hourly ride service. No matter where you're from or where you'll go (of course, including Taitung to Qigu Salt Mountain), we guarantee there will be a vehicle available to take you there. Tripool uses AI algorithms to dispatch hundreds of cars around the island to increase efficiency and lower the price by 20~30%. Travelers can easily find that tripool is the best choice for private car service.