Cheap hotel/hostel in Hualien

I’ll be in Hualien City tomorrow night with seven other cyclists on our way to Taitung. We need a cheap place to stay in Hualien Thursday night. Where can we crash in central Hualien cheaply and reasonably comfortably? It would be great if there was a place to stash our bikes or at least be able to put them in our rooms. We speak Mandarin etc., so send us somewhere cool and funky if possible.

Thanks!.

Try either of these: Chan Tai Hotel (Qian2Tai2 Fan4dian4), 833-0121, 83-1 Guolian 1st Rd, opposite Hualien train station;
Or, Yongqi Hotel (Yong3qi2 Fan4Dian4) 835-6111, 139 Guolian 1st Rd, also across from the train station but about 150 meters south (right).

For a good hostel in Hualien, try the Formosa Backpackers Hostel.
Ya Chen is very accommodating and can be reached at (03) 835-2515 or 0913-810-828.

The hostel is centrally located at 206 Jian Guo Road and offers lots of little freebies as well, such as soap, shampoo, tea and coffee and more.

Rates are about 350 - 400 NT per night AFAIK.

[quote=“totallytika”]For a good hostel in Hualian, try the Formosa Backpackers Hostel.
Ya Chen is very accommodating and can be reached at (03) 835-2515 or 0913-810-828.

The hostel is centrally located at 206 Jianguo Road and offers lots of little freebies as well, such as soap, shampoo, tea and coffee and more.

Rates are about 350 - 400 NT per night AFAIK.[/quote][quote=“totallytika”]

Thanks very much for this recommendation. We stayed there Thursday night in the 2nd floor dorm. The rate was NT$420 per person, which was an excellent value. Contrary to some online reviews, the hostel was quite clean and did not smell of dog. There are two, small, well-behaved dogs on the premises that shouldn’t bother anyone.

I’ll be staying here on future cycling trips that go through Hualien.

I’m really glad that you liked your stay at the Backpackers. Ya Chen has become a good friend over the years and I know that she works really hard to make it a good place to stay.

Not quite cheap for individual travelers but cheap enough for families (and of good quality - personally tested - so i’d like to recommend it):

Guesthouse Shin-yi (in the old town center of Hualian; the owner is Japanese, his wife Taiwanese, and the hired help a Philippina who speaks English, so you should be able to get things sorted out easily there :slight_smile: )

Their homepage:
Mandarin: sinyi.hlbnb.com.tw/
English: “under construction” (check again mid-March)
Japanese: shinyi.net/