Self-Launched Eastern Taiwan Loop: Taipei to Hualien, Yuli, Taitung & Back
5 days · Eastern Taiwan
MyTaiwanTour charges £1,500
No-markup version: ~£343 per person
Estimate only, not a guaranteed price. Always verify costs independently before booking.
A DIY version of MyTaiwanTour's 5-day Eastern Beauty Classic private tour, covering the same east-coast circuit — Qixingtan Beach, Liyu Lake, Dongdamen Night Market, Yuli and the Tropic of Cancer marker, an indigenous cooking class, the Batongguan Trail, Chishang's Brown Avenue, Sanxiantai, Jingpu village, Qingshui Cliff, Yilan's geothermal park and the Kavalan Distillery. Instead of a private sedan and driver-guide, you'll ride Taiwan's excellent TRA trains and local buses, join small-group cooking and food experiences bookable via Klook, and stay in hostels and simple 3-star guesthouses. Roughly £390 per person versus US$1,950 (~£1,500) for the private tour — though note the operator price is per person based on two sharing, so a solo traveller pays comparatively more of the DIY total.
Day-by-day
Taipei → Hualien: Qixingtan Beach, Liyu Lake & Dongdamen Night Market
Hualien
Morning: take the TRA Taroko Express (Puyuma/Taroko) from Taipei Main Station to Hualien, about 2h10m, NT$440 (~£11) — book on the TRA e-booking site or at the station 1-2 days ahead as seats sell out. Drop bags at your hostel near Hualien Station, then use the Taiwan Tourist Shuttle 'Taroko Gorge' route or a local bus 1131/1132 to Qixingtan Beach (pebble beach, dolphin-watching boats and the Chihsingtan promenade). Continue by bus or YouBike to Liyu Lake for a lakeside walk and optional pedal boat. Late afternoon detour to Jiang Jun Fu, the preserved Japanese-era military officers' residence complex in Hualien City (free entry, small museum). Evening: eat your way through Dongdamen Night Market — try Hualien specialties like mochi, coffin bread and grilled squid, budget NT$250-350 (~£6-9).
🚌TRA Taroko Express Taipei–Hualien ~NT$440 (~£11); local buses and YouBike NT$100-150
🛏Hostel or simple guesthouse near Hualien Station, dorm NT$500-700 (~£12-17)
- →Qixingtan Beach & promenade
- →Liyu Lake walk / pedal boat
- →Jiang Jun Fu historic residence
- →Dongdamen Night Market food crawl
Hualien → Yuli: Indigenous Cooking Class & Tropic of Cancer Marker
Yuli
Take a local TRA train from Hualien to Yuli (~45-55 min, NT$120-150, ~£3) along the East Coast line — sit on the left for valley views. Check into the Yuli hostel, rent a bike (NT$200-300/day) and ride out to the Wuhe Tropic of Cancer Marker on the Rift Valley cycle route, passing rice paddies and Bunun/Amis villages. In the afternoon, join a small-group indigenous cooking class in Yuli or nearby Luoshan — bookable via Klook ('Yuli indigenous cuisine experience') or arranged directly through your hostel, roughly NT$1,200-1,800 (~£30-45), where you learn to cook wild vegetables, millet dumplings and bamboo-tube rice. Evening stroll around Yuli town, eat at the small night market stalls and soak up the slow village pace.
🚌Local TRA Hualien–Yuli ~NT$140 (~£3.50); bike rental ~NT$250
🛏Yuli hostel (dorm or private twin), NT$600-900 (~£15-22)
- →Rift Valley bike ride
- →Wuhe Tropic of Cancer Marker
- →Indigenous cooking class
- →Yuli town evening stroll
Yuli → Taitung: Batongguan Trail, Local Lunch & Chishang Brown Avenue
Taitung / Chishang
Morning train south from Yuli to Chishang (~35 min, NT$70, ~£2). Store luggage at Chishang Station lockers, then rent a bike (NT$150-250) and ride Chishang Brown Avenue — the golden-rice-paddy lane made famous by a Eason Chan music video — plus the Dapo Pond loop. For the Batongguan Trail and suspension bridge section, take a local taxi or the Taiwan Tourist Shuttle from Chishang to the trailhead near Nan'an (~NT$300 each way for a shared taxi, ~£7); the walk itself is easy, 1-2 hours on a marked forest path crossing a long suspension bridge. Lunch at a local 'private kitchen' style restaurant in Chishang — try the famous Chishang bento box (NT$100-150) or a small family-run eatery. Afternoon train from Chishang to Taitung (~40 min, NT$80) and check into a guesthouse near Zhiben (Chihpen) hot springs for an evening soak — many guesthouses here have their own spring baths.
🚌TRA Yuli–Chishang–Taitung ~NT$150 total; shared taxi to trailhead ~NT$600 return split; bike NT$200
🛏Guesthouse near Zhiben hot springs, twin room NT$1,400-1,800 (~£35-45)
- →Batongguan Trail & suspension bridge
- →Chishang Brown Avenue cycle
- →Dapo Pond
- →Chishang bento lunch
- →Zhiben hot spring soak
Taitung → East Coast: Sanxiantai, Jingpu Village & back to Hualien
Taitung → Hualien
Base yourself around Taitung/Jhihben for the morning: taxi or local bus to the Paul Chiang Art Center (free-to-low entry, ~NT$200 by taxi from Zhiben) — the late artist's whimsical mosaic-covered village-home gallery. Then take the Taiwan Tourist Shuttle East Coast line (or TRA to Chenggong plus a short taxi) north to Sanxiantai to walk the eight-arch Dragon Bridge out to the Three Immortals Platform. Continue to Jingpu Indigenous Village or Shitiping for coastal rock formations and Amis village life — the East Coast shuttle stops at both; a day pass is around NT$250-400 (~£7-10). Alternatively rent a scooter in Chenggong if you hold an international driving permit. Late afternoon, take the TRA train from Chenggong or Yuli back to Hualien (~1h30m, NT$350, ~£9) and check into a hostel near Hualien Station; dinner at a local noodle shop or back at Dongdamen.
🚌East Coast Tourist Shuttle day pass ~NT$300; TRA Chenggong–Hualien ~NT$350
🛏Hostel near Hualien Station, dorm NT$500-700 (~£12-17)
- →Paul Chiang Art Center
- →Sanxiantai Dragon Bridge
- →Jingpu Indigenous Village / Shitiping coast
- →East Coast shuttle sightseeing
Hualien → Taipei: Qingshui Cliff, Yilan Geothermal Park & Kavalan Distillery
Hualien → Yilan → Taipei
Early start: catch the TRA train north from Hualien toward Yilan — sit on the left side to see Qingshui Cliff from your window (or hop off at Chongde/Heping for a short coastal walk, ~NT$100, and reboard). Arrive Yilan around late morning; take local bus 131 or a taxi (~NT$250) to Jiaoxi's Tangweigou geothermal park for a free public foot-soak before lunch. Then local bus or taxi to the Kavalan Distillery in Yuanshan (NT$200-300) — self-guided production tour is free, a paid tasting flight is NT$300-500 (~£7-11), and their award-winning Solist whiskies are the draw. Return by bus to Yilan/Jiaoxi, then TRA back to Taipei (~1h10m, NT$280-340, ~£7-8), arriving late afternoon or early evening.
🚌TRA Hualien–Yilan ~NT$350, Yilan–Taipei ~NT$300; local buses/taxis ~NT$500
🛏Not included — Taipei hostel or onward travel
- →Qingshui Cliff viewpoint
- →Jiaoxi geothermal park foot soak
- →Kavalan Distillery tour & whisky tasting
Self-launched vs. MyTaiwanTour
| This itinerary (self-launched) | MyTaiwanTour | |
|---|---|---|
| Price per person | ~£343 | £1,500 |
| Duration | 5 days | 5 days |
| Who books it | You and your group, direct | Tour operator, guided group |
| Savings | £1,157 per person (77%) | |
Estimate only, not a guaranteed price. Always verify costs independently before booking.
Want to see more MyTaiwanTour-style trips? Check them out here.~£343
estimated per person
You never pay Travel Crew for this — you pay hostels, transport, and activity providers directly, the same as if you'd booked it all yourself.
This publishes your dates so other travellers can find and join you — no tour operator needed.
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Frequently asked questions
How much does Self-Launched Eastern Taiwan Loop: Taipei to Hualien, Yuli, Taitung & Back cost?+
Doing it yourself with this self-launched itinerary costs an estimated £343 per person for 5 days in Eastern Taiwan. This is an AI-generated estimate based on typical budget-traveller prices — actual costs will vary by season and how you book.
Is this cheaper than booking with MyTaiwanTour?+
Yes — MyTaiwanTour charges around £1,500 per person for a similar tour. Doing the same route independently, using the same standard of accommodation and activities, costs an estimated £343 — a saving of roughly £1,157 (77%) per person.
How long is the Eastern Taiwan trip?+
This itinerary runs 5 days, covering 5 day-by-day stops through Eastern Taiwan.
How do I join this trip?+
You can join an existing open departure using this itinerary if one is scheduled, or launch your own departure with your own dates and invite other travellers to join you — no tour operator required.
Isn't it easier to just use a tour operator?+
Well, yes, a tour operator will book all the individual parts of your travel for you and provide a guide. That's obvious, but doing this has the potential to save the group thousands, which can in turn improve your itinerary substantially or save you huge amounts of money. Also, when you launch a departure, Travel Crew has tools in place to help you book the individual sections of the trip or make it easier for you to do this as a group. Really, you do not need a middle man. If you are more comfortable paying more and using a middle man, then you should certainly do this.
Is it safer to book through a tour operator?+
Arguably, there isn't much difference. A self-launched trip runs on the same principle as a group travel crew: collective responsibility, everyone looking out for each other, the same way it would if a group of friends organised the trip themselves — because that's exactly what's happening. You should always take out travel insurance before you go, self-launched or not; that doesn't change either way. Every open departure is published publicly with real dates and a real trip organiser, so it's never an anonymous arrangement, and our support team is reachable any time you need help, including in an emergency while you're away. Longer-term, we're building direct relationships with ground DMCs in popular destinations, offered as an optional paid add-on for extra on-the-ground support. Ultimately, though, the group is responsible for its own conduct and safety on a self-launched trip, same as on any trip you plan yourself.
What kind of trip is this?+
This is a culture, foodie, slow-travel trip through Eastern Taiwan, self-launched rather than run by a tour operator — you organise it with a group you find or bring yourself.
Would you like to name the operator, name the trip, or have any suggestions about how to improve this itinerary?
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