Hi, I will work in Hsinchu in a few weeks, and I am wondering where is a good place to live. I have lived in Taiwan for a few years now, but I have yet been to Hsinchu. I previously lived in Yunlin and Hualien and need a new environment (somewhere more lively but calm).
I need advice for good areas to live in (not too crowded or busy); with a good variety of delicious food (hopefully cheap); and recreational areas for exercise, relaxing/refreshing, or hanging out 
(Perhaps you could include some excellent restaurants you’ve visited or recommend)
Thank you so much in advance!
I don’t think many people would describe Hsinchu City (at least during rush hours / weekends) as “calm.”
Since the public transport system continues to suck donkey balls, I’d say find a way to minimize your commute, assuming of course you will be working in some office space and not at home.
If you give us more details about districts you are targeting, then I guess we can provide more helpful responses.
Guy
Depends on where your office is. I like Zhubei but it’s far from most offices in the area and there are massive traffic jams on the bridges to Hsinchu in rush hour.
Assuming you are in science park you have two options if you don’t want to commute too much, Costco to GuanXin road and Jinshan.
Area near Costco is modern and relatively calm but expensive af.
Jinshan is known as newbie area, since its cheap but very close to science park. Far from other things though so you will need a scooter and probably also a car.
I work in the northern part of Hukou Township but I’m not sure what the living condition is like in Hukou. I heard that ZhuBei is good, but I need more insight.
Thank you though
I currently don’t have a location in mind and still looking for a suitable area to live in, but I prefer not to commute too much.
I usually cycle to commute and take public transport when necessary. I checked on the Bus+ app and saw that it only takes about 10 minutes by train from Zhubei to Hukou. I think the commute time is fair.
Apart from that, could you guys fill me in on where the buzz is in Hsinchu? I’m not really into partying, but I enjoy wandering around night markets and the streets seeing people and stores. Just chilling after work
If you want to be in striking distance of the TRA Station in Zhubei, you’d be in the old city, far away from fancy parts that I suspect @Whatevah had in mind (those fancy parts are near the HSR Station way out in Liujia).
If you’re thinking of taking TRA regularly, then why not find a place in Hsinchu City center within striking distance of Hsinchu’s TRA station? I am a fan of the old city which is fun explore either on foot or on bicycle and far less frenetic than the areas closer to Science Park, which again were the subject of discussion by @Whatevah .
Guy
I see. I appreciate the feedback.
By old city, do you mean the old side of Zhubei or Hsinchu in general?
Also, do you have any other areas you’d recommend or avoid? Thanks 
By “old city,” I am of course referring to the historic city center of Hsinchu City: the area roughly bounded by Nanda, Dongda, Beida, and Xida Roads.
I have no experience living near Zhubei TRA Station, so I can’t comment on that.
Guy
Meant to reply to this over the weekend, but my baby girl smashed my phone so… I got a new phone.
Many people have mentioned if you want your neighborhood to have sidewalks everywhere, there are very few options in the greater Hsinchu area.
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The area between the Highway 1 and the Hsinchu HSR station in Zhubei. You may extend that to a small area beyond Highway 1 hugging the Touqian river. The areas are called Liujia (六家) and Shixing (十興).
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The area around Costco called Guanpu (關埔), and the most expensive Guanxin (關新) area.
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If you want to live closer to downtown Hsinchu, then there are some nice apartment complexes along Gongdao 5 rd. (公道五路), near the Zhituqi (赤土崎) area, and sporadically extends towards A-mart and Zhongxiao RT-mart.
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Between Hsinchu Park (the zoo), and the back entrance of the train station, there are a couple of really nice buildings. If you have connections like the current Hsinchu mayor, you can buy it below market rate.
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There are a couple of really new complexes between Dongmen elementary school and Beida rd. (北大路), on either sides of Dongda rd. (東大路).
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If you want really really downtown, there are new complexes on Beimen st. (北門街), which give you walking access to the City God temple night market.
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There is an area near Nanya RT-mart, called Jinya (金雅重劃區), which is all brand new as well.
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If you don’t want to live that close to the city center, then Niupu (牛埔) area has some new housing complexes, and plenty of townhouses (透天) along a river.
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If that’s still too much city for you, the area around Qingcao lake (青草湖) has a lot of nice housing complexes as well as townhouses, if you don’t mind the humidity. Some of the townhouses are aging, but there are ones build within the last 15 years.
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Hop across the Jiadongjingguan blvd (茄苳景觀大道), there are a bunch of nice housing complexes, townhouses and even actual houses. It’s has a pretty rural feel to it, but in reality the city is just a 5-minute scooter ride away.
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Areas around Zhubei TRA station are very old. It’s cramped, dark, no side walks, next to no parks, and very loud cause of all the scooter and cars. Staying on the front entrance of the station, the closest area that I would actually consider is the area hugging Touqian river (south of Carrefour) as I mentioned in my first suggestion. [Edit] I just remembered that they are some nice townhouses near Tai Yuen Hi-Tech Industrial Park (台元科技園區). They probably aren’t cheap though.
However, if you go across State Highway 1, the back entrance side of the station, there are some new complexes with sidewalks and parks all along Huanbei rd. (環北路), like as the name suggests forms a loop. It feels slightly more rural, maybe a bit like Xinfeng (新豐), but downtown Zhubei isn’t that far away. Crossing the State Highway 1 on a bicycle during rush hour could be a bit scary.
If you don’t mind getting further away from the city to live closer to work, there’s also Xinfeng (新豐) and Hukou you could consider. There are some nice houses on the slopes of Xinfeng, not too far from the Xinfeng train station. There are also new housing complexes in Hukou, especially along Guanghua rd. (光華路).
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