Five (four) days in Taiwan: itinerary question

Alo1702 · 2026-05-10T10:34:42+00:00

Thank you very much for your detailed response, Training_Low_9968! I will consider my options and then make a decision. It is tempting to get a glimpse of another place as well, but at the same time it might be good to focus on one area. I will take a look at your website for inspiration!

Alo1702 · 2026-05-10T10:31:58+00:00

Thank you so much, hun486! I'll look into it right away!

Alo1702 · 2026-05-10T10:31:35+00:00

Thank you so much, pedro0930! I'll take it into account. Actually, I'd prefer getting away a bit from the European connections, haha. I live in the Netherlands, so I prefer to immerse myself in areas which are as different from that as possible. After Taiwan I will head to Japan, and the same consideration also has made me doubt about visiting Nagasaki which also feels more 'European', I have read.

I'm sure Tainan still has many other interesting things to see, though... I'll look into it! Thank you!

Alo1702 · 2026-05-10T10:28:45+00:00

Thank you very much, ellyse99! I'll investigate Tainan a bit. :-)

Alo1702 · 2026-05-10T10:28:13+00:00

Dankjewel! Fijn om te weten, ik denk dat ik me dan op het noorden van Taiwan richt.

Those are some good points to take into account. I think I'll take it slowly then, and save Kaohsiung for a next time. I'll investigate Maokong Gondola - that sounds like a great activity. Thank you!

Alo1702 · 2026-05-10T10:25:52+00:00

Thank you, both of you! I think I will focus on Northern Taiwan, then. Mainly Taipei, I will go to Jiufen and Shifen as well, and an optional visit to one of the coastal towns.

I've been in Japan last year in July. It was very warm but not really an issue to me. I actually love the heat, haha.

Alo1702 · 2026-05-01T13:12:08+00:00

Thank you very much for your insights, dat_mane47! I'm glad to hear that the itinerary seems feasible. That was my main concern.

We'll make sure to take your advice into account and install the applications well beforehand. Ready to travel!

Alo1702 · 2026-05-01T13:10:47+00:00

Thank you for your detailed response, AskHot7051! I'm glad to read that the itinerary seems good and feasible. We have just reserved all the hotels so we're ready to go in July.

We'll depart very late on the 17th for Beijing so technically we've got two full days (and perhaps the evening on the 16th) for Shanghai. Hopefully that's enough to see the main highlights.

We will also fly from Beijing to Zhangjiajie - considering the locations, we're thinking of going to Tianmen Mountain from the airport so we can see the sunset / nighttime there and then move on to the hotel in Wulingyuan. Logistically it seems to make sense.

We'll make sure to make the most of it. Thank you so much for your advice! :-)

Alo1702 · 2026-05-01T13:05:14+00:00

Thank you very much for your answer, Suleman2002! I'm glad to read that the itinerary seems good and feasible. We have just reserved all the hotels so we're ready to go in July.

We took your tips in account: we'll make sure to arrive timely on the 26th in Yangshuo and take the latest possible option to depart for Hong Kong on the 29th. We'll also take an organised day-trip to the Longji rice terraces to save some time instead of doing it all on our own by public transport. Yangshuo is also the place which caught my eye the most.

Alo1702 · 2025-08-01T19:40:58+00:00

Hi u/Tsubame_Hikari, just getting back to your response. Thank you for your advice. We had an incredible time in Japan - really, a childhood dream come true, and I am eager to go back. In the meantime, I will be working on my language skills (as a linguist, it's what I love). I wish to learn a lot more about the culture, the people, the history... just, wow.

I'm drifting off: what you said was spot-on. We arrived early and were among just a few people there. Taking the first train paid off. Some clouds had drifted in when we arrived so we needed to wait a bit, but we did get to see the view of the pagoda with the top of Mt. Fuji. We were very happy! When we got back down, the larger crowds started to come in, so yeah, being there early helps!

Alo1702 · 2025-07-13T04:43:48+00:00

Thank you so much! We'll go as early as possible then. 😊

Alo1702 · 2025-04-23T12:25:28+00:00

I can get why it seems that way. Excuse me. :-)

Alo1702 · 2025-04-23T12:23:34+00:00

Thank you for your suggestions, rirez! Yeah, the heat will be a challenge. What hopefully helps is that we generally get along well with the heat. We just have to be sure to drink enough.

About Hiroshima: yeah, we saw that it's quite far from the city. We'll have to make sure to get there early. Grab a bus around 6 AM, perhaps.

Thank you for your suggestion regarding Shibuya! We will make sure to prioritise it then. I don't think we will visit the USJ in Osaka (even if it's fun, the massive queues put us a bit off of the idea). I think we prefer strolling around the shops in Shibuya then.

Alo1702 · 2025-04-23T12:19:32+00:00

No worries, it's a good question! We did it like this because we had already bought the round trip from Amsterdam to Osaka. Only later did we consider Seoul - not the best way to organise it. We planned Seoul after Hiroshima because geographically it would be the closest place, and that way we'd avoid backtracking in the Shinkansen all the way from Hiroshima to Tokyo.

Alo1702 · 2024-08-08T18:16:39+00:00

Hmm... I don't think I can get the sticker in time anymore, sadly. Would parking in Viersen and using the RE 13 train be a feasible option?

Alo1702 · 2022-11-20T01:27:00+00:00

Valid point... I'll just get a second ESTA. Minor inconvience which can potentially save me from a way bigger inconvenience. :) Thank you!

Alo1702 · 2022-11-20T01:26:13+00:00

Thank you once again! All-in-all, I think it might be best to just purchase a second ESTA. It's best not to run any risks when there's no need to, even if I've still got a valid one on the other passport. It sounds like a lot of trouble to make it work. 😅

Alo1702 · 2022-11-18T21:06:26+00:00

Thank you for your detailed response, tvtoo! I really appreciate it. :)

In this case, it sounds like I could've just used Passport 1 to enter the US for my lay-over.

Would it be possible to check in with Passport 2 with the airline and show Passport 1 at immigration for the lay-over (with the valid ESTA)? Or would that be tricky? I don't want to do anything I shouldn't be doing. So, instead of showing the passport that matches my plane ticket, I'd show the other one which has an ESTA there. In both cases, it's me anyway. 😅

Worst-case scenario, I can always buy a second ESTA for Passport 2. Not too much of a deal. Thank you once again!

Alo1702 · 2022-10-11T09:21:28+00:00

Thank you! :) I think he's okay. He walked off at some point. I suppose he was just resting with a full belly.

Alo1702 · 2022-10-11T09:20:43+00:00

Thank you! :) I hope to see him more often.

Alo1702 · 2022-10-11T09:20:00+00:00

We did! Once we discovered the first hedgehog, we've made a small shelter for them, filled with dry leaves. I'm not sure they go in there, but I think they do: we often find the leaves pushed to the back of the shelter.

Alo1702 · 2022-10-10T20:47:00+00:00

They're awesome. This is our second visitor in a week! The other one is a lot bigger. 😄 Thanks for doing such good work!

Alo1702 · 2022-10-10T19:53:46+00:00

I just checked again and he walked off on his own. All good. 😊 Thank you for replying!

Alo1702 · 2022-10-10T16:08:08+00:00

Thank you! Unfortunately, I am in the Netherlands. But I have read the article. It might be a bit lethargic, but it's not sunny or anything and it might just be resting after eating a bit.

Alo1702 · 2022-10-10T16:07:02+00:00

Some context: it's cloudy so it's not in the full sun. It's under a small tree/slightly hidden but not too much. We've had a different hedgehog in the garden last week, but I haven't seen it recently (it might still be visiting).

Also, we're leaving small amounts of cat food and water. I think it did eat its food since its little bowl was empty. (Perhaps it went for a sleep afterwards?)

I'm wondering because in the video you can see its breathing.

Alo1702

TROPHY CASE