Hi all,
I’m fairly new to Taiwan and was hoping to get out of Taipei for at least a day or two during the New Year.From what I can gather, travelling during the new year is almost impossible. Does anyone know of any places close to Taipei that are worth going to/ possible at this time of year?
[quote=“dasboot”]Hi all,
I’m fairly new to Taiwan and was hoping to get out of Taipei for at least a day or two during the New Year.From what I can gather, travelling during the new year is almost impossible. Does anyone know of any places close to Taipei that are worth going to/ possible at this time of year?[/quote]
Not impossible. Lots of people travel during the new year. Even in a place like Kenting you can still get rooms. The trouble is getting there. Buses might be tough and trains would be standing room only.
What kind of stuff do you want to see? Nature, art, religion, shopping?
The trick is to go south when everyone else is going north.
The 2nd day of CNY is when the masses flock south. They come back a day or two later.
[quote=“Chris”]The trick is to go south when everyone else is going north.
The 2nd day of CNY is when the masses flock south. They come back a day or two later.[/quote]
Indeed. Avoid leaving right around the official holiday and avoid public transportation. Wait a few days, rent some scooters (if you don’t have one) and take off! Shouldn’t be hard to find places to stay later in the week (I’ve never had any trouble). I would still avoid the more obvious tourist traps (Kending, Sun Moon Lake etc.) during the whole week.
Just go have fun and explore! And if the weather is atrocious, just stay home and enjoy having Taipei to yourself.
As far as what’s nice near Taipei it depends on the weather and whether or not you have your own transportation. The Nanzhuang and Tai’an areas of Miaoli are nice places to stay, have a hotspring and get away from the city.
[quote=“Chris”]The trick is to go south when everyone else is going north.
The 2nd day of CNY is when the masses flock south. They come back a day or two later.[/quote]
Which exact dates are we talking about? Most people refer to the whole week as CNY, so which is the actual day of the reunion dinner? On which dates should we expect the mass exodus from and return to Taipei? Thanks.
As far as I understand the evening of February 2nd is the new year’s eve (last evening of the last year, as I gather this is where people not living at home will try to be home for a dinner), and the morning of February 3rd starts the new year.
According to this article the freeway toll fee will be waived between midnight and 7am during CNY, so starting on the 2nd and ending on the 7th. They expect most traffic on the 2nd and on the 7th.
Any experiences by other people highly appreciated… I am expected to travel south on the evening of the 1st, but so far I am not 100% convinced that this is a good idea :ohreally:
[quote=“olm”]As far as I understand the evening of February 2nd is the new year’s eve (last evening of the last year, as I gather this is where people not living at home will try to be home for a dinner), and the morning of February 3rd starts the new year.
According to this article the freeway toll fee will be waived between midnight and 7am during CNY, so starting on the 2nd and ending on the 7th. They expect most traffic on the 2nd and on the 7th.
Any experiences by other people highly appreciated… I am expected to travel south on the evening of the 1st, but so far I am not 100% convinced that this is a good idea :ohreally:[/quote]
I’d leave at 3am. Thats what my family always does. Even then they still get in a bit of traffic but its not too bad. It will be bonkers later in the morning. Also, I’ve always found the Formosa Freeway (3) to have less traffic than the Zhongshan (1) in almost every situation.
As for me I take my motorcyle and Highway 3 it through Daxi, Beipu, Dahu, Taichung etc. Ive taken Highway 1 before too - its faster once you are south of Jhunan but its not as scenic as the mountain way. Pretty fast either way. Even with all the lights and speed traps I end up getting to Yunlin about 1-2 hrs after my family. And I dont sit in traffic at all. This year I think I’m going to bypass Taichung and hit the west coast around Sanyi somewhere. Driving through Taichung is a pain (too many left turns).
3 am on February 2nd I guess?
Now I’m freaking out; we’re headed to Tainan tomorrow and apparently traffic will be bad; at least we’re on the HSR! And we’re coming back on Sunday, so except for the drives to and from the respective HSR stations, it shouldn’t be too bad. And hey, we’re getting out of Hsinchu!
So this thread is saying that theoretically if someone was flying back to Taoyuan (from Thailand) on the 2nd and expected to get a bus ticket they would be SOL. Sounds great.
Is it possible to book bus tickets online?
[quote=“Abacus”]So this thread is saying that theoretically if someone was flying back to Taoyuan (from Thailand) on the 2nd and expected to get a bus ticket they would be SOL. Sounds great.
Is it possible to book bus tickets online?[/quote]
You shouldn’t have a problem getting a bus from the airport.
[quote=“Mucha Man”][quote=“Abacus”]So this thread is saying that theoretically if someone was flying back to Taoyuan (from Thailand) on the 2nd and expected to get a bus ticket they would be SOL. Sounds great.
Is it possible to book bus tickets online?[/quote]
You shouldn’t have a problem getting a bus from the airport.[/quote]
To Kaohsiung around 6 or 7pm?
Best advice? DONT . Just dont travel on CNY. IT can be an absolute nitemare !!
I once took over two hours to drive the 20 odd kilo between changhua and taichung !! A journey that normally takes 20 to 25 mins on the same freeway.
Some great advice all around.
I think the heading North while everyone else heads South idea worked. I managed to sneak away to Keelung for a day and it wasn’t crowded at all. Lucked out on the weather too.