Coming towards the end of our 8 days Taiwan Itinerary, we were all ready to go back home. Until an unexpected flight delay extended our stay for another day. In return, we got to get our dinner at Taipei Fish Market, a marketplace selling the freshest seafood and sashimi.

Travel HANter

16 Sep 17

Taiwan Itinerary Day 8 and 9: Taipei Fish Market

Today, we were all expecting to fly back to face the harsh realities of our working lives. Our flight was scheduled at 20:20 pm and we woke up early to visit Taipei 101 for some shopping therapy.

• Taiwan Itinerary: Day 8

Ended up buying some facial products which I’ll probably not be able to finish them before the expiry date.

Shopping Hauls from Taipei 101

L`HERBOFLORE’s: 10 pieces of cotton mask and 2 tubes of aqua exfoliating gel 

(from NT$2500)

I’m really very easily hard-sold. Was just taking a look at the masks and the salesperson started placing mini mask on my hand while promoting its benefits. She seemed so sincere and the products seemed to work well! SO TAKE MY MONEY!

HAN-dy review: 7 months since the purchase and I’ve only tried the exfoliating gel and it was not as awesome as how the salesperson was promoting back then. It has a nice smell and does its exfoliating job. Haven’t tried the mask but apparently, it’s quite popular in Singapore.

Berji’s: 2 bottles of Totally Cleansing Gel (from NT$2000 each)

It almost felt like deja vu when I’ve realized that another salesperson was applying the gel to my hand to demonstrate the cleansing power of the gel. Once again, I was sold and money was leaving my wallet again!

HAN-dy Review: 7 months later, I am proud to say that I have tried using this and am quite impressed with its cleansing ability. It was supposed to double up as a makeup remover which I thought it did its job well.

HAN-dy tips:

DO NOT appear interested if you have no intention of buying and do not listen to the promotion the salesperson is trying to sell you. They always try to make you buy more by selling their products in bundles. Taiwanese salespeople are incredible hard-sellers but they are also very polite so don’t worry to say no to them.

Also, remember to ask if they offer tax refunds for tourists.

The Flight Delay

After my unexpected shopping spree, Jetstar informed us that our flight was delayed until the next day! Jetstar also offered to reimburse our expenses:

• Hotel room, up to TWD3500.00 per room
• Dinner per person, up to TWD800.00
• Breakfast per person, up to TWD300.00
• Transport to/fro the airport and our hotel, including taxi if no bus or train service is available

So YAYS to an extra day of holiday! Instead of going to the airport, we went back to the hotel and booked the only room available, a family room. It was much bigger than our previous room.

Klook.com

Taipei Fish Market

After which, we went for our dinner at Addiction Aquatic Development, located at Taipei Fish Market.

We took a cab to Taipei Fish Market and the place was really quiet at night. Even the driver doubted why we wanted to go there. Once you’ve reached Taipei Fish Market, you will find more people in the building itself. There were a few restaurants and the one we went to was the sushi bar. We had to stand throughout the meal but it was absolutely worth it. We spent about NT$800 each on the fresh and sweet sashimi that almost melted in our mouths and the equally delicious sushi.

HAN-dy tip: Take a cab there! It is only about a 10 min drive from Taipei Main Station.

• Taiwan Itinerary: Day 9

Today, we were secretly hoping that our flight would be delayed again. Alas, it was only when we reached the airport that we were told that the flight was delayed for 2 hours.

The Airport MRT, which took 11 years to complete, was having free rides to test out the system. We were lucky to be able to try it for free. The MRT took us from Taipei Main Station straight to Tao Yuan International Airport in 35 mins, with commuter stops in between. The MRT had designated areas to hold pieces of luggage but we didn’t manage to get a seat as there were many locals taking the MRT on that day. It was really convenient to transfer to and fro the airport on the MRT, compared to having to take the bus previously.

“Two types of train service are available for riders. Express service from Taipei Main Station to the airport takes 35 minutes, and commuter service stops at all stations. Express and commuter trains alternate with a 5 minute interval until midnight.

Passengers flying on participating airlines can utilise in-town check in and baggage services at Taipei Main Station, New Taipei Industrial Park Station, and High Speed Rail Taoyuan Station.

The ticket fare from Taipei to the airport is NT$160, and may be paid by cash at the ticket machine or booth, or by Easycard (悠遊卡) or iPass. Passengers riding between A12-A14a stations within the airport grounds are free if using an Easycard/iPass. Commuter passes are available for 30, 60, and 90 day durations.

The first express train leaving Taipei is at 6:00AM, and the last express train leaving Taipei is at 22:58.

The first express train leaving the airport to Taipei is at 6:12AM, and the last express train leaving the airport to Taipei is at 22:42.”  -information from guidetotaipei–

Home Sweet Home

With that, we ended our (unexpected) 9 days Taiwan itinerary and returned back to Singapore.

Also, check out

Taiwan Itinerary Day 7: Oia Alpaca Cafe, Taipei

Taiwan Itinerary Day 6: Taipei, Tamsui