Taiwan Cycling - Checklist, Budget and Recommended Tour for Beginners

  After we posted pictures and itinerary about the Taiwan Cycling Tour on our social media, we found out there are many people out there interested and keen to do cycling around Taiwan as well!

  Anyway, there are still a few concerns that keep dragging them from deciding, which are WHAT to prepare? HOW MUCH it is going to cost? And also HOW to start? Alright, read on! 

  If this is your first time doing a cycling tour, plus you are not sure how much you will like cycling after the trip, and you are thinking to cut down the investment to the lowest possible, I recommend joining a tour! So you can have everything rented and don’t have to throw in a lot of money into it. However, there are still things that you will need to buy. I am going to tell you what are the things you will need to prepare before start cycling, as well as my personal opinions and suggestions about the clothing at the checklist below.

Checklist: clothing and bike gear
*important

o Helmet *
Rent it if you don’t have one.

o Cycling Jerseys /sport T shirt*
Cycling jerseys are light and equipped with pockets at the back.  Sports T shirts are fine too.

o Cycling Shorts/Tights*
Cycling shorts with padding saved my life. It will still hurt after long ride but it I think it is better to get a padded one

o Cycling Gloves*
A pair of cycling gloves can protect your palm throughout the whole ride.

o Sports/Cycling Shoes & Socks
Sports shoes are fine if you’re not professional and have no idea how to use the clipped shoes (like me).

o Arm Warmers/Sleeves for layering and sun protection/cool weather
I will say… no?? Apply sunscreen worked better than my sleeves and when it is cold just put the jacket on.

o Leg warmers or tights for riding
My suggestion is to get the long cycling tights! 

o Windproof Sunglasses *
I didn’t bring one, and my eyes were so suffered from the lights, sand, rain, wind and etc. Get one!

o Raingear, jacket and pants  o Windproof Coat *
I think get yourself a waterproof windbreaker should be an ideal choice. I had only the wind breaker. But when it rains… Anyway, you can also choose to wear a raincoat when it rains!

o Personal Protector (knee or arm guards, etc)
It is better to get them if you want to be more protected.

o Sunblock *
Very important! Even if you don’t mind getting tanned, the sunburns hurt anyway. Also during rainy days, the UV penetrates on us even worse. I sincerely recommending apply sunscreen everyday throughout the ride.

Clothing recommendation for Malaysians:

I’ve got my cycling outfit from Haro Lian Trading (Johor), which costs so much lesser than any outlets I could find in KL. Set including Merida cycling jersey, cycling pants, gloves, and sleeves at around RM200! (You can get the sunglasses and helmet here too)
Click me because this is where you can get them!

You can also get my favorite sports bra and tights from Kitara Rouge! Our Malaysian made active wear collection features beautiful mesh detailing and vibrant floral pattern. Those are suitable for various sort of indoor/outdoor sports. Wish to see more? Click here!

Join a Tour

  After some research and negotiation, I have found you guys the most similar tour as the one I have been to! The tour organized by臺灣傳騎 (Taiwan Bike Travel), 9 days cycling around Taiwan (Route 1 – link to previous post), and AWESOMELY included CANOEING in the tour.

Focus of the tour:

The tour will be organized with a minimum participant of 6, and the maximum number of 18. Confirmation notice will be given 60 days prior to the departure. The tour will be 9 days in total, cycling distance is about 800 kilometers. Participants will be taking the train instead of biking for the Su-Hua highway part because there is not enough time to ride the Su-Hua Highway as there are canoe activities below the cliff arranged.

  

  However, due to the northeast monsoon and the walrus, the maritime stable season is only from May to September every year. Because the walrus are unable to control and predict, under the highest principle of safety, there may be a sudden cancellation of the canoe trip on that very day.

Participants will be visiting the East Rift Valley rice field landscape during the tour! There will be two seasons of rice cultivated each year, from mid-May to mid-June and mid-October to mid-November. Please enjoy the rice paddy field while riding and take awesome pictures with them. Other than that, East Coast Highway is said to be comparable to the United States California Highway 1, with invincible sea views of the Pacific Ocean all the way.

  

  Dinners are not included in the package. As you are in Taiwan, go out and hunt for delicious food in the night market streets or local stalls is highly recommended! You will find it amazing and fun!

Tour included special arrangement for visiting the Pacific Bike Museum. The bike I used to ride around Taiwan was from Pacific Cycles! #REACH the amazing folding bike. They have amazing bikes and amazing technique on manufacturing the bikes.

Cost for the 9 days cycling tour:

Twin bedroom; NTD 36,500 yuan / person (appx RM5000, USD1217)
Four people in one registration can request an additional quadruple room (quadruple room type or two double beds)

Costs include:

• ·        Rental of Pacific Bike Reach T20 models, car weight 10 kg, the market price of NTD60, 000.
• ·         Eight nights’ accommodation
• ·         Breakfast x8, lunch x9, dinner x1
• ·         Unlimited supply of drinking water throughout the tour
• ·         Vehicles to carry replenishments and baggage. If necessary, it can accommodate five people + five bicycles at the same time.
• ·         A leading coach.
• ·         Shimizu cliff canoe costs.
• ·         Su-Hua Highway section train tickets.
• ·         Taiwan riding track bag (borrowing).
• ·         Taiwan riding beam pocket as gift.
• ·         Cycling Island Grand Tour Certificate.
• ·         The activities are in accordance with the provisions of Tourism Bureau insured travel insurance of NTD 3 million + accident insurance of NTD200, 000. 

The tour I am talking about is VK800, Click here to learn more and register 

Departure date for 2018 will be:

5^th and 19^th May; 

2^nd June; 

14^th and 28^th July. 

Now open for registration!

Interested to find out more? Check out臺灣傳騎 homepage: http://tct.org.tw/ for more tour packages and information.

P/s: remember I asked you guys to prepare helmet or to rent one? Book the tour mentioning Miss Happy Feet to waive the helmet rental! *Exclusive for our readers. ;)

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Thank You for Reading! 

This post is submitted by MHF's blog contributor, Choco Yinns, based on her recent trip to Taiwan. 

MHF team was hosted by Taiwan Tourism Bureau but all content and opinion are as always our own.  

An ordinary girl who loves the beautiful world like everyone else. The only difference that set her apart from the others might be this-- She is willing to put everything down but her luggage, stepping out to experience the world she loves.

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