Wanted to go with my visitors to ChiuFen during the weekend and inquired at the bus terminals near the main station but they told me there is no direct bus, would need to go via Keelung and change there.
Yet I am certain I have seen a bus (newish public bus with LED display) passing along BaDe/FuShing which indicated to server Taipei and ChiuFen.
Does anyone know where exactly it stops in Taipei?
Or can I send them by train, have a map which shows a railway station close to ChuiFen, some town starting with “M…”?
Is it possible to return via TamShui, say on a bus along the coast and then use the MRT from there?
Any help appreciated. (Tomorrow is their last day here.)
I’ve seen that bus too. I thought it went from Sung Shan MRT. The train to Jilong is easy and then the bus goes from just outside the Jilong trains station every few minutes.
However, I’d not recommend Jiu Fen any longer. I went there a few weeks back (by car) and found it much like Tanshui night market on a hillside and was very disappointed with the crowds and “junkiness” of the place now. I’d been there many years ago when it was a lovely little artist’s community and it’s now been completely ruined by tourism and consumerism. Sucks! Why can’t they leave well enough alone in Taiwan?
Take the train from Taipei to Ruay-Fang. From there you can take either the bus or a taxi. I’d pass up Jiu Fen and travel 10 minutes further to Jinguashih. It’s alot more interesting and has fewer tourists.
I guess it will be alright to send them there, keep 'em busy. They haven’t been much out of town, just to what could be reached by MRT and I took them to Wulai last Saturday.
Have been myself to JiuFen last year, was quite ok - at least with the right company since we just sat on top of a teahouse and played Chinese card games all day (or rather night).
Since I have to work I can’t join / take them and I ran out of ideas where in town to send them to …
I normally use the method Blueface mentioned: train to Ruifang and then a bus or taxi. To return to Taipei, I take a bus to Jilong (though the last time I did that the driver was going so fast on that windy road I’m surprised a lot of passengers didn’t get carsick). Perhaps a stop in the Jilong night market, and then a train back to Taipei.
I agree with Blueface (go right up to Jinguashi) and Cranky (go train to Ruifang then bus or taxi on the way there, and bus to Jilong - stop at the nightmarket - ont he way home). I disagree with Alien though. I’ve been going to Jiufen for 4 years (14 times so far) and although it’s getting more crowded in weekends it’s still excellent and the shops are really good. It’s always a favourite with visitors.
My usual order of events with visitors is to go up to Jinguashi, and walk up to the temple (in January you’ll be able to go to the POW camp museum too), then back down to Jiufen near the 7-11, have a quick look at the view formt he platform then slowly shop our way through the main alley, ending up at a teahouse on the ‘big stairs’, where we spend several hours drinking tea, then down the steps to the bottom to catch the bus back to Jilong for a stop at the night-market.
I wouldn’t recommend taking the bus from Jilong to Damshui. I think it takes about 2 hours.
Seems my visitors consider this to stressfull (too much time to travel) so they decided to go to Yang Ming Shan and the hot springs in XinBeiTou today which they had been to already before …
That said I saw the bus again this morning, according to the sign it serves Taipei, JiuFen and JinGuaShi (excuse my romanization).
Would have asked the driver where exactly it terminates since he was stopping at the traffic light but he was busy on the phone (though I guess he probably wouldn’t have understood me anyway …).
It’s a dump. I was first there ten-plus years ago when it was quaint, uncrowded, clean, and artsy fartsy. That whole “night market bric-a-brac and overdone tea house scene” leaves me cold, and with a sneer on my face knowing how they screwed up that place with pure T wretched greed.
Tell your visitors to go up to Wulai instead and take the cable car up the top to that weird park up there. It’s funky and bizarre. Truly worth the trip, and not shitted’ up with the smell of squid on a stick…
Some might argue the same thing happened to Jiufen after the gold rush. With all the people rushing in to get the gold (aka: “wretched greed”) the serene mountainside hamlet was over run with people trying to make a buck.
Have some friends in town and consider taking them to JiuFen and JinGuaShi, anyone happen know the train schedule to RuiFang, i.e. is it regular or only a couple of times a day only?
i took my friend to jiufen last weekend. ended up pouring rain, so we took shelter in a teahouse and played chinese chess and drank tea (sounds cliched)
anyways, i believe the train schedule should be pretty regular. we got to train station around 1157 and got a train around a few minutes past 12. since ruifang is on the way to all the other cities, seemed to me that there will be regular stops.
once there, head across the street for a bus. cost is 19 pennies.
although there really isn’t much there, a night market type street that has interesting smells, although a few stalls sport the yudou cake stuff, supposedly their specialty. a few teahouses with ridiculous prices, and a view of the coast.
i thought the teahouses in the mountainside near yangming (or was it beitou) were much better and closer.
Ok, so we did go on Saturday. As suggested we took a train to RuiFang (JiuFang) and the bus from there to JinGuaShi (ChinKuahShih), ironically the very same bus I was looking for earlier (coming from Taipei).
The train ride was only about 40 minutes (NT$80, seat reserved) and another 20-30 minutes to JinGuaShi (NT$19).
Initially the sun was shining but once we reached our destination it hid behind the clouds (not that I did mind though).
Walked around the area and visited some view points, overlooking the sea. As well we visited the old mining areas, it seems they are turning it into a (outdoor) museum but nothing was ready yet so most sites weren’t directly accessible. I heard it will open early next year.
Afterwards we took the bus to JiuFen, strolling along the market and then having dinner and tea in one of the teahouses. Started to rain a bit but we sat on a covered balcony.
Went back to Taipei with the last bus (leaves around 9pm), took around 1 hour only to reach the city center (NT$70).
The driver dropped us at BaDe / DunHua intersection though normally the bus terminates at ZhongXiao / FuXing (i.e. near Sogo).
With all the people rushing in to get the gold (aka: “wretched greed”) the serene mountainside hamlet was over run with people trying to make a buck.