Arrive at Taipei Songshang International Airport and transfer to the hotel. Check in and rest a little. Post lunch, you can head out to the city and visit the iconic Taipei 101 considered as the 8th highest building now with 101 floors.

At a height of over 509 meters, Taipei 101 is Taipei’s tallest skyscraper and the building is lit up according to the colours of the rainbow each night of the week. The experience starts on a Guinness World Record Breaking high-speed elevator where you’ll travel at over 60.6kph to reach the 89th floor observatory in 37 seconds. To calm your nerves head over to The ‘highest Starbucks in the world’  located in the tower for some refreshing coffee. 

(Optional): You can trek up the elephant mountain some 100 odd steps and then view the 101 from the vantage points up there along with a fantastic view of the city around you.

With breakfast in the belly, head out sightseeing for the day. We start with a visit to Chiang Kai-Shek Memorial Hall. Named after a former president. The square is also home to two beautiful examples of Chinese architecture, the National Theatre and National Concert Hall. The National Theatre and National Concert Hall are home to performance venues, galleries, libraries, and cafés. At the Liberty Square, you’ll find tourists taking photos as well as locals- groups of retirees playing drums and children practicing Tai Chi.

At about 5 kms from the memorial and a 12 min drive you are at Longshan Temple. If there’s just one temple than you plan on visiting on your Taipei trip, this should be it. The temple was built in 1738 and is a place of worship for people of the Buddhist, Confucian and Taoist faiths.  Visit the temple and the historic district of Bopiliao surrounding the temple using a walking tour. Add in 5 more kms and a 15-minute car ride and you are the beautiful Dalongdong Baoan Temple, a place of worship for Chinese Folk Religion. The temple that has also received UNESCO recognition in 2003. 

Hungry with all the touring we take a leisurely 5 km stroll and reach in 20 mins at Ximending, the city’s buzzing pedestrian shopping and entertainment district. There are stores selling everything from clothing and shoes to vintage finds and antiques, and this is also the place to try some street food and Taiwanese favourites such as fried chicken (tasty and worth trying) at places like Hot-Star. If you plan to visit one of many themed cafés that Taipei is famous for, then the toilet themed ..Modern Toilet in Ximending, that serves food that looks like poop, drinks that look like urine, and where you eat seated on a toilet, is a good place to start. If you are not the one to stomach the theme restaurants taste Taipei’s Famous Beef Noodles For an authentic no-frills meal, try the Chang’s Beef Noodles Shop. (approx. 8 - 10 mins walk from Ximending). The restaurant only uses Taiwanese beef (never frozen) and the meat here is halal, so it’s Muslim-friendly. The specialty of the house is their beef noodle soup and the beef jerky stuffed flatbread.

With your belly full, head out to the Taipei City Mall. an underground shopping centre that spreads across four stations. For something truly unique, why not get a traditional knife massage while you’re there? Some local favourites you can munch on while there, are the Tiger Sugar bubble ice Tea, shave ice cream, the Pineapple cake or the sun cake which pairs perfectly with Chinese tea. For the afternoon tea we head over for Tea at Lin Hua Tai Tea Company. A true slice of cultural history in Taipei as this is the oldest remaining tea house in Taipei. 

You can now head back to the hotel for some rest, and get ready to explore again in the evening. Taipei’s night markets are a huge part of the city’s nightlife as well as the food scene with several food stalls. In the evening we explore Dadaocheng Historical Area. The Dadaocheng area, particularly Dihua Street, is one of the must-see places to visit in Taipei if you want to experience traditional Taiwanese life.  One of the cool things to do here is to rent a traditional Chinese outfit, a qipao, and feel like you’re in the 1920s while you wander and take photos of yourself wearing a qipao.

End the day today with a visit to the Ningxia night market which opens here in the evening. It offers a perfect combination of great atmosphere, wonderful food and entertainment. Another fun thing to do is to take a cooking class or catch your own shrimp. This is one of the quirkier things you can do in Taipei but it’s also one of the most fun. Urban shrimping is a popular Taiwanese pastime where locals cast lines into indoor concrete pools filled with live shrimp. whatever you catch can barbecue and eat on the premises.

Today a quick grab and go breakfast, at the hotel and then we head out for a full day excursion.

Our first stop is Yehliu Geological Park, a protected area that’s home to these unusual, alien-like rock formations called hoodoo stones. We’ll then proceed to Shifen to release sky lanterns at a former railroad town before visiting the “Little Niagara of Taiwan”. It should take about an hour by bus or half by car to reach Shifen, a small village to the north of Taipei city. Shifen is an understated but rustic little town, and one of the very best things to do there is take a lantern-making class. Shifen is also famous for the gorgeous Shifen Waterfall that makes for pretty photos.

After lunch at a local restaurant in Shifen we head out to Jiufen. The famous attraction of this former gold mining town is, the century-old Amei teahouse where you’ll be served oolong tea, snacks,cakes and pastries. you can enjoy the view of the ocean and enjoy the shops, cafes, and vendors along the main street of Jiufen thereafter.

Return back in the evening and relax at the hotel. 

This morning visit Yangmingshan National Park. Located in Taipei, is one of eight national parks in Taiwan, and is easily accessible from downtown Taipei (a one hour / 60 km drive). There are several parks, forests, hiking trails, waterfalls, and hot springs in the park, and you can explore some and all of these depending on how much time you’ve got.

After visiting the park, we recommend an easy 1 km hike to Juansi Waterfall on a beautiful and quiet trail. Relax in the Beitou Hot Springs, that are fed by the geothermal landscape around the Yangmingshan Volcano. You’ll find yourself in a completely changed environment of steaming hot springs, sulphur, and oh-so-sweet tranquillity in what is considered to be among the best Taipei attractions. If you’re not so much into hiking, but appreciate an epic sunrise, then take the sunrise tour to Yangmingshan National Park.

After visiting the park, we head back to the city and continue our touring some more. Surround Yourself with History at the Taipei National Palace Museum. One of Taiwan's greatest attractions. It houses more than 650,000 pieces of Chinese bronze, jade, calligraphy, painting, and porcelain and is considered one of the greatest collections of Chinese art and objects in the world. 

To digest all that good food, we head to the Taipei Botanical Garden Located in a beautiful district, right beside both the National Museum of History and the Qing Dynasty Provincial Administration Hall. Over 100 years old, this garden is a peaceful and picturesque escape from the hustle and bustle of the busy city streets.

It’s time for tea and today we head out to Maokong Mountain a place famous for growing tea. You can take a gondola up Maokong for ease of access, and get a fantastic view along the way.

Return to your hotel after a refreshing day and remainder of the evening is free. 

Today after breakfast, check out of your Taipei hotel and transfer to the station to board the Taiwan High-Speed Rail (THSR) which will take you to Taichung within an hour. 

Arrive and transfer to your chosen hotel. Post check in, relax and freshen up.

First up, we head to Rainbow Village which is a cluster of small houses painted in the wildest, most colourful motifs. Pro-tip: Travelling on public buses in Taichung is the way to go! Any rides below 10 km are FREE.

Next explore the local shopping street call Yizhong street. Prices of food and things are slightly cheaper in Taichung as compared to Taipei, so guilt-free eating and shopping can begin here! Let’s do lunch here today before we continue touring some more. Don’t forget the popular Iced Black Milk Tea at the second market popular with the locals and also braised minced pork rice is the best in Taichung. 

A lesser-known gem in Taichung, Gaomei Wetlands, a sunset paradise for avidphotographers. Rows of windmills line the beach and cast perfect silhouettes against the setting sun. Pro-tip: If you are planning to visit Rainbow Village and Gaomei Wetlands on the same day, choose a weekend to do so as there’s a Bus service #655 that operates only on weekends between these two places.

After local breakfast, we drive to Nantou for Endless Adventures Among the Most Stunning Sceneries. Here we visit Shueishe Pier and Wenwu Temple, a stately Taoist place of worship. The most important place to see is the Sun Moon Lake. It is the largest body of water in Taiwan. The area around the lake is home to the Thao tribe, one of aboriginal tribes of Taiwan. The east side of the lake resembles a sun while the west side resembles a moon, hence the name. Wen Wu Temple is located on the perimeter of Sun Moon Lake. The temple consists of three halls. The first hall, is a shrine devoted to the First Ancestor Kaiji and the God of Literature. The central hall is devoted to Guan Gong, the God of War, and the warrior-God Yue Fei. The rear hall is dedicated to Confucius.

Head to nearby Itashao for some locally-loved Taiwanese snacks. Not only are they big in portion with generous fillings, they are very reasonably priced too! Around Nantou, you can also try paragliding! Puli is a popular spot for paragliding.

Later visit the Formosan Aboriginal Culture Village an amusement park which has been in operation since 1986.  The park contains the tallest free-fall ride in Taiwan as well as Taiwan's largest European gardens and bell tower.

After the full day excursion, we head back to Taichung for the last night there.

Today, after breakfast, check out of your hotel and proceed to Alishan through the several options available. A drive of 155 kms takes 2 ½ hrs gets you to Alishan (or Ali Mountain), Located in Taiwan’s Chiayi County. 

Alternatively, we take the bullet train for a 30-minute ride to Chiayi station. The easiest way to go to Alishan from Chiayi is by taking the Taiwan Tourist Shuttle Bus 7322. The journey takes about 2 hours or so where the last hour will be on a windy mountain road.

With its highest peak, Tower Hill at 2663m, Alishan is Taiwan’s most popular mountain destination. The spectacular green landscape of Alishan National Scenic Area, fresh mountain air, ancient sacred trees, and cherry blossoms, as well as forest hikes and a surreal sunrise are all solid reasons why a visit to Alishan should be on every Taiwan itinerary.

Arrive and transfer to your hotel where we spend the next 2 nights relaxing after the many hectic days of touring. Post check in walk around the picturesque tea town or relax in the hot spring bath at the hotel.

This morning, wake up at 4.30 am to see the famous Alishan sunrise. What makes this experience cool is taking an old train through the forest at an hour when the world is just waking up. It can get very cold at that hour so suite up. There are food stalls and you can also get hot coffee or tea to keep warm while you wait.There were two trains back to Alishan after the 6.50am sunrise- at 7.05am and 7.25am Come back freshen up, catch some snooze and then get up to head out again.

If you’re staying at Alishan House or in Alishan township, there are several trails (on interconnected wooden platforms and easy steps) that lead from the hotel and town (where the grand Taoist temple is) into the forests that are worth checking out. If you are lucky and in the right season you can also see cherry blossoms in bloom.

Further along on the Giant Tree trail are red cypress trees that are thousands of years old (some over 2000 years), as well as red pine, spruce, elm and fir.From the town square with the temple, there are also signs pointing to the Elder Sisters Pond. It’s a quick hike through the forest, taking some stairs and past a Magnolia garden to a calm pond with a perfect mirror reflection.

For lunch head to YuYu Pas Cultural Park a tourist attraction run by the indigenous Tsou ethnic tribe. The park is home to a tea plantation, traditional houses, and an exhibition hall. There’s a restaurant with a set menu of Tsou delicacies and the food is excellent, so definitely have lunch here. You can also taste (and buy) their lovely Alishan High Mountain Oolong tea and there’s a café onsite as well. There’s a cultural performance at the community theatre at set times with Tsou community members singing and dancing in their traditional costume.

Relax and refresh for the rest of the evening with dinner at your resort.

Check out from the hotel after breakfast. Since there is no direct train here, we will opt to drive from Alishan to Kaohsiung, Taiwan’s second largest city. This ride could take a comfortable 3 to 4 hrs / 170 kms. As the biggest port in Taiwan, Kaohsiung is important to Taiwan’s economy. Thanks to its southern location, the weather here can be considerably warmer and sunnier than in Taipei.

Arrive and check into your hotel. Remainder of the day is free for you to relax and enjoy a stroll down to the Cheng Ching lake & explore the Exotic Marine life museum there or drive over to the Ruifeng Night market for dinner.

This morning ditch the hotel breakfast and head out to the local fast food joint to sample some Dandan Hamburgers for breakfast.  This burger chain specializes in Western-Taiwanese fusion food and can only be found in the southern cities — Kaohsiung, Tainan, and Pingtung.

Later admire the Pagodas and Temples at Lotus Lake. Lotus Lake is an artificial lake that was opened in 1951. Right in the lake are twin Tiger and Dragon pagodas, each seven-storied and a sight to behold with dramatic colours, designs, and craftsmanship. Entrance is free and the area looks even more beautiful when the lotuses in the lake are in full bloom. You can enter the pagodas to look at scenes depicting heaven and hell, Legend has it that you must enter through the dragon’s mouth and exit through the tiger’s mouth to turn your bad fortune into good luck. Around the periphery of the lake and across the street are around 20 Buddhist and Taoist temples that are examples of gorgeous Chinese architecture. 

 

When you need to rest your legs, take a break at one of the cafés around here for lunch. For a taste of Hakka culture drive for an hour to reach the Meinong Folk Village in Meinong. The cultural village is essentially a home to little stores selling souvenirs such as handmade jewellery, crafts, bamboo baskets and other products and beautiful paper umbrellas, adorned with colourful designs and patterns.

Afterwards, make a quick stop at Zhong Zheng Lake to spend a few minutes enjoying the fantastic view surrounded by mountains. Lastly take a 40 min Boat Tour on the Love River and then head out to the Formosa MRT station, where you will find the Dome of Light, the largest glass work in the world, designed by Italian artist Narcissus Quagliata. There one can enjoy light shows daily at 11 AM, 3 PM, and 8 PM. For dinner head out to the many local and fine dining options available here. 

Today a 30-minute drive will take you to Kaohsiung International Airport, to connect  your flight home.

Tour Ends. (B)