Taipei and Hanoi Preplanning and Day 1 Ximending (4 nights in Taipei - March '17)
This trip was planned in December '16 with my friend Q, with all airfare and accommodation bookings made in January '17. These 2 destinations were selected based on 3 things: 1) we wanted to visit Asia 2) wanted to go to places we haven't been 3) comfortable temperatures in March being in the mid 60s to mid 70s Fahrenheit! Not too hot and definitely not too cold.
The total cost of airfare from SFO was approximately $830 USD (similar airfare for my friend leaving from NYC). Given the flexibility in our travel dates (the only requirement being that we were looking to stay for 7 nts total - 4 nts in TPE and 3 nts in HAN), it was actually pretty fun to research the best fares with the most ideal times (minimize the layovers, depart and arrive at ideal times). The sites I reference are kayak.com, google flights, and of course the airline site itself (to check if the fare is lower, which sometimes it is). My recommendation is of course to book on Tues/Wed/Thurs, never on the weekends as it is more than 50% likely that the fares will be cheaper (google this if you don't believe me).
Hotels on the other hand, book as soon as possible. I started my research for hotels using TripAdvisor. My goal (in general) for a 4 star hotel anywhere I stay is at or below $200/nt, unless it's a special hotel or resort in which I'll make exceptions (I think I've paid over $400/nt at the Gansevoort hotel in Turks & Caicos which was worth it). But with both destinations being fairly inexpensive by Western standards, I wasn't looking to pay that much.
After googling where to stay in Taipei, an area I found commonly referenced among bloggers was a neighborhood called Ximending, with Ximen being the nearest MRT station (Taiwan's metro). At first I wanted to look for a hotel near Taipei Main Station MRT since transit would be easy and direct from the airport (more on that later), but decided on Ximen after being able to select that as an option through TripAdvisor (wasn't a neighborhood option on Kayak for some reason). We decided on Amba Taipei Ximending based on the high reviews and it being $123/nt after taxes and fees, selecting the largest room possible with twin beds (the XL room). Lately when I've been researching hotels, I've been checking to see if it's financially sensible to upgrade to a room with a larger space as having the couch or resting area is nice for those of us with OCD tendencies (i.e. I don't like sitting on the bed with my street clothes).
Okay - now on to the trip! This is the first time I've been on a long flight and didn't experience a crowded plane - I flew China Airlines for all legs except 1 (booked direct through China Airlines, operated by Vietnam Airlines). Almost all flights had space, which was a really nice surprise.
Both our flights arrived early at 6am (we both lost a day traveling to Asia) and within 10 minutes of each other. Hers was supposed to arrive before mine, but my flight landed 40 min early so I waited about 25 min for her flight at her gate. Getting through customs was pretty painless as there is no visa required for US citizens. Since I ended up waiting for her, my luggage was already on the baggage carousel by the time we got through customs (I think one of the last pieces from my flight). We also decided to exchange some USD for TWD at the airport counter prior to exiting the airport which I do not recommend. We calculated the cost to exchange $150 USD and the fee was about $9 using google's exchange rate as the basis. If you bank with Citibank or really any bank, please find an ATM that will provide you cash with much lower fees (approx 1% as later in the trip we found one and exchanged more money). The only issue being that some smaller ATMs will not recognize your international bank card as that happened to us at the Taipei Main Station on our last day.
From the airport we boarded the Bus 1819 to Taipei Main Station, which cost about $4 pp USD. Please remember that this bus is one of the few forms of public transportation that DOES ACCEPT CREDIT CARD - we found out later in our trip that taxis that you call from the street are CASH ONLY as well as the metro! This was an unpleasant and sad finding for us. The bus was pleasant and not full at all however it was quite early in the day on a Saturday (~8am). Total trip time was about 45 minutes with little traffic, with Taipei Main Station being the last stop - I think there were 3 stops before. From the station we proceeded to debate whether to purchase an iPass metro card for a nonrefundable fee of ~$3 USD or buy a 1 way plastic coin that took us 1 station over to Ximen MRT. We decided on the latter as lately I've been annoyed at the idea of paying a nonrefundable fee to use public transportation (i.e. South Korea and NYC! I guess technically you also pay this in the Bay Area with Clipper Card but you can get one for free through work... but anyways). We could have taken a taxi to Ximen since it was very close by, but opted to see how the metro worked on our first day.
I appreciated how everyone lined up in an orderly fashion and for the most part respected the lines and reserved the darker colored seats for the elderly and pregnant. After one stop we made it to Ximen and discovered the absence of elevators to the street level, which was problematic for those of us with large check in luggage like myself. Being that it was maybe 9am, the streets were mainly deserted.
We walked about 10 minutes from the metro stop to our hotel, which was on one of the upper floors above a shopping complex. Since check-in didn't start until 3pm, we stored our luggage and were given a map of the area with some recommended breakfast and food spots (we didn't end up going to any that morning as we found others). We were also given an upgrade to a Loft room with twin beds which was a nice surprise! We had about 5 hours to kill and decided to explore the area.
 |
| Here's Chloe my chihuahua dog thinking she can cozy her way into my luggage |
The total cost of airfare from SFO was approximately $830 USD (similar airfare for my friend leaving from NYC). Given the flexibility in our travel dates (the only requirement being that we were looking to stay for 7 nts total - 4 nts in TPE and 3 nts in HAN), it was actually pretty fun to research the best fares with the most ideal times (minimize the layovers, depart and arrive at ideal times). The sites I reference are kayak.com, google flights, and of course the airline site itself (to check if the fare is lower, which sometimes it is). My recommendation is of course to book on Tues/Wed/Thurs, never on the weekends as it is more than 50% likely that the fares will be cheaper (google this if you don't believe me).
Hotels on the other hand, book as soon as possible. I started my research for hotels using TripAdvisor. My goal (in general) for a 4 star hotel anywhere I stay is at or below $200/nt, unless it's a special hotel or resort in which I'll make exceptions (I think I've paid over $400/nt at the Gansevoort hotel in Turks & Caicos which was worth it). But with both destinations being fairly inexpensive by Western standards, I wasn't looking to pay that much.
After googling where to stay in Taipei, an area I found commonly referenced among bloggers was a neighborhood called Ximending, with Ximen being the nearest MRT station (Taiwan's metro). At first I wanted to look for a hotel near Taipei Main Station MRT since transit would be easy and direct from the airport (more on that later), but decided on Ximen after being able to select that as an option through TripAdvisor (wasn't a neighborhood option on Kayak for some reason). We decided on Amba Taipei Ximending based on the high reviews and it being $123/nt after taxes and fees, selecting the largest room possible with twin beds (the XL room). Lately when I've been researching hotels, I've been checking to see if it's financially sensible to upgrade to a room with a larger space as having the couch or resting area is nice for those of us with OCD tendencies (i.e. I don't like sitting on the bed with my street clothes).
Okay - now on to the trip! This is the first time I've been on a long flight and didn't experience a crowded plane - I flew China Airlines for all legs except 1 (booked direct through China Airlines, operated by Vietnam Airlines). Almost all flights had space, which was a really nice surprise.
 |
| Full 3 person row to myself! I even got seated in the "family couch" area but I couldn't figure out how to lift the seat rest fully so I could only half extend it - sleeping wasn't great as it wasn't exactly night time for me, but still I can't complain! |
Both our flights arrived early at 6am (we both lost a day traveling to Asia) and within 10 minutes of each other. Hers was supposed to arrive before mine, but my flight landed 40 min early so I waited about 25 min for her flight at her gate. Getting through customs was pretty painless as there is no visa required for US citizens. Since I ended up waiting for her, my luggage was already on the baggage carousel by the time we got through customs (I think one of the last pieces from my flight). We also decided to exchange some USD for TWD at the airport counter prior to exiting the airport which I do not recommend. We calculated the cost to exchange $150 USD and the fee was about $9 using google's exchange rate as the basis. If you bank with Citibank or really any bank, please find an ATM that will provide you cash with much lower fees (approx 1% as later in the trip we found one and exchanged more money). The only issue being that some smaller ATMs will not recognize your international bank card as that happened to us at the Taipei Main Station on our last day.
From the airport we boarded the Bus 1819 to Taipei Main Station, which cost about $4 pp USD. Please remember that this bus is one of the few forms of public transportation that DOES ACCEPT CREDIT CARD - we found out later in our trip that taxis that you call from the street are CASH ONLY as well as the metro! This was an unpleasant and sad finding for us. The bus was pleasant and not full at all however it was quite early in the day on a Saturday (~8am). Total trip time was about 45 minutes with little traffic, with Taipei Main Station being the last stop - I think there were 3 stops before. From the station we proceeded to debate whether to purchase an iPass metro card for a nonrefundable fee of ~$3 USD or buy a 1 way plastic coin that took us 1 station over to Ximen MRT. We decided on the latter as lately I've been annoyed at the idea of paying a nonrefundable fee to use public transportation (i.e. South Korea and NYC! I guess technically you also pay this in the Bay Area with Clipper Card but you can get one for free through work... but anyways). We could have taken a taxi to Ximen since it was very close by, but opted to see how the metro worked on our first day.
 |
| The Taipei MRT - clean, orderly and so easy to move between trains as you can see there are no doors |
I appreciated how everyone lined up in an orderly fashion and for the most part respected the lines and reserved the darker colored seats for the elderly and pregnant. After one stop we made it to Ximen and discovered the absence of elevators to the street level, which was problematic for those of us with large check in luggage like myself. Being that it was maybe 9am, the streets were mainly deserted.
 |
| Entering Ximending before the crowds |
We walked about 10 minutes from the metro stop to our hotel, which was on one of the upper floors above a shopping complex. Since check-in didn't start until 3pm, we stored our luggage and were given a map of the area with some recommended breakfast and food spots (we didn't end up going to any that morning as we found others). We were also given an upgrade to a Loft room with twin beds which was a nice surprise! We had about 5 hours to kill and decided to explore the area.
The first place we found was an intersection full of street vendors selling dumplings of all kinds! I wasn't too hungry as I had 2 meals on the plane but this looked delicious and we indulged.
I don't know how but we managed to walk around in circles a lot. We found some Chinese tourists and discovered them furiously taking photos of the interesting street art below.
We got tired of walking around at approximately noon, so we decided to search for a foot massage and we found one! I get paranoid sometimes entering a store because it reminds me of times when I would shop in China with my mom. I would pretend to be mute since we wanted a fair price on things we wanted to buy (even services) as they would try to price gouge us if they found out we were Americans (since I can barely speak Mandarin and it's obvious). Anyway- the good thing about Taipei was all prices were listed and inclusive of taxes, fees, gratuity, and anything else we're so accustomed to paying in the US! For a 45 minute foot massage, we paid ~$16 USD pp! This is incredible as even the ones I pay for in the US are maybe $40 if you include tip.
When we entered, they gave us a pair of unisex shorts to change into. At first we were confused and thought this was a bag to put our stuff. Then we realized they were motioning to a changing room and that they were just oversized shorts. So we changed and upon sitting, my masseuse showed me the timer for 45 minutes to indicate the start of the massage! So awesome to receive this courtesy given we were getting delirious from the lack of sleep, jet lag, and walking around for 4-5 hours. We paid with credit card (!) and headed back early to the hotel at 1pm in hopes that our room was ready early (it wasn't). When we arrived, we sat in the restaurant area of the hotel by reception for an hour and a half, when we were notified that our room was finally ready at 2:30pm.
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| Yes that translates to $1.63 USD for a small bucket of delicious DUMPLINGS! |
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| A lot of street food comes in plastic bags... with napkins no where to be found. We added some soy sauce mixture and hot sauce to this and it was amazing |
I don't know how but we managed to walk around in circles a lot. We found some Chinese tourists and discovered them furiously taking photos of the interesting street art below.
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| Really cool street art - you can see no one wakes up before 11am here as the place was deserted |
We got tired of walking around at approximately noon, so we decided to search for a foot massage and we found one! I get paranoid sometimes entering a store because it reminds me of times when I would shop in China with my mom. I would pretend to be mute since we wanted a fair price on things we wanted to buy (even services) as they would try to price gouge us if they found out we were Americans (since I can barely speak Mandarin and it's obvious). Anyway- the good thing about Taipei was all prices were listed and inclusive of taxes, fees, gratuity, and anything else we're so accustomed to paying in the US! For a 45 minute foot massage, we paid ~$16 USD pp! This is incredible as even the ones I pay for in the US are maybe $40 if you include tip.
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| Nice hot towels included in the massage |
When we entered, they gave us a pair of unisex shorts to change into. At first we were confused and thought this was a bag to put our stuff. Then we realized they were motioning to a changing room and that they were just oversized shorts. So we changed and upon sitting, my masseuse showed me the timer for 45 minutes to indicate the start of the massage! So awesome to receive this courtesy given we were getting delirious from the lack of sleep, jet lag, and walking around for 4-5 hours. We paid with credit card (!) and headed back early to the hotel at 1pm in hopes that our room was ready early (it wasn't). When we arrived, we sat in the restaurant area of the hotel by reception for an hour and a half, when we were notified that our room was finally ready at 2:30pm.
When we walked in, we were surprised with a cheesecake and some snacks in our room! In addition, the hotel provides all guests with reusable flip flops, 2 bottles of water every day in the fridge, 2 bags of tea (which were really good), and their shampoo/conditioner smells amazing and volumizes your hair nicely. In addition, on each floor they have an ice machine and a filtered water faucet which made it very convenient to fill up on water before our daily trips every morning. My only issue with the room was that the 1 window was very small, and there were limited channels on the TV. Initially I emailed the hotel asking for a room that faced the exterior - upon checking in they said all the larger rooms only faced the courtyard. The "twin" beds were actually slightly larger than twin sized by Western standards- they were really comfortable but placed a little close together (not really an issue but just a note).
Typically on trips, I don't like taking naps so I can sleep through the night but this time we were so tired that we decided on just a quick 2 hour nap. I even suggested not setting an alarm as I figured I would wake up easily since I don't normally nap, but we ended up "napping" for 5 HOURS!
In my next post I'll review our trip to Shilin night market and Day 2.
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