Itinerary Description
✦Departure Locations: Taichung HSR Station / Taichung Train Station / Major hotels in Taichung / Hsinchu HSR Station
✦Definition of designated pick-up points: Within the Taichung city area.
✦Duration: 2 days and 1 night
✦Day 1: Meeting Point — Hexing Love Station — Neiwan Old Street (Lunch at your own expense) — Junjianyan Suspension Bridge — Yulao Observation Deck — Check-in at Smangus (Dinner at your own expense)
✦Day 2: (Breakfast at your own expense) — Depart for Smangus Giant Tree Trail (Silifu Waterfall) — Check-out — (Lunch at your own expense) — Return trip
✦This package only includes the 2-day chartered car service. Accommodation and meal costs are not included. You must book your own accommodation and meals at Smangus. Please refer to the official Smangus website for booking and dining information.
✦Suggested departure times:
1: Taichung Train Station / Taichung HSR Station / Major hotels in Taichung AM 08:00
2. Hsinchu Train Station / Hsinchu HSR Station AM 08:30
★If you require pick-up from more than one location or from other counties/cities (outside Taichung & Changhua areas), please inquire in advance and note it in your order. Additional fees will be charged based on the pick-up location.
★Additional fees will be charged for pick-up locations outside the designated areas.
1: For pick-up/drop-off in the Taichung area, the following districts will incur additional fees, payable to the driver in cash.
NT$300 Taiping District, Tanzi District
NT$500 Wuqi District, Qingshui District, Dadu District, Longjing District, Shalu District
NT$700 Fengyuan District, Houli District, Shengang District, Daya District, Waipu District, Shigang District, Dajia District, Da'an District, Xinshe District
NT$900 Dongshi District, Heping District
2. For pick-up/drop-off in the Changhua area, the following districts will incur additional fees, payable to the driver in cash.
NT$300 Changhua City, Huatan Township, Fenyuan Township, Dacun Township
NT$500 Hemei Township, Xiushui Township, Yuanlin City, Shetou Township, Tianzhong Township, Shengang Township, Xianxi Township, Lukang Township, Fuxing Township, Puyan Township, Xihu Township, Puxin Township, Yongjing Township, Tianwei Township
NT$700 Fangyuan Township, Erlin Township, Pitou Township, Beidou Township
NT$900 Dacheng Township, Zhutang Township, Xizhou Township, Ershui Township
●If you wish to add other attractions to the itinerary, please consult with customer service first to evaluate if an additional fee is required.
【 Attraction Introduction 】
'Hexing Love Station'
When the Taiwan Railways Administration planned to close the station, a couple stepped in to sign a lease for it. It turned out that the couple met on a train, fell in love, and eventually got married. Unable to bear the thought of the station full of memories being demolished, they decided to adopt it, which is why Hexing Station earned the nickname 'Love Train Station.' The station was later operated by Lavender Cottage, which combined the station with the surrounding landscape to create a romantic park. It features sweet messages about love, along with desserts and cultural creative products for sale, filling the entire park with a blissful atmosphere.
'Neiwan Old Street'
Neiwan Old Street is a very popular tourist destination in Neiwan, Hsinchu. Must-eat delicacies and must-buy souvenirs include ginger lily zongzi, Hakka handmade vegetable buns, rich lei cha (ground tea), mochi, and Hakka brown sugar cake. There are also many attractions to visit in Neiwan Old Street, such as the Neiwan Suspension Bridge, Neiwan Station, and the Neiwan Theater. Additionally, many people are unaware that there are seasonal plum blossoms to enjoy next to Neiwan Station.
'Junjianyan Suspension Bridge'
Xiuluan Junjianyan (Warship Rock) — Located near Baishi Creek in Xiuluan, there is a giant rock in the valley that resembles a warship ready to set sail, hence the name 'Warship.' Not far from the opposite bank of the Warship Rock is the Xiuluan Hot Spring. Located near the confluence of Baishi Creek and Naluo Creek, it is a naturally occurring hot spring situated on the riverbed behind the elementary school, where visitors mostly go to play in the water or soak their feet.
'Yulao Observation Deck'
Located at an altitude of 1,450 meters, Yulao is a must-pass station when traveling from Naluo Tribe to Xiuluan or Smangus in the back mountains of Jianshi Township. There are observation decks on both sides of the Yulao Police Station, offering panoramic views of the front and back mountains. The nearby Yulao Police Station also provides tire repair, air pumping, and water refilling services for cyclists. There are also scattered stalls nearby selling fresh tribal produce and snacks, such as grilled corn, stinky tofu, bamboo shoot soup, meatball soup, pancakes, and seasonal fruits and vegetables.
'Smangus'
Located in Jianshi Township, Hsinchu County, Smangus is a famous indigenous Atayal tribe in Taiwan. Known as the 'Black Tribe,' it was the last tribe in Taiwan to be connected to electricity. In this 'God's Tribe,' there is a legend: the Atayal ancestors who originally lived in the Pinsbkan area of central Taiwan (the name implies that the Atayal people have been there since the beginning of stones and land) began to migrate outward as the population grew. At that time, the 'Bota Leader' led a group of people to move north. One of the families, led by 'Mangus,' settled in Dongtaiyehan Mountain, and thus, the 'Smangus' of today was born!
'Giant Tree Trail'
The Smangus Giant Tree Forest is located deep in the mountains at an altitude of 1,600 meters east of the tribe. It contains many red cypresses that are over a thousand years old. The largest one, named Yaya Qparung, has a circumference of 20.5 meters and is over 2,000 years old; its trunk is large enough for about twenty people to hold hands around it. There is a trail between the tribe and the giant tree forest, which is about 5.2 kilometers long from the tribe and takes about 4 to 5 hours round trip.
'Silifu Waterfall'
The trail is about 1.2 kilometers long, taking about 1.5 hours round trip, or you can go straight up from the waterfall-viewing bamboo bridge to connect to the 1-kilometer mark of the Giant Tree Trail.