by Petr Janda

Created on: March 05, 2011   Last Updated: March 06, 2011

Taiwan is a relatively small, mountaineous island, but it can boast a surprisingly developed network of public transportation, both city and intercity. The transportation is convenient, comfortable and affordable. The following lines list various means of transportation with their pros and cons.

Air transportation

There is a network of airports covering all major cities as well as outlying islands. Given the small size of the island it may seem a bit of extravaganza to travel between what are basically adjacent cities on the western coast- especially when you count in the time you spend on the way from the airport to downtown. On the other hand, air travel saves quite a bit of time when travelling to other islands (such as Orchid Islands or Penghu) or to cities on the eastern coast where other means of transportation are slower due to geographical characteristics of the island. Air time generally does not exceed one hour.

Ship

There are regular services to major islands off Taiwan, mostly from Kaohxiung and Taidong (though there are numerous other cargo, fishing and international ports around the island such as Keelung and Taizhong). The trips take considerably longer than air flights while differences in fare are rather negligible. A trip to Orchid Island will cost you around NTD 1200 by plane (about 20 minutes) and NTD 1000 by  boat (about 3 hours).  Some cities such as Tamsui and Kaohxiung also have local ferries accross rivers and ports. Prices hover around NTD 15 (USD 0.50).

THSR

Taiwan High Speed Rail launched service in 2005. It combines European (rails) and Japanese (trains) technologies and presents a viable alternative to air travel. There is a single line in  operation that runs along the western coast and services most major cities between Taipei and Kaohxiung. The trip between the two largest cities takes about 90 minutes. However, some stations are located far from city centers and use of local transportation is necessary. Furthermore, cities along the eastern coast are not serviced.

Trains

There are two major lines – one along the eastern and one along the western coast. Trains are generally clean, but booking a seat might be a challenge, in particular on weekends or public holidays. There are three different categories of trains, the fastest – and naturally also the most expensive - of them being Ziqiang (Express). Surprisingly, in some areas trains are the cheapest way of transportation, cheaper

• 1
• 2
• Next Page >>