Note: This post is not in any way sponsored by Klook. This is a narrative & a review of the day tour we took with Klook during our Taiwan trip last June 2019. Just like any other group, we paid the full day tour fee through Klook’s website.
Yesterday, I shared with you details about Uinn Travel Hostel, the modern & excellent hostel we stayed in Taipei last June. My family went on a 4-day weekend trip to Taiwan last June. We flew with EVA Air for an affordable price & even went on a day trip to Taichung. Watch out for the post that will lay out our chill itinerary around the city.
One of the famous day trips outside of Taipei is a trip to the Northeast Coast of Taiwan. This trip goes to the known places of Yehliu Geopark, Jiufen & Shifen. I already went to Shifen & Jiufen in 2015 (via a do-it-yourself itinerary) & in 2017 on a half day trip with Klook. We opted to go with Klook again this year since we were travelling with our parents & our baby cousin.
I will share with you details about the day tour – its price & inclusions, meeting place & boarding procedure & the itinerary for the whole trip in the different sections below.
Day Tour Price & Booking
We booked the day tour via Klook‘s website. We opted for the 9:00 am tour. The tour included a shuttle bus with driver, shuttle toll & parking fees, an English-speaking tour guide & a bottle of water. At the time of booking, it cost us ₱8,786 for 8 people & 1 infant – around ₱1,100 per person. The rate also included the entry ticket to Yehliu Geopark.
At the time of writing, Klook offers the tour at a cheaper rate of ₱975, including the Geopark entry ticket. No idea why it’s cheaper than our trip – maybe because it was peak season during? Anyway, there’s no need to print the Klook voucher; you can present it using your phone on the day of the tour.
Tip: Full names, birthdays & passport details are required while booking the tour.
Meeting Place & Boarding
Klook’s designated meeting & boarding place is in front of GaKuDen Bakery near Exit 4 of Ximen Station. The meeting place is very easy to find; you’ll also see a lot of other people (many of them are Filipinos) waiting for the buses.
On the day of the tour, we went to the designated meeting place at least 30 minutes before our scheduled trip. Our trip is due to leave at 9:00 am but we were already there at 8:30 am. Our tour guide (Hillary) called the groups one by one, asked for a copy of the Klook voucher (showed the voucher in my phone) & let us board the bus. Upon leaving the meeting place, she handed everyone a water bottle & started talking about Taiwan, Taipei & our destinations – Yehliu Geopark, Jiufen & Shifen.
itinerary
Allow me to share with your our itinerary for the day tour. I will give you information about every stop & how long we stayed in every place. The trip to the 1st stop (Yehliu Geopark) took about an hour while the trip back to Taipei took about 1 hour & 20 minutes because of traffic in the city.
YEHLIU GEOPARK
Yehliu Geopark is a natural park consisting of interesting sedimentary rock figures formed through geological forces of sea erosion on softer rock layers. The most famous rock formations found here is the Queens Head. There are a lot more interesting formations found around the Geopark. We stayed around the park for 70 minutes.
YIN YANG SEA
The Yin Yang Sea is the dual-colored part of the northern coast of Taiwan. The blue-colored sea is mixed with the yellow-colored water coming from the old mine sites. The Yin Yang Sea viewing platform & 13 Layer Remains were located in the same area. We spent around 10 minutes in these 2 areas.
13 LAYER REMAINS
The 13 Layer Remains is a former smelter plant that used to process metal from the mountains. The plant was run by the state from the 1940’s & for about 30 years. The plant shut down operations when the metal resources ran out in the 1970’s.
GOLDEN WATERFALL
The Golden Waterfall doesn’t have true golds in it. Its ‘golden’ color is a mixture of regular rainfall in the mine sit & the rich metal elements in the riverbed. We stayed in the waterfall area for only 5 minutes.
JIUFEN
Jiufen used to be a small village of nine families. With the development of the gold mine industry in Taiwan, this village eventually became a town & housed those involved in the gold mining activities. At present, this village is a famous weekend holiday destination for both locals & visitors. The village features old Taiwanese & Chinese architecture & vibe. It also has numerous tea houses, cafes & souvenir shops. In 2001, the place became more famous because of the Japanese film Spirited Away. We stayed in Jiufen for 2 hours; we also had our lunch here.
SHIFEN WATERFALL
Shifen Waterfall is a scenic waterfall found 30 minutes away (by foot) from Shifen Station. This natural & beautiful body of water is regarded as one of the most scenic places in Taiwan. It is definitely worth the visit & more worth the walk towards the viewing platform in front of the falls. We went around the waterfall area for about an hour.
SHIFEN OLD STREET
Shifen Old Street is the famous place to fly the sky lanterns in Taiwan. This place also houses the Shifen Railway Station, which was initially used to transport coal during the Japanese invasion. The station is still used for scheduled train services to Riufang & nearby towns. The old street now is full of souvenir shops & food stalls that cater to the tourists & visitors. We experienced a pretty heavy rainfall whilst in Shifen; we were not able to fly a sky lantern. We opted for a walk around the shops & had some snacks in between. We still stayed here for an hour even if it was raining really hard.
After Shifen Old Street, we boarded the shuttle & took the trip back to Taipei. We were dropped off at the same meeting place – in front of GaKuDen Bakeryin Ximen. This pretty much sums up our Klook 9-hour day tour to Yehliu, Jiufen & Shifen.
VERDICT
Klook’s day tour was worth every peso – it made the 3 places accessible. I already tried using public transportation to Shifen & Jiufen in the past & I can definitely say that this day tour was super convenient & hassle-free. The addition of Hillary, our tour guide, was a plus. She shared a lot of facts & information about Taiwan’s history & culture. She also helped us book our place for lunch in Jiufen.
The order of itinerary & allotted times for all places were enough except for Jiufen. I wish we stayed longer in Jiufen because there’s a lot more to see, do & eat in the area. I don’t mind taking an extra hour in Jiufen, just to have more time to explore the place. The heavy rainfall definitely spoiled our excitement in flying a sky lantern, but it was all good. Believe it or not, I’ve been to Taiwan 3 times & I haven’t flown a single sky lantern. Perhaps another reason to fly back in the future? We’ll see.
Overall, we enjoyed how relaxed & convenient this tour was planned. Thanks heaps to Klook & the tour operator for the fun, enriching & worthwhile day trip to Yehliu, Juifen & Shifen. I highly recommend this day trip by Klook to everyone – you no longer need to plan out how to go to this place & on what train or bus to catch. Klook has everything set for you!
What are you waiting for? Book your Yehliu-Jiufen-Shifen Day Tour with Klook now!
Have you been to Yehliu Geopark, Jiufen & Shifen? Which was your favorite place & why? Have you also booked your day trip with Klook? How was your experience? Feel free to share them in the comments section below & let’s engage in a discussion. Do you have any questions about the day tour of the places we visited? You can email me at contact@thewkndtravel.com. Don’t forget to follow me & please please please also help me in promoting my social media channels – Facebook, Instagram or Twitter.
PS. Photos were taken using my HTC U11.