Hi guys! I just got back from holiday and this time we travelled to Taiwan and we explored Taichung also! We booked our air tickets to Taoyuan airport and then change high speed railway train (HSR) to Taichung. Our plane landed at Taoyuan airport terminal 1.
Once you exit from the custom, you'll see this sign board. Most of the sign boards have both english and chinese, so you don't have to worry not understanding what they are saying. To save some money for more shopping and eating, we have decided to take the bus to the high speed rail station.
Turn to your left and you should a money changer, toilet and store selling local treats! You may also refill your water at the water dispenser outside the toilet. They offer hot, warm and cold water!!
This screen will show different timings and bus routes to the different locations you are going. If you're unsure, you can also go down to the counters to ask.
Take this escalator down to the counters to buy your bus tickets.
The different buses to the different cities around Taiwan.
There's also buses to Taipei.
We've decided to take the Ubus to High Speed Rail Taoyuan Station to take our High Speed Rail train. The ticket cost NT30 per person. You can also take the bus straight to Taichung if you're saving more money as it'll be cheaper than taking the HSR. (But definitely much longer travelling time than taking the HSR. Approximately 45mins vs 2hrs.)
The ticket price to the different places, all the way to Pingtung.
There are also other companies and you can compare the prices around (though they are about the same as prices are competitive there). The different companies also cater services to different places (i.e. Taipei Main Station).
Waiting for the bus which comes every 15-20mins interval and the bus is just located right outside the counter.
And here we are, at HSR Taoyuan Station. The journey took around 30mins.
They have a big Mac right outside the station. Can grab some food before your train! If not there's 7-11 inside where you can buy some snacks and drinks.
When you walk in from the entrance, you should see the ticketing counter at your right hand side. You can pre-purchase your tickets online and if you book early, you can get discount up to 25%. But of course you can also buy your tickets here at the counters.
As we booked our tickets online, we can collect it via the machines here.
After you pass through the gantry, go towards Number 1 elevator for Taichung.
Incase you're worried you're at the wrong platform, you can check the board to see if it stops at the station you're heading to. You can go to Tainan also.
And here comes our train! It arrives into the station on time and leaves on time. So do take note of the time of your train so you don't miss the timing!!
They will announce your train number and the destination before the train arrives into the station. Do take note so that you don't board the wrong train!
And after 45mins, we are here at Taichung!! The ride was smooth and seats were pretty spacious too. We slept throughout the ride and glad that the whole cabin was quiet.
Taichung station is bigger and has much more stores downstairs. (i.e. Starbucks, Mos Burger, Mac etc)
After which, we decided to take the free shuttle bus to our hotel which is available right at the bus station below.
There are few shuttle bus to the different locations. You may look at the big board for all the bus routes here. They'll also state which platform to wait for the bus next to the bus numbers.
As our hotel is located at near Fengjia University (which is where Fengjia night market is located at as well), we took bus 160 at platform 12! The buses will come every 20-30mins interval. Do remember to keep your train ticket as it'll serve as your bus ticket too! Show it to the bus driver and you can get the free-ride there.
The bus journey took around 45mins. If it's your first time at Taichung and you're scared you're unfamiliar with the place and might miss your bus, don't worry as they will announce the stops along the way!
Hope it'll be useful for anyone who is travelling to Taichung! Do leave a comment below if you guys have any questions! :D
Will blog more about my trip soon! Do also leave a comment below if there is anything special you all want to know about Taichung/Taipei.
