Can a tourist (on a 90 day landing visa) rent a motorcycle to tour TW? I know that some countries do not allow to rent bikes.
If it is possible, where would be a good place to rent one or find an agency? (preferably a place where English is spoken) .
Thanks
Scooters can be rented in some places such as Hualien, Kenting and all the outer islands. You usually don’t need a local license.
If this is your first time here it is a really bad idea to rent for a round the island tour. Traffic conditions are not good.
You need an ARC (or equivalent) to rent a motorcycle (as distinct from a scooter).
I’m also guessing that you’ll need an international license to rent a motorcycle that’s over 250cc.
It depends on the scooter shop. Some will insist on a local license. A lot of them will be OK with an international one, or even none at all if it’s for a short period. The ones who ask for an ARC are mainly concerned about security (ie., getting their bike back), I think.
However, as MM said, if you’re a tourist, you DO NOT want to be driving in Taiwan, because you’re not familiar with the local driving habits, such as driving on the wrong side of the road and blasting through red lights while leaning on the horn (a favourite manoevre of trucks too overloaded to stop) . It’s particularly bad out in the boonies - they drive less aggressively, but also a lot more carelessly.
[quote=“izzy”]Can a tourist (on a 90 day landing visa) rent a motorcycle to tour TW? I know that some countries do not allow to rent bikes.
If it is possible, where would be a good place to rent one or find an agency? (preferably a place where English is spoken) .
Thanks[/quote]
I have heard some horror stories from a Taichung resident who hired a large Motorcycle,to find that the tyres were completely bald. The insurance premium was very high…i wonder why? As others have said,probably not worth it…i ride a big bike and its scary in Taiwan 
Sorry to sound negative but the driving standard is very poor 
Small car probably the way to go?
Except for those planning either 1) A long stay, or B) Travel in remote mountain areas, I think it’s just best to use public transportation. A typical two-weeks-around-the-island trip can easily be done on train and bus. Even some mountian areas (ie Alishan) are pretty well served by public transport. Overall, there are few touristy places in Taiwan that you can’t get to on public transport, and in those few places you’d do better to negotiate a taxi (though language can be a barrier). Car rentals are not very cost-effective, and an accident can be a nightmare.
I rented a scooter in Kaohsiung this August for 12 days and I just rode that thing to death. Kaohsiung, Kenting, up to Taitung, up the mountains in the Southern Cross-Island Highway until we got stopped at the police checkpoint that closes the Highway due to typhoon Morakot damage, back to Taitung, Hualien, Heping, Taichung, then Tainan and back to Kaohsiung. Luggage strapped on the seat behind me in a 7-11 rain poncho. Mostly stayed in tiny village Inns in the mountains for peanuts. No pre-planning at all. Came back with red teeth, a nasty binlang habit and a sore ass (due to scooter only!). The store where we rented the scooters from never even asked for licenses and told us that if the scooters broke within a 150km of Kaohsiung, he would take care of it, more than 150km and we would have to manage on our own. Nothing happened except for trucks systematicaly trying to kill me on insane moutain roads. I also asked the owner what to do if the scooters were stolen, he said make a police report and come back to Kaohsiung to get some more scooters! 
It was the third time I pulled a stunt like that in Taiwan and overall, never had a problem except for repeated attempts on my life by numerous motorized vehicules. Don’t worry about your own driving in Taiwan, but constantly worry about others and always assume the worst. No, that truck probably will not stop…No, that car will not yield…No, that tractor will not let me pass…No, I don’t think that 89 year old saw me before changing lanes…etc etc etc…
Yep, excellent advice. In city driving, I try to also follow this one: At a red light, never be the first vehicle to enter the intersection when your light turns green (This one’s pretty easy to follow as so many people jump the gun at lights).
As for the OPs original question, as others have said, it depends on where you rent. In Danshui (or Tamsui 
) I wasn’t allowed to rent a 125 scooter because I only had a 50cc license. In Yilan County, however, I was able to rent a 125 no problem, basically without a license (my 50cc license had already expired by that time).
EDIT: Just reread the OPs post and realize the question was about renting a motorcycle. Whoops.
[quote=“Mucha Man”]Scooters can be rented in some places such as Hualian, Kending and all the outer islands. You usually don’t need a local license.
If this is your first time here it is a really bad idea to rent for a round the island tour. Traffic conditions are not good.[/quote]
This is the answer. You are supposed to have a local license or the correct int’l license but enforcing this is completely up to the scooter shop. They are usually surprised when I’ve given them my local license.
The roads aren’t very good here but there are a few places that I would consider renting a car because there isn’t much public transit. Chaiyi and Nantou counties are really nice and you can connect to Hwy 8 and go to Taroko Gorge or take Hwy 7 down to Yilan from there. It would also be nice to have a car for the section between Hualien and Taidong. I’m not saying that these are easy areas to drive but relying on public transit would be a PITA. if you are in the big cities just take the public transit. I don’t really recommend motorcycles to foreigners though.
You can rent a 50cc scooter in Tainan for 100NT a day. IIRC 125’s are twice that, though I’ve only rented one once several years ago.
They will want you to hire a 125 if you tell them you’re going a long way, but, if they check the mileometer when you take it back, I’ve never had any grief about it.
They’ve never asked me for a license, but they’ve photo-copied my ARC. Passport might work.
Public transport in Tainan is limited, expensive, infrequent, and hard to navigate.
In Tainan, you need an ARC even for a scooter. Passport will not work unless you know the owner personally.