We didn't plan an itinerary for the day since we booked a tour via KKDAY. It's a hit and miss tour. We love that you'll have a bus going to places like Yehliu Geopark, Shifen and Jiufen. But this tour has a very tight itinerary, you can't really explore those places. When we initially booked it, it says Shifen Waterfall is included. But on the day of the tour, the guide says we cannot go because of traffic. That's not what we really expected. Of all my days vacationing in Taiwan - I can say that this day is my least favorite one. It's a time wasted day. I think we would have enjoyed, if we explored more of Jiufen - and just missed the other two. We didn't enjoy our time there anyways - one because of too many crowd, two - very tight itinerary. Bummer!

8:45AM - Call time at Taipei Main Station
We left the station around 9:10AM

10:00AM - Arrival at Yehliu Geopark

 11:00AM - We're back in the bus, and enroute Shifen Old Street

12:05NN - Arrival at Shifen Old Street
We were given 1 hr and 30 minutes to explore the area. I have done sky lantern activity 2 years ago and did it again for my friend who's a first timer in Taiwan. It's one activity I am most guilty about, knowing those pretty lanterns are one of those trash in the nearby mountains. ;(

 2:00PM - Arrival at Jiufen Old Street
After arriving at the bus parking area, we road the town's shuttle bus up Jiufen Old Street, we paid NT$30 for the roundtrip fare. We arrived at the old street around 2:15PM and was given 2 hours to explore.

 

Around 5:30PM, we were already back at Taipei Main Station

Day 1:
10:00AM: Arrival at Terminal 1 Taoyuan International Airport
11:00AM: Out of immigration
11:30AM: Money Exchange / Pocket Wifi rental / Airport Metro Ticket
01:30PM: Hostel Check in / Rest / Late lunch

2:25PM
First Stop: 7-Eleven for Easy Card. The card just cost NT$100, and we asked the lady to put NT$200 in it.

3:15PM
Second stop: Chiang Kai Shek Memorial Hall
We walked a few blocks from our hostel and took a bus to Chiang Kai Shek. It took probably less than 15 minutes travel time.

4:45PM

Third stop: Taipei 101
We meant to hike up Elephant Mountain but due to the heavy rains, we took a detour and made a stop at Taipei 101 instead. It's a 20 minute travel time from Dongmen Station to Taipei 101 Station. It was already pouring hard when we got off the station. We decided to just explore the mall and the nearby shopping areas to kill time, waiting for the rain to stop. We have no plans to get up the observatory anyways.

8:15PM

Last stop: Ximending
Glad the rain stopped. Finally! And we enjoyed our night out at Ximending. Tired as we were, we walked blocked by blocked and enjoyed the vibrant night life of the area. Also eating and drinking milk tea's as expected.