Someone recommended Lonely Planet Taiwan on this forum and I want to see if you guys/gals think it is really that useful. I own a copy (1998 edition), it was ok, I did not use it much when I took my trip back then. I know that there is a new edition now and I was wondering if a lot of information got updated. I have been to Taiwan a handful of times, would this still be helpful to me?
For my trip this time, since I am travelling with my little girl (who is 2) on my own, I am hoping that I can find something with easy directions to how to get to places. My little girl has a condition where she can not be out in the sun for a long period of time so I need something that can guide me from point A to point B using as much of the MRT as possible. :help:
[quote=“TainanCowboy”]Those things are direct copies of special golden tablets found in the woods in the Taroko Gorge and committed to paper by appointed messengers.
Sadly, the original golden tablets are no longer available.
But the messengers are still around to offer advice.[/quote]
The Lonely Planet has changed a lot since 1998 – authors, topics, etc. While there can be seemingly endless (at least they feel endless) discussion comparing the older version to the newer one, the fact is that stores, restaurants, hotels, and other places change, so a new book is not a bad investment.
The MRT system is not comprehensive, but it has expanded quite a bit in the intervening years. If the issue is protecting your child from UV exposure (as opposed to diseases like EPP that involve light exposure in the visible spectrum), there will be other publicly available transport means to get from point A to Point B that will be aboveground and have windows but which will not lead to tropical-style sunburns. Taxis are also quite a bit cheaper in Taiwan than in many other parts of the world, so that can also be a good option. If the problem is more of an EPP-type nature, then there are significant parts of the MRT system going east and west that remain completely below ground – some parts of Taipei also have “underground shopping streets” that may also allow some walking (normally parallel to an MRT line) without sun exposure.
For city-to-city travel, the relatively new High Speed Rail has been a godsend, although there are significant and beautiful parts of the country that the system does not reach. I recall these have shades that can be drawn to protect your child.
The Taipei 101 building’s observation deck’s audioguide device very nicely has a different nighttime explanation from daytime, which would allow you to visit, listen to the audioguide and then point things out to your child. Eveningtime explorations may also work in three other ways: 1) cooler at night (watch out for mosquitos, though); 2) lots of good food at night markets and things to see/buy as well; and 3) perhaps you will have less adaptation to the time zone.
LP (pun intended), has suffered from a serious case of short reach from the get go. More lazily selective, than representative.
Their maps & directions are the worst!
Their writers are mostly pompous pogues that don’t have the balls to get down with The Real Nitty Gritty.
Their books sell well amongst the lethargic drones.
Yet, are easily passed off to the next new fish.
LP is useful for those who are new to Taiwan. In fact, I’d say it’s essential. It might even surprise a few old-timers -like myself- once in awhile. But, if you plan to spend time here, my advice is that if you want to see the best of Taiwan, then travel Monday thru Friday to anywhere you want to go. Rent a scooter, and explore a place that will become beautiful during the week, and then heinous over the weekend. Don’t ever try to visit a tourist spot on the weekend. There are 2 Taiwans: weekdays, and weekends. Choose to explore the former and you’ll be rewarded kindly, guidebook or none.
B.S. wrote: [quote]There are 2 Taiwans: weekdays, and weekends.[/quote]
So true, oh so true. Yes, any holiday should be planned so the weekends are spent in cities, and not in “rural escapes from the city.”
As for the LP guide, it is excellent. Get a copy. We are lucky to have such a good guide considering how minor a destination Taiwan is. Many people like to rag on guides but I have little time for that.
Problem for me is that if I have a full week off, I’ll combine it with 2 weekends and just get the f*uck out of Taiwan. Thus, I’ve done very little Taiwan traveling in the past several years.
Can you rent a scooter anywhere. And, (trying not to sound too dumb here), do I need a driver’s license for it? I have a CA driver’s license but I was not planning on getting an international one because I am deathly afraid of the way people drive in Taiwan.
Jen -
It is a good idea to visit your local AAA and get an International Drivers License there.
Many places here will honor this over a Cali Drivers License and rent you a 'scooter.
Taiwan does not have a reciprocity agreement in place with California regarding drivers licenses.
[quote=“TainanCowboy”]Jen -
It is a good idea to visit your local AAA and get an International Drivers License there.
Many places here will honor this over a Cali Drivers License and rent you a 'scooter.
Taiwan does not have a reciprocity agreement in place with California regarding drivers licenses.
I moved here from Huntington Beach.[/quote]
Thank you for the info. I got an international driver’s license last time I visited Taiwan, but I ended up not using it at all, so I was not thinking of doing that this year. I think I will stop by AAA to get one just in case I do need it this time.
Love Huntington beach! We have several friends living in that area. We are in Irvine
Some scooter rental places might not honor an international license, even though they’re supposed to. You might actually need the Taiwan scooter license. Anyway, don’t worry about traffic Monday-Thursday. Very pleasant on the road in the countryside during the week.
uhm, are you really thinking of driving a scooter with a 2 year old here…?
I don’t think that is a good idea, especially since you’ll not be used to the traffic flow (which I think takes several months) even though you’ve been here before…
My two cents.
I still find Lonely Planet very useful, and I am not fresh off the boat. I like the changes in the latest edition.
Might I suggest a less sunny spot for your vacation? Say Nunavut for Winter solstice?
It can get pretty blazin in the summer here…
Having said that, there IS heaps you can do indoors (especially in Taipei), and as was said before, taxis are much more reasonably priced than in many other parts of the world…
Should be fun!
I have travelled the world and used all sorts of travel guides. Rough Guides are consistently the best out there. Lonely Planet are my second choice. The worst travel guide I have ever used are those “Time Out” guides. Even the paper they print on are thin and crappy like a $3 magazine’s.
The problem with the collection of reviews for Lonely Planet’s guide is that it covers both the 2004 and the 2007 editions.[/quote]
And most of the comparisons made on Amazon are made with the 2004 LP guide, which yes, is inferior.
Okay, I’m biased obviously, but I’d say by LP if you are a newbie, and buy RG if you know Taiwan better and want more cultural info when you visit a place. But don’t trust its practical info, as much of it was dated even when the book came out as I wrote in another thread. A newbie is not going to know that Shanyuan Beach, for example, has been closed for three years by reading the RG and may be pretty pissed to get there and find this out.
