Alishan

The weather was nice, but the temperature fluctuates a lot, so be sure to prepare accordingly. The bento box at Funkiko Lake was delicious!! The cherry blossoms have started to bloom. The magnolias are beautiful too. The dogs and cats are cute, but not very friendly...

The trip was very well-organized and complete, including visits not only to the Alishan National Park area, but also connected sites like Beimen Station, Fenqihu Station, and Hinoki Village; this gave us the bigger picture of train and forestry culture surrounding Alishan. The driver/guide Mr. Xu explained each site and took us many pictures. He was also very accommodating to my older parents when they needed to go to the restroom multiple times. When we arrived at Alishan, we received two train tickets (Alishan to Zhaoping and Shenmu to Alishan) and a recommended route for our self-guided trek inside; we were then able to explore multiple key sites in a relaxed pace. A good bento lunch, some local snacks, and bottles of water were also provided at the start of the trip. Overall it was well-worth what we paid considering how large and confusing going around Alisha can be.

Joining a day tour was very convenient, with a driver providing transportation between Taichung and Alishan. We were lucky enough to see the sunrise over Alishan. Our driver and guide, Seven, was witty and humorous, sharing a lot about local culture and history. Seven is also a great photographer, happy to take beautiful pictures for everyone in the group 👍🏻 We are very grateful to Seven for leading the way, which added a lot of fun to this trip.