Wander Tips: How I Prepared For My Taiwan Trip
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Taiwan is VISA-FREE!
It has been announced recently that Philippine-passport holders can now enter Taiwan visa-free from November 1, 2017 until July 31, 2018 in a trial basis. Filipinos can stay up to 14-days. Hopefully, it continues to be visa-free. However, our date of entry is before November 1st. We had to go through the process of obtaining a travel certificate, which was quite easy.
Research, Research, Research!
My family believes that creating an itinerary is my expertise. The duration of our stay in Taiwan is 6-full days. I didn’t want to concentrate staying in Taipei. There are so many beautiful places in Taiwan, so I did my research and found us different interesting places to visit. We will be hopping from Taipei, Taichung, Chiayi, and Kaohsiung. I will blog about that separately, so stay tuned!
Download Apps
- Pleco claims to be the world’s best Chinese dictionaries. This should help you translate food menu or street signs quickly, by just pointing the software to a bunch of Chinese characters to easily translate it for you. You can get it on iOS and Google Play.
- Taiwan Rail Timetable provides the latest train schedules and price inquiries for THSR and TRA. It also Direction Planning which allows travelers to plan the best routes possible. It also allows you to find the nearest Subway. Download on Google Play
- Go! Taipei Metro provides the route map, station exit information, transfer information, and journey planner. The only downside is that you cannot save a planned route to favorites. Download on Google Play.
- WhatsApp is the most used messaging app in Taiwan along with Line. I used this app to communicate with the tour drivers I hired for my Jiufen and Taichung tours. Make sure to download this app for Android or iOS.
Check the Weather
Wherever you plan to go, you should always check the weather. You don’t want your travels to be dampened by bad mood because you weren’t ready for the weather! This helps you pack the right clothes and shoes. I usually check accuweather.com for an almost accurate weather forecasts.
Pre-book Accommodations
We are staying for a whole week in Taiwan, so I booked my accommodation via Airbnb. During my planning, we decided to stay one night in Taichung, and I snagged one for only Php26.00! How? If you use my invite, you can get Php1100 travel credit on your first booking!
Book Airbnb Accommodation
Pre-book Transport, Activities, and WiFi on Klook:
Part of my research is finding the best online deals that Taiwan tourists can take advantage of, so I headed to Klook, my favorite place to find the best deals!
- 4G WiFi (TW Airport Pick Up) for Taiwan
This works all over the country, so in case you get lost and you need help from Google, this will really come in handy. Please note that you can only pick this up from 5:30am to 1:00am daily. The return process is easier, because there is a dropbox where you can place the device outside of their operating hours.
Book a 4G WiFi Device - Get a 3-Day THSR Tourist Pass
Since we are on a 7-day trip to Taiwan, we decided to travel other counties where the high speed rail passes through. Our itinerary takes us to Taichung, Chiayi, and Kaohsiung. Getting the unlimited 3-Day THSR pass saves you a lot of money. Please take note that you have to use this pass for 3 consecutive days, so you have to carefully plan your itinerary to make use of this 3-Day THSR Tourist Pass.
Book a 3-Day THSR Tourist Pass - Climb up Taipei 101
When in Taipei, everyone is encouraged to drop by this tower. There is a branch of Din Tai Fung there, and we all know that Din Tai Fung originated in Taiwan!
Book a Taipei 101 Observatory E-Ticket
Before you go…
I am sure there will be questions on where to go and what to do in Taiwan. Don’t worry! I will document our travel and post our itinerary here. Stay tuned!
[…] found a good write-up about the helpful mobile applications that you can install for your Taiwan trip. Below were the […]
[…] found a good write-up about the helpful mobile applications that you can install for your Taiwan trip. Below are the apps […]
[…] found a good write-up about the helpful mobile applications that you can install for your Taiwan trip. Below are the apps […]