If there’s anything better than exploring a new country, it has to be having that experience in a car!
Think back to your favorite road trip. Maybe a family vacation driving to the next state or a couple’s weekend getaway to a nearby honeymoon spot. Whatever it is, I’m sure you can remember the joy of blasting your favorite tunes and watching the world rush by the window.
Now, imagine that exact scenario, but in a comfy rental car in a completely different country! The excitement of driving new roads and witnessing views unlike anything you’ve ever seen before is unmatched. Road trips abroad can be difficult to navigate, but luckily for you, I’ve experienced the trial and error of it all, and I’m here to tell you all about my journey road-tripping Taiwan as a twenty-year-old American girl.
The Planning
An international road trip works best with your international driver’s license. If you want one, look into your country’s application process online. In my case, my roommate had hers, and we began our planning with the idea that she would drive.
We researched rental car companies starting from Taipei and learned that the best bet would be to get a car at any airport you can fly into. But further into the process, we hit a hiccup!
The age requirement. Most rental car companies require you to be twenty or over and aren’t too happy about renting to very young customers. Additionally, you need to have a copy of your international driver’s license with you physically; papers won’t cut it. Also, if you aren’t too confident in your driving abilities, tiny mountain roads in new countries can be very daunting.
Still determined to road trip to see the entire country in a weekend trip, we began searching for a driver and a car to fit our needs. That’s when we stumbled onto SeekSophie, the best rental car place I could find! We emailed this company exactly what we were looking for, and voilà! We got it.
The Taiwan Itinerary
We informed the driver of exactly where we wanted to go and requested a different drop-off location, which he was perfectly fine with for a little extra fee. Overall, the price was quite affordable, coming out to about thirty-five USD per day each.
We began our trip in Taipei and ended in Tianan. The company Seek Sophie offers services all around Asia, but if you’re looking for Taiwan specifically, I’ll share our itinerary for some guidance.
Getting the car in Taipei was really no hassle at all once we set a meeting spot with the driver via Whatsapp. Throughout the course of the trip, we went to Wulai Old Town, waterfalls, and thermal springs. I’d also recommend going to Jiofen in the same day as Wulai, we just ran out of time.
Our adventures
We spent the night in Taipei and drove from Taipei to Fenqihu the next day, which took about four to five hours. From Fenqihu, you should go to Jingzijao to see the salt flats. We also had to skip this one for timing’s sake, but the salt flats seem really cool!
From Fenqihu, we drove to Tianan, where we explored and spent the night. Throughout those days in Taiwan, we drove across the entire country from North to South, making awesome stops along the way.
If you don’t want the car for the journey back, you can either return it to a rental car place in Tianan, or your driver will drive it back that night. If you’re looking to save money and you have your own rental car, don’t forget it’s always possible to sleep in it like I did in Indonesia.
There are many other options to get back to Taipei the next day, including buses and trains and friendly locals! However, if that’s your plan, make sure to book your train in advance because they sell out quite quickly.
Taiwan Hotspots!
We visited a few MUST SEEs along the way. Even if you decide not to road trip to Taiwan, I recommend taking public transport to some of these spots.
1. Wulai Hot Springs
This was one of the best things I’ve ever experienced in my life. Many hotels along the main roads of Old Town Wulai will have you pay to go in the hot springs in the river, but if you’re lucky, you could stumble upon a natural hot spring on your own. All this takes is asking some locals and staying vigilant! That’s what we did, and it worked out wonderfully for us.
These hot springs are sectioned off by rocks in the Nanshi River and are heated by the subterranean heat spread across the island. The water we went in was about 40 degrees celsius and felt amazing in the night air.
2. Wulai Waterfalls
These were amazing! There’s a cute little street facing the waterfalls where you can shop or grab something to eat. The waterfalls are stunning and full of good little spots to take pictures!
3. Taiwan Yehliu Geopark
This is a spot right outside of Taipei that contains hundreds of rocks that have been eroded away by water over the past years. They’re all very interestingly shaped, with the most famous one being Queen’s Head, which, on par with the name, looks like it could be a woman’s head.
4. Fenqihu Old Town and Tea Plantations
The Old Town in this tiny mountain village looked like something out of a movie! The views throughout the drive up the winding roads were stunning, and at one point, we got so high up that we could see over the clouds! Within the Old Town, you’ll find many snack shops and a lovely little forest trek to see an enchanted tree.
And the tea plantations! There are a lot of small hikes you can do around Fenqihu, and the tea fields are very unique. Built into the side of the mountain, they look like perfect stairs for a giant to climb.
There’s so much more to see as well, those were just my favorites! When traveling to Tianan, I recommend the street food markets at night, I ate some of the most delicious Taiwanese food ever! Food is one of the best parts about visiting Taiwan, in addition to nature, so for my fellow foodies, you’ll be in heaven at the countless street markets in this place!
On the road
Let’s hear from Emily Gilmour, who traveled across Taiwan in a rented car without a driver! She explained that Taiwan greatly surpassed her expectations, with its “distinct city feel to the serene national parks.”
I asked Emily about navigating the unknown roads, and she said it was “entertaining.” The street signs being in Chinese made it a little difficult, but everything was easily fixed, she according to her it was quite easy to get around in the cities.
As for itinerary planning, “it was mainly done by online recommendations,” Emily said. You heard the girl! All it takes is flipping open your laptop and doing a little bit of Google searching, and you’re good to go!
I asked Emily if she recommends the road trip experience for Taiwan, rather than just figuring it out with public transportation. “Having a car really did add to our trip,” she answered, “It allowed us freedom to keep our own schedule and not be confined to public transport timetables.” She went on to tell me about how road-tripping allowed her to discover more remote areas where, most of the time, she was the only tourist!
Thank you to Emily for sharing her experience! If you’d like to hear more from her, she’s open to questions. Now you’ve heard the perspectives of a road trip with a driver and without. Both are amazing experiences! Driving is such a good way to get to know all of Taiwan, slowly and peacefully.
Rev your engines!
I hope this article was informative for your hypothetical/future Taiwan road trip. There’s so much to see and many little details that can be discovered by driving rather than taking a train or flying.
To conclude, my one piece of advice that I hope you can take away with you is to really not rush. A road trip allows you to take your time, so truly take it. Spend hours walking around the tea plantations, getting to know them! Hang out with the locals and ask them questions. Take it slow, experience it all! Taiwan waits for you!
