Train Travel Advice Needed

I%26#39;m going to be in Taiwan for a week over CNY. I plan to travel around a bit, hopefully using trains or buses.

1. First night we stay in Jiufen. I plan to go from the CKS airport direct to Taipei train station and then take the train to Juifang station. Then catch bus.

2. Next we plan to go to Hualien. Would it be best to go back to Taipei (seems like back tracking) or would we be able to continue using a local train to Hualien. I can see the main trains online at http://service.tra.gov.tw/en/ but not local trains. Are they shown - if so where do I look?

3. Hualien to Taichung. Seems like I can catch a direct train leaving at 10:40 and arriving at 14:47. Can I book this online during the day time (I%26#39;ve just tried at 11pm and get a message saying it is too late)?

4. Next journey: Taichung to Chiayi. Should I book this online as well?

5. Chiayi back to Taipei. High speed rail or normal?

Thanks

Train Travel Advice Needed

Why return to Taipei when you can continue your journey from Rueifang to Hualien by railway trains? There are express and local trains making stops at Rueifang Station before heading to Hualien. The scheduled arrival and departure times at each designated station stop are displayed when you click onto the train class or train code number.

Local (DRC) trains or commuter trains are slow with stops at every station along the route. The seats are to the sides of the train, just like MRT train seats. DRC (Diesel Rail Car) = 區间車 or sometimes referred to as Electric Multiple Unit are also known as Local trains. There is no ticket booking for DRC trains.

Online booking of railway train tickets is available only from 0600 to 2200 hrs at this website: http://railway.hinet.net/etno1.htm You tried booking online at 2300 hrs, hence the message saying it is too late.

Since you are traveling during the CNY peak periods, it is advisable to book your train tickets online. If your budget allows, take HSR trains from Chiayi to Taipei. It saves your some traveling time. No need for a bus shuttle transfer when you reach Taipei as the HSR northern terminal stop is in Taipei Main Station.

Train Travel Advice Needed

Railway train tickets reserved / booked online must be collected within 2 days (shortened from 3 days) including day of booking from train ticket counters or any post offices. If your planned travel itinerary is firm, you can in fact purchase the railway train tickets online using foreign credit cards now accepted by the system. You can also purchase advance tickets from the advance ticket counter when you are in Taiwan.

Thanks

I%26#39;m looking at the online purchase page now. When I try to make a booking (28/1, train 1087 Hualien to Taichung) I get the message %26#39;booking record does not exit%26#39;.

Does this mean the train is already fully booked and I should try another train?

Once I have the booking code I suppose I can go to the Chinese version of the online payment page and then pay?

I tried online booking for Tze Chiang Taroko train 1087 departing Hualien to Taichung on 28/1 and got the message “Sorry, no tickets available!!” You should try booking another train. Tze Chiang Taroko trains are popular with locals as these trains are the fastest of all railway trains. The ticket prices on Tze Chiang Taroko trains are same as normal Tze Chiang trains. Alternatively, travel to Taipei and transfer to another TRA train as there are more train departures from Taipei. At Taipei, you can also choose to board HSR trains or express buses to Taichung.

Once you see the message “ Booking successful!”, a booking code will be displayed. You can then go to this link https:/…index.php to make payment by credit cards.

Sorry posted on wrong message before!

Thanks for your help. Reservation and payment successfully made from Hualien to Taipei!

For the train from Rueifang to Hualien - I cannnot find Rueifang in the station list for booking. Is that because the fast trains do not stop there?

For the train from Rueifang to Hualien, click “089-Juifeng” for Rueifang and “051-Hualien” for Hualien. Express and local trains do stop at Rueifang Railway Station before heading to Hualien.