Self-Launched Taiwan Panorama: Taipei, Jiufen, Sun Moon Lake, Alishan & the South
11 days · Taiwan
MW Tours charges £2,268
No-markup version: ~£508 per person
Estimate only, not a guaranteed price. Always verify costs independently before booking.
An independent, self-launched version of MW Tours' 11-day "Luxury Taiwan Panorama" loop — same highlights (Pingxi sky lanterns and Shifen Waterfall, Yehliu and Jiufen, Sun Moon Lake, Alishan's forest giants, Tainan's old capital, Fo Guang Shan, Lukang and Taipei's temples and night markets) rebuilt around Taiwan's superb public transport and self-bookable activities. Taiwan is easy to travel solo: the high-speed rail (HSR) and dense local buses/trains link everything, English signage is excellent, hostels and guesthouses are plentiful, and food is cheap and outstanding. Ride the Pingxi Branch Line with a one-day pass, book a Shifen lantern directly from a stall on Old Street, catch the sunrise train up Alishan, and use shared minibuses and the Taiwan Tour Bus for mountain legs. Costs below are rough per-person backpacker estimates in GBP (excl. flights) — the original tour costs roughly £2,250+ per person; you can do the same loop for around a third of that.
Day-by-day
Arrive Taipei — ease in with a metro pass and a night market
Taipei
Land at Taoyuan International Airport (TPE) and take the Airport MRT to Taipei Main Station (~£1.60, 35-40 min) — far cheaper than a taxi (~£30). Check into a hostel in Ximen or Zhongshan, grab a stored-value EasyCard at any metro station, then wander Dadaocheng or Ximending and eat your first night at Ningxia Night Market (oyster omelette, pork rice, bubble tea, ~£5-7). Jet lag-friendly and almost entirely free.
🚌Airport MRT from TPE to Taipei Main (~£1.60) + EasyCard top-up (~£6)
🛏Hostel dorm in Ximen or Zhongshan (~£14-18)
- →Airport MRT into the city
- →EasyCard + Taipei Metro familiarisation
- →Ningxia Night Market food crawl
Pingxi Branch Line, Shifen Waterfall & sky lanterns
Pingxi / Shifen
Take the TRA train from Taipei Main to Ruifang (~£1, 45 min) and buy a one-day Pingxi Branch Line pass (~£2.50) to hop on and off at Sandiaoling (Jintong waterfall trail), Pingxi Old Street and Shifen. Walk to Shifen Waterfall (free, 20-25 min), then release a sky lantern from one of the many Shifen Old Street stalls (~£5-6, self-booked on the spot — no guide needed). Eat street snacks along the line and return to Taipei in the evening. Doable entirely on public transport with English signage throughout.
🚌TRA Taipei–Ruifang (~£1) + Pingxi Branch Line day pass (~£2.50)
🛏Return to Taipei hostel (~£14-18)
- →Pingxi Branch Line hop-on/hop-off
- →Jintong waterfall walk
- →Shifen Waterfall
- →Shifen Old Street sky lantern release (~£5.50)
North coast: Dharma Drum Mountain, Yehliu Geopark & Jiufen
Yehliu / Jiufen
Take the MRT to Tamsui then a bus to Dharma Drum Mountain (free entry, donation welcome) for its serene World Peace Memorial, or start directly at Taipei Main with a bus to Jinshan. Continue by local bus to Yehliu Geopark (entry ~£3) to wander the mushroom rocks and Queen's Head, then the Keelung-bound or direct buses north to Jiufen (entry free). Stay overnight in Jiufen so you get the lantern-lit Old Street after day-trippers leave — book a small guesthouse in advance, as this is where the tour's group hotels sit.
🚌MRT + local buses between Tamsui/Jinshan/Yehliu/Jiufen (~£4-5 total)
🛏Jiufen guesthouse (~£20-25, higher than Taipei)
- →Dharma Drum Mountain monastery
- →Yehliu Geopark (~£3)
- →Jiufen Old Street at dusk
Jiufen morning, then HSR south to Sun Moon Lake
Sun Moon Lake
Catch Jiufen's morning mist over the sea before it fills with tour groups, then bus back to Taipei Main (~£3) and take the HSR to Taichung (~£25, 1 hr) — or the cheaper TRA train (~£9, 2h30). From Taichung, take the Nantou bus (No. 6670, ~£3.50, 1h40) direct to Sun Moon Lake. Arrive by mid-afternoon and walk Ita Thao village, the Holy Monk Shrine (Ci'en Pagoda area) and the lakeside trails. Base yourself in Ita Thao or Shuishe for two nights.
🚌Jiufen bus to Taipei (~£3) + HSR Taipei–Taichung (~£25) + Nantou bus 6670 (~£3.50)
🛏Sun Moon Lake guesthouse/hostel in Ita Thao or Shuishe (~£20-25)
- →Jiufen sunrise viewpoint
- →Ita Thao village stroll
- →Tse En Pagoda / Ci'en Pagoda walk
- →Lakeside sunset
Sun Moon Lake by bike and boat, evening bus to Chiayi
Sun Moon Lake / Chiayi
Rent a bike (~£5 for a few hours) and ride the gorgeous Shuishe–Ita Thao lakeside trail, or take the lake ferry (~£4.50) between the three piers. Visit Wenwu Temple and the Holy Monk Shrine on foot before an afternoon bus to Taichung or Chiayi. For Alishan tomorrow, position yourself in Chiayi (bus ~£4, 2 hrs) and stay near the Chiayi train/bus station. Buy your Alishan Forest Railway ticket in advance online if you want the scenic mountain train — it books out, especially at weekends.
🚌Bike/ferry (~£9) + bus Sun Moon Lake–Chiayi (~£4)
🛏Chiayi budget hotel near the station (~£16-20)
- →Lakeside cycling trail
- →Lake ferry between piers
- →Wenwu Temple
- →Holy Monk Shrine
Alishan Forest Park — sunrise train and giant trees
Alishan
Take the early bus from Chiayi to Alishan (~£5.50, 2h15) or the famous Forest Railway (~£10, 4 hrs — book ahead). Inside the park (entry ~£6), walk the forest trails past the Three Generation Tree, the Brother Tree and Sister Pond, and ride the park's small train up for sunrise or the Sisters Pond loop. If you stay overnight in Alishan village you get a shot at the 5am Zhushan sunrise train (~£3.50). Pack layers — it's cool and damp up here even in summer.
🚌Chiayi–Alishan bus (~£5.50) + park shuttle trains (~£3.50)
🛏Alishan village guesthouse/hostel (~£22-28)
- →Alishan Forest Park trails (~£6 entry)
- →Three Generation Tree, Brother Tree, Sister Pond
- →Sunrise train option
- →Giant cypress groves
Down from Alishan to Tainan — Taiwan's old capital
Tainan
Catch the morning bus or train down to Chiayi, then a local TRA train south to Tainan (~£2.50-4, 1 hr) or the HSR from Chiayi (~£9). Check into a hostel in the West Central district and spend the afternoon on a self-guided old-town walk: Anping Fort (~£2), Chikan Tower (~£2), the Confucius Temple (free) and the lanes of Shennong Street. Finish with Tainan's legendary snacks — danzai noodles, coffin bread, shrimp rolls — around Guohua Street (~£6).
🚌Alishan–Chiayi bus (~£5) + TRA Chiayi–Tainan (~£3)
🛏Tainan hostel/hostel private room (~£16-20)
- →Anping Fort (~£2)
- →Chikan Tower (~£2)
- →Confucius Temple
- →Shennong Street old lanes
- →Guohua Street food street
Fo Guang Shan Monastery, then Kaohsiung night markets
Kaohsiung
Take the TRA south to Kaohsiung (~£2.50) and stow your bag, or go straight out — the E-Da/Harvard Express buses (or the 8001/8010 from Kaohsiung Main) connect to Fo Guang Shan Monastery (~£2-3, 45 min). Entry is free; the Buddha Museum with its towering Buddha and vegetarian food court (lunch ~£3) is a highlight and easily self-guided on foot. Back in Kaohsiung, check into a hostel near the Formosa Boulevard MRT, then hit Liuhe or Ruifeng Night Market in the evening (~£5).
🚌TRA Tainan–Kaohsiung (~£2.50) + bus to Fo Guang Shan (~£2.50)
🛏Kaohsiung hostel dorm/private (~£14-18)
- →Fo Guang Shan Monastery & Buddha Museum (free)
- →Vegetarian monastery lunch (~£3)
- →Liuhe or Ruifeng Night Market
North to Lukang's old town, then Taipei
Lukang / Taipei
Take the train/bus north to Changhua (~£4-7, 1h30), then a local bus to Lukang (~£1.50, 30 min). Wander Lukang Old Street's red-brick lanes, Lungshan Temple (free) and the Spring & Autumn Pavilion, and stop at a traditional café for a coffee and maybe a lucky-bag biscuit (~£3). Afterwards bus back to Changhua and take the HSR to Taipei (~£20, 1 hr) or the TRA local (~£9, 3 hrs). Overnight in Taipei ready for a full city day.
🚌Kaohsiung–Changhua TRA (~£6) + local bus to Lukang (~£1.50) + HSR Changhua–Taipei (~£20)
🛏Taipei hostel in Ximen or Zhongshan (~£14-18)
- →Lukang Old Street
- →Lungshan Temple Lukang
- →Spring & Autumn Pavilion
- →Local café stop
Taipei in depth — temples, Dihua Street, Taipei 101 and museums
Taipei
Self-guided metro day using your EasyCard: start at Baoan Temple and the neighbouring Confucius Temple (both free), walk Dihua Street's dried-goods and tea shops for lunch snacks (~£5), then ride to Taipei 101 — take the free observation route at the base or splurge on the 89th-floor observatory (~£15, book ahead on Klook to skip the queue). In the afternoon, choose between the Chiang Kai-shek Memorial Hall (free) and the National Palace Museum (~£10, the tour's own reviewers regretted missing it). Finish with Raohe Night Market and the Songshan Ciyou Temple.
🚌Taipei Metro day card / EasyCard taps (~£3-4)
🛏Taipei hostel (~£14-18)
- →Baoan Temple & Taipei Confucius Temple
- →Dihua Street
- →Taipei 101 observatory (~£15)
- →Chiang Kai-shek Memorial Hall
- →National Palace Museum (~£10)
- →Raohe Night Market
Morning museums and departure
Taipei / Taoyuan Airport
If your flight is later in the day, spend the morning at the 228 Peace Memorial Park, the Huashan 1914 Creative Park, or a last bowl of beef noodle soup. Then take the Airport MRT from Taipei Main to TPE (~£1.60, 35-40 min) — allow at least 2.5 hrs before an international flight. If you want a little slack (as the tour's reviewers did), add two extra nights in Taipei: budget ~£45-55 more including a day trip to Tamsui or Beitou's hot springs.
🚌Airport MRT to TPE (~£1.60)
🛏None (departure day)
- →228 Peace Memorial Park
- →Huashan 1914 Creative Park
- →Last beef noodle soup
Self-launched vs. MW Tours
| This itinerary (self-launched) | MW Tours | |
|---|---|---|
| Price per person | ~£508 | £2,268 |
| Duration | 11 days | 11 days |
| Who books it | You and your group, direct | Tour operator, guided group |
| Savings | £1,760 per person (78%) | |
Estimate only, not a guaranteed price. Always verify costs independently before booking.
Want to see more MW Tours-style trips? Check them out here.~£508
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 Taiwan Panorama: Taipei, Jiufen, Sun Moon Lake, Alishan & the South cost?+
Doing it yourself with this self-launched itinerary costs an estimated £508 per person for 11 days in 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 MW Tours?+
Yes — MW Tours charges around £2,268 per person for a similar tour. Doing the same route independently, using the same standard of accommodation and activities, costs an estimated £508 — a saving of roughly £1,760 (78%) per person.
How long is the Taiwan trip?+
This itinerary runs 11 days, covering 11 day-by-day stops through 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, budget trip through 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?
Drop your comment below — if you've done a similar route, tell us what worked, what you'd add, or what you'd skip.
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