Taiwan 10days9nights

heya! need some words of wisdom here.

thinking of doing Taipei - Alishan - Sun Moon Lake - Hualien/Taroko Gorge - back to Taipei/via Yilan+Chiufen

not sure if too ambitious... will be there total of 10days (4th-13th April)

1) how do we get from Taipei to Alishan?

do we train to Chiayi first then bus into Alishan?

i presume the Forest Train is a must-do.....?

2) Alishan to Sun Moon Lake

i have yet to figure out how to do this route... any suggestions??

3) any idea about driving in Taiwan?

my partner wants to drive there, so was thinking we will do the part from Hualien back to Taipei by car, using the East Highway

4) we would love to drop by a hot spring area somewhere along the way... any suggestions?

and a good massage as well.. i mean the decent ones of cos...

5) one of my friends was suggesting recreational farm-stay eg Toucheng nong chang ... any idea??

kinda panicky now, cos its less than a month, yet to book anything... and we will be arriving on their Ching Ming Festival weekend....

thanx!

Taiwan 10days9nights

hi

from Sun-Moon-Lake, there is no more highway connecting to Hualien?

does it mean i have to go back to Taipei(how do i do this route?) before taking the bullet train down to Hualien?

thanx! advice much appreciated.

Taiwan 10days9nights

1 - Most people take the train to Chiayi, then transfer to either the forest train or locally operated buses. On Friday and Saturday, King Bus has direct service from Taipei.

3 - Renting a car is quite expensive in Taiwan (about 2,500NTD per day), not to mention you have to factor in insurance, gas, and parking. Unless you have a large party, it is probably cheaper and safer to take public transportation.

4 - Jiaosi is a popular hot spring resort halfway between Taipei and Hualien.

5 - Too many to list. What type of farm stay do you prefer, fruit farm, animal farm, or flower farm? Rustic or with full resort facilities? Spartan log cabins or luxurious European style chalets?

And no, there is no highway between SML and Hualien. You can try to brave the mountain road that cuts across the central mountain range, but most people will take the bus back to Taipei, then transfer to a 2 hour train ride.

hotels and rail tix would be very hard to book for the period of tomb sweeping festival as it is a 4 day long weekend break ,the popular spring resorts or hotels would probably be all sold by now.