As slow travelers, we have time to leisurely explore places and discover lesser-known hidden gems. And thanks to picking Taiwan as our home for the foreseeable future, we can still enjoy slow traveling as the country is one of the very few that managed to actually keep the virus outside of its borders.
Taiwan has kept us pretty busy exploring in 2020 as we’ve already done two around the island month-long trips (read: Life ‘Stuck’ in Taiwan during the coronavirus pandemic – June’s edition) and have been able to extensively explore many places that are accessible from Taipei. From our exploration, we’ve stumbled upon a few places that are not widely known but have blown us away by their beauty.
In this article, we share our 3-day itinerary where we explore part of the lovely east coast of Taiwan by bike! We cover where we went, where we stopped, how we rented our bikes, how much we spent and everything we learn along the way!
If you aren’t familiar with Taiwan, make sure to check out everything we had to say about Taiwan!
How much time do you need to bike in Taiwan?
It depends! As little as one day, as long as two months would be the generic answer.
The bare minimum if you want to complete biking all around Taiwan (1000 km) is about 9 days. At this pace you will barely be able to enjoy the sights you will see around you as there are plenty. As slow travelers, our suggestion would be to take an entire month to get the experience of a lifetime and embracing the island through biking (assuming you are a biker enthusiast). At this pace, you can mix biking days with rest/relax days. But of course, not everyone could have the luxury to enjoy such a long journey/trip.
Since Mrs. NN is still a beginner when it comes to biking (she did not know how to bike 4 years ago), we looked for the easiest multi-day experience we could find. That means an easy way to get to our starting point (Hualien), an easy way to get rental bikes, as well as an easy way to get back home. Our itinerary is a great one for first timers that are comfortable with a bike but don’t feel like biking 1000 km for the entire tour at an average of 1000 km / day.
Where did we do? What did we see?
We did a 3 days biking trip on the east coast of Taiwan from Hualien to Taichung which was about 200km (or about 70 km per day including detours).
Our itinerary was as follow:
- Day 1: Hualien to Ruisui (75km – 5h30)
- Day 2: Ruisui to Chishang (63km – 4h30)
- Day 3: Chishang to Taichung (63km – 4h15)
Day 1: From Hualien to Ruisui – Warm-up
We woke up at 6:30 am and started biking by 7 am as we knew this was going to be our longest day of the entire trip. Most of the route we took followed Highway 9 which has little elevation but also has some heavy traffic. Luckily there are bike lanes all the way (which are usually a large a corridor on the side of the road delimited most of the time by a while lane). There is an option to follow Highway 11 instead to get close to the coast, but we discarded this option due to the elevation profile.
We made stops at the following places that we recommend:
- (*) Mr. Sam (km 25) – A theme coffee shop with a funky house that is along Highway 9 so hard to miss. They serve ice cream, buns, and coffee and you need to pay an admission to enter (that you can later use to purchase food/drink). Since we arrived early the place was close but the point here is just to take a few pictures and to move on.
- (**) Fenglin Train Station (km 34) – A good rest stop. Fenglin is known for being a place internationally recognized by the slow-living community (and also the first Taiwan First Official ‘slow town’) which prompted us for the stop. Besides lovely snail signs, we did not find where to experience the slow living aspect though. If you know, please let us know so we can come back next time!
- (*) Guangfu downtown (km 50) – We stopped at Guangfu Place for lunch.
- (*) Hualien Sugar Factory (km 53)- Probably the most touristy spot of our entire trip. We stopped there because it was on the way and also a popular stop for people taking this route. We’ve been pretty disappointed by the place. While we were expecting plenty of products made from sugar cane (since the factory is there), we got instead a place full of touristy shops selling Taiwanese crafts and goods. There is an ice cream shop we tried that offers okay ice cream. If you are in a rush, you can easily skip this stop and use the time for the next one!
- (****) Danongdafu Forest Park (km 60) – There are over a million trees of nearly 20 different kinds in this forest park. Some of the bike trails we took are truly magical! You can probably spend 2-3 hours there to explore everything. Since we did not have that much time (b/c of the factory! :D) we are planning on coming back! We recommend the South ring bikeway as a must-do.
- (***) Hot pot in Ruisui (km 73) – After nearly 75km, we arrived at Ruisui for dinner. We enjoyed a delicious and very filling hot pot at this really nice restaurant that w/ a very unique atmosphere.
- (***) Yi-Xiang Yuan Guest House (km 75) – Our guest house/hotel for the night. We did not pick this place for the cute design, but rather for the private hot spring in our room. The perfect treat to relax ourselves and our muscles after a very long biking day.
| Total distance | Total moving time | Total elevation |
|---|---|---|
| 46.41 mi (or 74.69 km) | 5:44:47 | 1,553 ft (or 473 m) |
Here is the overall route with the elevation profile:
Day 2: From Ruisui to Chishang – Top notch bike paths
After a relaxing night and a good night of sleep, we hit the road at 9 am on that second day. On this section of the route, we could stay further away from highway 9 to experience some truly remarkable bike paths.
We made stops at the following places that we recommend:
- (***) Highway 193 – After leaving Ruisui we left the traffic to get onto some bike-only roads with some really cool views. We’ve noticed plenty of fruit trees along the way including pomelo, dragon fruits, and star fruits.
- (**) Yuli downtown (km 26) – We left highway 193 by crossing the river (on a cool rainbow bridge) to get to Yuli for lunch at a really nice Vietnamese restaurant.
- (***) Yufu bike path (km 26) – From Yuli, we get on one of the top bike lanes of this trip with some stunning views of the rice paddy fields and the countryside. A 10 km stretch of pure biking paradise from Guangfu to Jiudongli train station which ends at a place called the Yufu Runway.
- (**) HL 75 (km 36) – Shortly after passing Dongli we crossed the river (again!) to connect with HL 75, a less crowded road with nice countryside views, and kept following it until we reached Chishang.
- (***) Chishang Train Lunch box (km 63) – To wrap up our day, we ate a lunch box at this very popular stop (a place we already visited back in June) that serves delicious lunch boxes. You can even take your lunch box in an old wagon to get the full experience of eating it like you were on the train (as these lunch boxes were initially designed for ppl riding the train).
- Nangua Homestay (km 63) – We spent the night at this guest house in downtown Chishang. Nothing fancy.
| Total distance | Total moving time | Total elevation |
|---|---|---|
| 39.18 mi (or 63.05 km) | 4:35:49 | 1,445 ft (or 440 m) |
Here is the overall route with the elevation profile:
Day 3: From Chishang to Taitung – A picture-perfect day
For our 3rd and last day, we got on our bikes by 7:30 am so we could take time to explore the beautiful region of Chishang while still having time to return our bike before 6 pm in Taitung.
We made stops at the following places that we recommend:
- (****) Mr. Brown Boulevard/Avenue (km 4) – This is one of the most beautiful and scenic places in Taiwan, best experience biking. Being there early and during the week gives us plenty of opportunities to enjoy the space for ourselves. The first time we came to Chishang we spent almost half a day here so if you have the energy, try to wake up as early as possible to enjoy this place.
- (***) Guanshan Town Bikeway (km 12) – After being done with our pictures, we reached this bike path. It is a 12km long loop that follows the river and gradually inclined uphill into the “mountain section“ leading to the highest point of the bikeway.
- (**) The Sun Moon Viewing pavilion (km 16) – This is the highest point of the bikeway, providing a great view of the small town of Guanshan.
- (***) Green tunnel (km 27) – A really cool location covered by green trees which makes for a lovely stop for pictures, especially when it isn’t crowded. As it often the case in Taiwan, this popular place comes with some props (like bench and tables) to get some of these Instagram shots.
- (***) Luye for lunch (km 34) – We stopped in the town of Liyu for a really good lunch. The place we stopped by specialized in pork dishes which were pretty rich in flavors and huge in size. A place we highly recommend if you aren’t vegetarian.
- (**) Taitung Dohua place (km 60) – To celebrate our 3 days bike ride we stopped by one of Mrs. NN favorite dessert: Dohua (a concoction made of shave ice, tofu, and various toppings)
- Taitung Train station (km 62) – This is where we returned our bike to the Giant bike shop. We then packed our items, picked up some snacks @ 7-Eleven, and took a train back to Hualien.
And this concludes our 3 days biking trip on the east coast of Taiwan. A truly wonderful experience!
| Total distance | Total moving time | Total elevation |
|---|---|---|
| 38.79 mi (or 62.43 km) | 4:15:26 | 1,004 ft (or 306 m) |
Here is the overall route with the elevation profile:
Pro-tip: If you are interested to easily locate and access all the places we are mentioning in this article, fill out the form below and we will send you a copy of our own Google Maps we created. (We use this map directly from our phone when we explore/navigate, which makes it super handy to find places).
How to get to Hualien?
Trains will be the best option to get to Hualien from Taipei or pretty much anywhere within Taiwan. You might also have bus options depending on your schedule and starting point.
Pro-tip: if you want to make your first day easier, we recommend that you spent the night before in Hualien. Also if you rent your bikes with Giants (more on this in a moment), you might be able to pick up the bike the day before at no additional cost which is exactly what we did! This gave us peace of mind to set up our bake before going to bed.
How to rent bikes?
We highly recommend going to the Giant bike store. Giant is a popular bike company from Taiwan that has many shops across the country. Taiwan. There is actually one by the Hualien train station which is specialized in the Hualien -> Taichung one way trip as they have a twin store next to the Taitung train station where you can drop off your bike.
The company lets you rent th3ree types of bikes: mountain bikes (for beginners), flat bar road bikes (for speed) and e-bikes (if you need assistance through your trip). The bikes come with lights, a cycle computer (to track your progress), 2 front bags, a bottle cage, a rear rack, a key, and a lock, a mini pump, mini tools, and pannier backs (for the rear, one of each side). Rentals required a 3 days minimum and start at 1,200 NTD (~30 USD). Helmet rental is an extra 100 NTD (~3 USD) for the entire trip.
Pro-tip: For more information about the drop off service and everything you might ask yourself, check out this English document from the Giant store that does a great job at explaining everything. Also, keep in mind that you need to book your bike at least 2 weeks in advance. So don’t wait for the last minute to plan your trip.
How much did we spend?
If you’ve been following our adventure in Taiwan you know that the cost of living here is pretty affordable and the same applies to biking.
TL;DR; As a couple, we spent a total of 230 USD on this 3-day trip!
| Category | Total Cost per person | Comments |
|---|---|---|
| Transportation | 98 USD | This was for renting our Giant mountain bikes for 3 days with all the equipment. |
| Accommodation | 81 USD | This covered the night on day 1 and day 2 |
| Dining out | 40 USD | This covered 3 lunch and 2 dinner |
| Snacks | 8 USD | A few munchies on the road |
| Others | 3 USD | Some non-food related purchases |
| TOTAL | 230 USD | Or 38 USD / day and per person! |
Others tips?
Here are our tips for anyone that is planning to bike in Taiwan, wants to save time and money while having the best possible experience:
- Plan your trip during weekdays – October is considered the beginning of the high season for biking in Taiwan (since the temperatures are getting cooler) so you might be better booking your trip during the week than over the weekend.
- Check the weather forecast – We initially planned our trip from Monday-Wednesday but we had to shift it by a day due to the weather forecast.
- Make sure to waterproof yourself & your belongings – You never know how the weather can change in Taiwan and you probably don’t want to get drench and bike in wet clothes. The same principle applies to your bike. Our bike did not come with waterproof bags. The rental store had the option but it wasn’t worth the upgrade in our own opinion. Instead, we took plastic bags with us for anything that we need to be protected from the water in case of rain.
What do you think about biking in Taiwan for a few days? Did you know about the short 200km stretch along the coast? Would you plan biking in Taiwan if you come visit?
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12 Comments
Skip · November 10, 2020 at 1:35 pm
Love this. We just sold our trusty old Treks in preparation for our travels. I was really sad to see them go. We put in 40-80 miles per week on those bikes nine months out of the year. This type of content really makes me feel better about letting them go. We have many more bike rides to look forward too.
Mr. Nomad Numbers · November 11, 2020 at 4:36 am
Thank you Skip. While probably not as avid bikers as you, we do like hiking and camping so we where having similar questions about our old gears (hiking poles, tent, sleeping bags…). Ultimately we realized that it would still be cheaper to rent as needed – or even buy for very long term stay like we are currently doing here in Taipei due to the pandemic – than having to pay for additional baggage allowance to carry them arround. We are however really impressed by the quality of the bike rental here (and even the city bikes). Giant seems to be a solid brand!
wallies · November 17, 2020 at 7:04 pm
That’s cool to ride a bike in Taiwan since most bikes are made in Taiwan.
Mr. Nomad Numbers · November 18, 2020 at 5:08 am
Thank you Wallies!
Jeremy · October 12, 2022 at 8:00 am
Hi there, I love this idea and would love to replicate the experience! I’m curious, did you carry all your things on the ride? I had also read about a way to get luggage sent via train and held for you, but not sure if that’s needed. Also, what did you do about water along the way? Did you find that one water bottle was enough and there were places to fill it? Thanks!
Mr. Nomad Numbers · October 13, 2022 at 10:37 am
Hi Jeremy,
Thanks for checking out our biking journey in this part of Taiwan. It was fun!
Well we had an Airbnb in Hualien were most of our belongings were. We only carried what was needed for the ride with us. The bikes we rented has enough storage for all our items that I would not worried about getting your stuff shipped by train (or via 7-Eleven which also do ship from store to store for very little), unless you plan on an extremely long trip and/or need a lot of gears. Regarding water, there are water station you can find in Taiwan to refill your water easily. We probably carried 2-3L of water with us (as safety) as refilled as we found such station. 7-Eleven are also everywhere in Taiwan and provide with a lot of inexpensive snacks/drinks in case of emergency 🙂
What itinerary/length do you have in mind for this ride?
Will · January 1, 2023 at 11:32 am
Hi there,
Thanks for sharing this – looks like a great trip! I’m keen to do something similar when I visit Taiwan later this month, but have had some trouble translating the Giants Bike web page into English even with google translate – did you experience anything similar? How did you reserve your bikes with them?
Thanks in advance,
Will
Mr. Nomad Numbers · January 20, 2023 at 1:34 am
Hi Will. We did talk to them directly by reaching out to them on the Line social app that most people in Taiwan use to communicate. People were speaking english so we did not have any specific issue to book our bikes with them that way. Have you try to reach out to them that way?
Deborah Sherwood · February 26, 2023 at 5:24 am
Would it be possible to get your gps routes for this three day trip? We will be following your exact route starting on March 7th, but ideally we’d like to get the route before we leave this Monday, Feb 27th! Thanks!
Mr. Nomad Numbers · March 6, 2023 at 3:14 am
Hi Deborah. Are the maps we shared not sufficient enough for you to follow our route? The bike path are pretty well marked so you just need to input in your GPS the destination and you should be on the right path. That being said, what type of information are you especially asking for?
Deborah Sherwood · March 19, 2023 at 9:04 pm
Hi Mr. NN. We just returned from our cycling trip in Taiwan and used your recommended route. It was absolutely the best ride we’ve ever done in any country! The inland route was just incredibly beautiful, and the smaller side roads you recommended were ideal. Even Hwy 9 wasn’t bad at all, and the bike lanes on the highway were wide and very clean. We made a copy of all the various points of interest in your blog, and visited most of them (including the hot pot place and pork rice place!). We particularly liked the Guanshan bike trail loop, and Yufu bike path. The distances of each day’s ride were just perfect for us, as we had lots of time to stop and explore the many small towns along the way, and take pictures. Here are a few things we did differently and some updated notes about the route. We arrived in Hualien and rented our bikes from Giant the first day (I’d reserved them 2 weeks in advance using Giant’s online chat feature), then on Day 2 we took our bikes by train to Xincheng Taroko station, and rode about 8 miles into Taroko Gorge and back to Hualien, total of 40 miles for the day. That was a nice way to start and extend this ride into 4 days of cycling. The following day we sent our luggage to Taitung at the baggage counter at the far end of the train station. You have to be prepared to translate the form needed for the transfer, as the attendant did not speak any English. One important route note is that the Yufu Bike Path bridge over the river when heading out of Yuli is closed due to some bridge construction, so you need to back track a little to use the Hwy 30 bridge that is adjacent to it, turning right (south) on Hwy 9. The bike path is visible to your right, and within a mile of being on Hwy 9, you can see a side road that links you back to the Yufu bike path. You do not want to miss getting back on the bike path, because this was the most beautiful portion of the entire ride — just amazing!! Another note is that the Giant Store in Taitung where you return your bikes moved in 2021 from the train station to another location in downtown Taitung, about 4 miles away. Also note there are 2 Giant stores downtown, one that is repairs only, and one that rents bikes. The one you return your bikes to is at No. 310 Gengsheng Road. This was unwelcome trial and error at the end of a long day, but we finally found the right place! These guys spoke English and all was well. Thank you SO much for this great route and all the detailed descriptions, and we look forward to following your future trips!
Mr. Nomad Numbers · March 20, 2023 at 1:15 am
Hi Deborah, we’re delighted to hear that you enjoyed cycling along the Eastern coast of Taiwan using our recommended route! We appreciate you taking the time to share the additional itinerary you followed, which we’ll consider exploring with our family later in 2023. Taiwan is a remarkable biking destination that’s hard to surpass in other countries we’ve visited. However, we’re presently in Cambodia, biking through the Angkor Wat archeological area, and it’s been a pleasant experience! We’ll share our thoughts on this adventure in a future blog post.