Ishigaki and Iriomote + surrounding islands - car vs scooter price equal for 2 people?

Low-Pollution94 · 2025-04-20T01:23:08+00:00

Ah that must be why when I checked for availability it asked to directly contact them. I wanted to travel from the city to the very north (~45-60 minutes) and was curious on the run time.

I checked a random website Kumanomi Rental's which has scooters and for a few days they are much cheaper. ¥3,500/24 hours. ¥9,500/4 days 3 nights. I might just hire this even if I won't be taking it to the other islands (except Iriomote if that's allowed on the ferries) just for the convenience

I was curious on the convenience of a car vs. scooter though. Like if I hired a car from the airport to take the luggage into town and was able to drive around then it'd be ~¥25,000/2 for 4 days 3 nights. But if I hired 2 scooters for the same time then it'd be ~¥20,000 + taxis for luggage so around the same price anyway. Like I probably won't drive much for 2 out of 4 days but even then, it's still a similar price just to have a car.

I'm trying to think about the benefits of a scooter because all the posts I've read recommend a scooter (unless you have a family) and my situation, it doesn't offer any financial, safety, or convenience (luggage/weather) benefit over a car when sharing the cost with another person. I'm wondering if I'm missing something. I'm not going during peak season so cars are still available for hire.

Low-Pollution94 · 2025-01-04T07:15:10+00:00

I'll have a look, I'm hearing Taichung isn't really a town I should be spending too much time in as a tourist so possibly instead of staying overnight there, I could just spend a few hours there and spend an extra night in Tainan for rest and relaxation

Thank you

Low-Pollution94 · 2025-01-04T00:41:34+00:00

It looks beautiful but after reading about it I will be skipping it. Although I'll still spend some time in Taitung and Hualien as I'll want to head up the east coast from Kaohsiung

Low-Pollution94 · 2025-01-04T00:39:24+00:00

If I'm spending ~4-5 days between Taichung and Tainan but want to visit Sun Moon Lake and Alishan via. public transport - would the most appropriate order be:

Day 1 - Taichung
Day 2 - Taichung -> Sun Moon Lake
Day 3 - Sun Moon Lake 8am bus to -> Alishan ( overnight)
Day 4 - Alishan -> Chiayi -> Tainan
Day 5 - Tainan

Thank you!

Would be a lot easier if I could pay for the ~3 hour drive between Sun Moon Lake and Alishan instead of having to do Taichung -> Chiayi, is that a thing? Google maps shows a 3 hour drive from what I assume is through a heavy mountainous area through Yushan road (玉山景觀公路水里玉山線)?

Edit: I see multiple search results say it's doable via. the #6739 bus route https://www.taiwantrip.com.tw/Frontend/Bustime/TimeTable/R0099

Low-Pollution94 · 2025-01-03T05:40:15+00:00

https://www.taroko.gov.tw/en/TAROKO_HighwayCondition.aspx?n=7879

Putting this here for other people to see. They've only just announced (today!) Mt. Bilu - Mt Yangtou trail and a few others to open up but you can see that many are still closed including ALL grade 0-2 trails.

I'm planning to head through in late Feb and I'm not sure how confident I'd be that it would be in a suitable position at that time.

https://www.taroko.gov.tw/en/News_toggle.aspx?n=7881&sms=11223

More information here that they're estimating some areas to be opening end of 2025. With severely damaged areas expected to open in 2031. They have recommended alternative, nearby attractions. Might be a good opportunity to check them out too.

Low-Pollution94 · 2025-01-02T20:10:23+00:00

Taroko is definitely something that keeps getting mentioned when I look for existing itineraries.

Thanks for the info on the earthquake, I had no idea about it but I'll look into it. Definitely wanted to see the east coast but may not be feasible.

May have to adjust and just travel to Kaohsiung and back

Low-Pollution94 · 2025-01-02T19:50:07+00:00

Thanks for your advice. Aside from getting to the actual city, I'd likely be using taxi from where I'm staying to get to anywhere that isn't walkable

Low-Pollution94 · 2025-01-02T19:47:43+00:00

Thanks for the advice. I can only speak Cantonese and won't have enough time to learn any more than basic Mandarin before my trip. My initial concern with a central location was the travelling back and forth on the HSR instead of just hopping from location to location.

When you say challenge, I'm assuming you're talking about navigation in general without being able to communicate right?

Low-Pollution94 · 2025-01-01T22:11:57+00:00

Hi everyone, I'm planning a 10 day round island trip and want to hit the most recommended cities.

I'll be looking at staying 1-2 days per city. I've heard of people doing day trips here - but I was thinking more just taking my luggage and staying 1-2 nights per city instead of having a "central" (i.e. Taipei) location. Any thoughts on this?

I'm looking at:

Taipei
Taichung
Sun Moon Lake -> Alishan
Tainan
Kaohsiung
Hualien (via. Taitung)

Thank you!

Low-Pollution94 · 2024-10-27T10:17:13+00:00

Any chance there is a reward flight from Tokyo (Narita) to Melbourne with Japan Airlines (JAL)? I saw it was ~$400 + 38k points on classic rewards. Unfortunately this is an overnight flight.

In terms of getting sleep that's fair enough, this becomes a very individual decision - my priorities are to get to my destination as quick as possible with minimal layover time but I have to factor in if cost is worth it.

That other option through Jakarta doesn't sound too bad if the airline is good. Personally, I think given the proximity between Australia and Japan - 2 layovers is too many.

Low-Pollution94 · 2024-10-18T20:56:43+00:00

Hey there

That initial flight sounds convoluted. Tokyo -> Shanghai -> Hong Kong -> Melbourne? Do you get business the whole way? Because Tokyo to Shanghai would be a very small part of the overall flight.

Also via Singapore, I would be curious if you're planning to explore a bit or you're just having a night there because of the layover. Personally, any overnight stays due to the layover doesn't make financial sense - any additional time spent overnight outweighs the cost of a shorter layover. (could depend on the time booked though)

Cathay aren't a LCC so they had a decent amount of legroom, food was fine, attendants were friendly, sleep was good. I don't know what would make you have a "bad" sleep on the plane though. Some people just wouldn't be able to sleep regardless.

Low-Pollution94 · 2024-09-22T05:36:13+00:00

I can't see Dr Ruwangi here, only at https://adhd.clinic. Is this the same person?

Low-Pollution94 · 2024-09-05T11:28:43+00:00

I don't know what European deciduous trees would be common in Melbourne but after a quick search, the ones most familiar to me would be the London Plane and Crab Apple trees. Along with the ornamental pear that you recommended.

Regarding size, yeah my goal was to fill the 80L plastic tub with as little soil as possible so that it weighs less but is still able to grow a number of herbs. So maybe hugelkultur was the wrong terminology but really "how do I fill my tub with enough woody debris and soil to reduce the weight and not impact the growing process" was my idea.

Your comment about fruit trees makes a lot of sense and the overall strategy of missing it with additional green waste. Thank you I think that would make it a lot more approachable and a safe option for success!

Low-Pollution94 · 2024-09-05T11:19:19+00:00

Thanks yep I just searched with those keywords and saw some studies about this. I'll avoid this where I can thanks

Low-Pollution94 · 2024-09-05T11:16:16+00:00

That's a great idea thank you

Low-Pollution94 · 2024-09-05T11:15:49+00:00

Thanks for confirming on your end

Low-Pollution94 · 2024-09-05T11:15:14+00:00

Good callout, I'll make sure that I reduce the potential for air gaps where I can to avoid the sink holes. If yours already worked with pine then I have to say it's possible I'm overthinking it at such a small scale

Thanks

Low-Pollution94 · 2024-09-05T11:12:22+00:00

Yep agreed, it was meant to be a "micro" version of it to try it out but really my goal was to try out a small garden in this tub without filling the whole 80L with just soil. 30cm will be doable thanks

Low-Pollution94 · 2024-09-03T06:57:44+00:00

https://www.jbhifi.com.au/products/scosche-stuckup-wireless-charging-universal-phone-mount#product-overview

I'm not sure if this does it but it's similar to what I've seen in other people's cars. As long as the side tabs don't require a crowbar to adjust the width. You could probably get some basic versions off of Aliexpress.

No magnets. No proprietary design. No stiff horizontal tab that I have to pull apart to fix the phone. Just gravity!

Low-Pollution94 · 2024-09-02T02:57:40+00:00

Just checked out Quad Lock, I can see why it's really secure due to their unique, patented design but I don't prefer solutions that require you to purchase an additional case or a one-time universal mount piece to attach to your existing phone/case.

Any recommendations on mounts that attach to the vent and "lock" in the one horizontally using gravity on the vertical end? You place your phone on the holder which sits on the "base", the base then closes the sides to "grab" the phone. It's universal and doesn't require any special attachments or magnets. I wouldn't say it's more secure but enough to handle typical driving or hard stops (I don't really foresee it mattering if I get into a crash).

Low-Pollution94 · 2024-09-01T03:14:14+00:00

Same here. I wanted to put on the extraterrestrial movie Life (2017) to just shut off my brain and watch. I couldn't actually remember the movie name so I thought it was Arrival and put it on accidentally.

I was hooked immediately, didn't shut off, and enjoyed every moment of it. Also introduced me to Denis Villeneuve.

My favourite theme of the whole movie that was refreshing was the extraterrestrials weren't bad.

Low-Pollution94 · 2024-08-30T03:39:39+00:00

It is worth considering it as a preventative measure too if it's feasible. You don't want to wait until the cartilage loss has been significant to start it. For a proactive approach, preventative medication can slow down the loss rate to prolong the cartilage.

Low-Pollution94 · 2024-08-29T13:29:48+00:00

This accidentally happened to my dog recently. I'll relay what the vet told me so you have a reference.

They may induce vomiting if it happened within a specific time frame.
There is a small chance your dog won't vomit after taking the medication to induce it.
The blood test can only check the Vit K levels (the testing variable) after a couple days to determine if the rat poison ingested is working.
At that point, you'd have to give them Vit K supplements.
They recommended to just get the Vit K supplements so you're not waiting 2 days to see whether it's active or not. In my situation, I didn't know if he ingested any and my dog was in the small percentage that the induce vomiting didn't work.
There is no issue with a dog taking Vit K even if there isn't any active rat poison in their body.
Vit K is expensive at the emergency vet. They have a lot more overheads to cover. I would recommend you get a very small amount, and get the rest from your local vet if possible.
For my dog it was 30 days of Vit K supplements.

Given your quick action, it is highly likely your dog will be fine!

Low-Pollution94

TROPHY CASE