Life of Taiwan
Life of Taiwan
5
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About
Life of Taiwan focuses on offering quality travel experiences to discerning international visitors. Rather than offer pre-arranged packages, we are a travel concierge service that curates and customises Taiwan tours on behalf of our clients, ensuring they experience the very best of this amazing island. Taiwan has long been neglected by the travel community, but is slowly being recognised for the exceptional destination it is.
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5.0
90 reviews
Excellent
85
Very good
4
Average
0
Poor
0
Terrible
1
E J J
5 contributions
Oct 2023 • Solo
Thank you to Life of Taiwan for working with me to create a fantastic personal solo week-long tour of Taiwan. I contacted Life of Taiwan to plan a tour as a layover stop in Taiwan on my flight to Bali. Working with Mark and Maggie, they developed an amazing itinerary to show me around the entire island in seven days with a personal tour guide. We communicated over a few weeks to establish the various places, museums, cultural and natural sites to visit along the way. They even made a reservation for me to see the Taipei Symphony Orchestra.
Steven Liu, my tour guide picked me up at the airport early in the morning and we started the tour right away. Steven is a highly experienced tour guide who is extremely knowledgeable and passionate about the history and culture of Taiwan! The places we visited were spectacular from beaches, natural areas and indigenous people, historical sites, temples, night markets and art, archeology, and history museums They arranged for me to stay in excellent hotels and the have best food experiences. It was an honor to have Steven as my guide, he is a great person to be with.
Life of Taiwan arranged my tour of Taiwan perfectly for a reasonable price, giving me awesome insight about Taiwan and the wonderful people. I look forward to going back to Taiwan and highly recommend Life of Taiwan for their knowledge and being a pleasure to work with. Their attention to detail and commitment to customer satisfaction really makes them an exceptional tour group!
Steven Liu, my tour guide picked me up at the airport early in the morning and we started the tour right away. Steven is a highly experienced tour guide who is extremely knowledgeable and passionate about the history and culture of Taiwan! The places we visited were spectacular from beaches, natural areas and indigenous people, historical sites, temples, night markets and art, archeology, and history museums They arranged for me to stay in excellent hotels and the have best food experiences. It was an honor to have Steven as my guide, he is a great person to be with.
Life of Taiwan arranged my tour of Taiwan perfectly for a reasonable price, giving me awesome insight about Taiwan and the wonderful people. I look forward to going back to Taiwan and highly recommend Life of Taiwan for their knowledge and being a pleasure to work with. Their attention to detail and commitment to customer satisfaction really makes them an exceptional tour group!
Written 17 November 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Olaf T
1 contribution
Jul 2023 • Solo
This is as good as it gets when it comes to tea trips around Taiwan!
I have been on a short 3-day exploration on what Tea tourism has to offer as part of a research for "t-Magazin". My driver-guide Hsi-Hua Chen was relaxed and knowledgeable, making sure I would get to see all the tea peculiarities I had wished for - and even more. Don't miss the tea ceremony in the bamboo forest! Also, really interesting accomodation, very carefully selected. I'd do it again - just longer!
I have been on a short 3-day exploration on what Tea tourism has to offer as part of a research for "t-Magazin". My driver-guide Hsi-Hua Chen was relaxed and knowledgeable, making sure I would get to see all the tea peculiarities I had wished for - and even more. Don't miss the tea ceremony in the bamboo forest! Also, really interesting accomodation, very carefully selected. I'd do it again - just longer!
Written 11 September 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Thank you Olaf! We look forward to your return for more tea adventures!
Written 11 September 2023
This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.
Veena S
1 contribution
Jul 2023 • Family
Thanks Maggie and Mark for arranging two unforgettable trips in Taiwan for us. My family had a great time and loved both the trips. We had an amazing time in Hualian, other places along east coast and Alishan. The tea tasting and the all terraine vehicle (ATV) activities were completely different experience for us.
Our guide Jim was amazing!!! He took great care, gave us good information and made sure we could visit each attraction at our own pace. He made sure everyone in the group had a good time - from the kids to the grandparents. The food arrangements were great. We appreciate your company making efforts in arranging 3 good vegetarian meals every day for us. Both me and my husband are very impressed with the arrangements by your company and would love to explore more parts of Taiwan in future with your help.
Our guide Jim was amazing!!! He took great care, gave us good information and made sure we could visit each attraction at our own pace. He made sure everyone in the group had a good time - from the kids to the grandparents. The food arrangements were great. We appreciate your company making efforts in arranging 3 good vegetarian meals every day for us. Both me and my husband are very impressed with the arrangements by your company and would love to explore more parts of Taiwan in future with your help.
Written 10 September 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Thank you so much for this lovely review. We look forward to showing you around more of the island!
Written 11 September 2023
This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.
tribecaNY
NY9 contributions
Aug 2023 • Family
A well thought out itinerary that allowed us access to three tribal groups. I could not have organized this without LifeofTaiwan. Joe the guide was excellent in every way. His gregarious personality, in depth knowledge of the areas we travelled, and excellent English made him a key reason we enjoyed our trip.
Written 9 September 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Thank you! We will pass your appreciation onto Joe! He is a wonderful guide.
Written 11 September 2023
This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.
Jennifer T
1 contribution
Jul 2023 • Family
Our family of 4 had an amazing 12 day tour of the heart of Taiwan arranged by the professional team from Life of Taiwan.
Our point contact was responsive before, during, and even after the trip, and planned an amazing itinerary with thoughtful touches based on our family's interests. Our bespoke tour included the Alishan region, Sun Moon Lake, Taroko Gorge, the East Rift Valley, Kenting, and more, with excellent accommodations and restaurants/dining throughout. Of course, the highlight of our trip was a sunrise hot air balloon ride over the Luye Highlands during the Taiwan International Balloon Festival.
We very much enjoyed our journey with our energetic and fluent English-speaking guide who helped to make sure that the tour fit our family's pace. Our guide was flexible when the weather was not always cooperative, and was a wealth of information about the best local eats and viewpoints. As a bonus he seemed to be an avid photographer and helped us capture fabulous family photographs along the way!
We shared many of our escapades via an online album with friends and family back home in the US, and it seems that many of them have since added Taiwan as a destination on their own travel bucket lists!
We would definitely recommend the team at Life of Taiwan for anyone (including families!) looking for a well-curated visit to the beautiful "Ilsa Formosa"
Our point contact was responsive before, during, and even after the trip, and planned an amazing itinerary with thoughtful touches based on our family's interests. Our bespoke tour included the Alishan region, Sun Moon Lake, Taroko Gorge, the East Rift Valley, Kenting, and more, with excellent accommodations and restaurants/dining throughout. Of course, the highlight of our trip was a sunrise hot air balloon ride over the Luye Highlands during the Taiwan International Balloon Festival.
We very much enjoyed our journey with our energetic and fluent English-speaking guide who helped to make sure that the tour fit our family's pace. Our guide was flexible when the weather was not always cooperative, and was a wealth of information about the best local eats and viewpoints. As a bonus he seemed to be an avid photographer and helped us capture fabulous family photographs along the way!
We shared many of our escapades via an online album with friends and family back home in the US, and it seems that many of them have since added Taiwan as a destination on their own travel bucket lists!
We would definitely recommend the team at Life of Taiwan for anyone (including families!) looking for a well-curated visit to the beautiful "Ilsa Formosa"
Written 7 September 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Wow! What a review. Thank you so much! We were delighted to host your wonderful family and hope to see you again soon!
Written 11 September 2023
This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.
Zac
Philadelphia, PA1 contribution
Aug 2023 • Business
We had an excellent time with Hsi Hua, going through the central mountain ranges of Taiwan. We visited Sun Moon Lake, Lugu, Alishan, and a dozen other stops along the way.
I really appreciate how Mark and Maggie created a really in-depth tea tour for us to shoot video and photography. You can tell that their relationships are what drive their business. They have a wide range of close-contacts and I am so thankful that they were able to share with us.
We especially appreciate our guide's ability to improvise in the moment and take us to see things as we learn about and express interest in them. He managed to accommodate our many curiosities and still stay on schedule -- not an easy task!
I'll definitely work with Life of Taiwan again in the future and will be recommending them to anyone who asks.
I really appreciate how Mark and Maggie created a really in-depth tea tour for us to shoot video and photography. You can tell that their relationships are what drive their business. They have a wide range of close-contacts and I am so thankful that they were able to share with us.
We especially appreciate our guide's ability to improvise in the moment and take us to see things as we learn about and express interest in them. He managed to accommodate our many curiosities and still stay on schedule -- not an easy task!
I'll definitely work with Life of Taiwan again in the future and will be recommending them to anyone who asks.
Written 6 September 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Many thanks Zac! Glad it all worked out so well for you. Tea tours of Taiwan are so much fun!
Written 6 September 2023
This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.
mikebayarea
Fremont, CA11 contributions
Aug 2023 • Family
Our family (parents and young adult children) did a two week tour that included Taipei, Hualien, Taroko, sun moon lake, and Tainan. We stayed at some really incredible hotels like the Mandarin Oriental in Taipei, the Lakeshore hotel at the Taroko Gorge National Park, and the Lalu on Sun Moon Lake. We did a wide variety of activities from touring the Kavalan whiskey distillery, hiking to waterfalls, visiting a coffee and tea plantation, eating at a 3-star Michelin restaurant, painting and launching sky lanterns in a small picturesque village. We had a great drive and tour guide (Joe) that orchestrated everything, picking us up at our hotel in the morning, and returning us in the evening, and handling everthing in between. Overall, the trip was excellent and exceeded our expectations.
Written 24 August 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Thank you Mike! It was a pleasure working with you and your family. Really delighted at how this trip worked out for you all.
Written 26 August 2023
This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.
JeffB
1 contribution
Aug 2023
My experience with this travel agency was absolutely appalling. I am an American visiting Taiwan this summer, and I contacted Life of Taiwan for a 4-day trip to Taroko Gorge. During the phone call, I was shocked and deeply offended when I overheard one of their staff members making a racist remark about me in Mandarin, completely unaware that I could understand the language. This incident revealed a disturbing lack of professionalism, cultural sensitivity, and basic respect. It is both disappointing and unacceptable that a company entrusted with creating positive travel experiences could display such shocking behavior. I guess they're more than happy to take your money and trash you behind your back.
Written 23 August 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Irene R
11 contributions
Jul 2023
I loved our Life of Taiwan experience so much that I felt compelled to write my very first Tripadvisor review.
I'm usually a DIY traveler, but trying to coordinate logistics from the U.S. with limited Chinese language skills for a 7-day/6-night trip around Taiwan for a multi-generational group of 8 people (ages ranging from 15 to 80) proved overwhelming. I was using Nick Kembel's super helpful online Taiwan Travel Guide, and he recommended Life of Taiwan for private, customized tours.
I admit, being used to DIY travel, the cost at first gave me sticker shock; but now that we've completed our tour, I can say with 100% confidence that the price was 100% worth it.
My initial inquiry email was answered by Mark (the company's founder). I had 1 phone call with Mark early in the process to get a lot of questions answered (since this was my first time using a tour company like this), otherwise all the planning was done via email with Mark and Maggie (a tour designer). They were both incredibly professional, courteous, responsive, and attentive. I described my ideal tour (essentially Life of Taiwan's "9-Day Classic Tour" with customizations and without Taipei, which we explored on our own), and they quoted me a per-person-per-day price range. I chose a value on the lower end of the range, and they provided me with a detailed, personalized itinerary complete with site descriptions and photos. The itinerary was made available online as a web page, so it was easy to share with the rest of my group. I acted as the point person, collecting feedback from others and then going back and forth with Mark and Maggie until the itinerary was exactly what we wanted. Having everything planned in advance by Life of Taiwan truly allowed me to sit back and enjoy the trip stress-free!!
So what did we get for the price of our tour? Our tour included a very spacious and comfortable mini tour bus with a professional driver (whom we called A-Long) who was clearly skilled in driving both Taiwan's busy city streets and narrow, winding mountain roads. The tour bus was stocked with water bottles, umbrellas, even emesis bags for the zigzagging mountain roads. (These came in handy for one of our teenagers, who quickly acclimated after temporary initial discomfort.) We had excellent hotel accommodations, and the price included all entry tickets needed along the way. It also included 1-3 meals per day, averaging 2 meals a day. All food arranged by Life of Taiwan - including both restaurant meals and some snack/tea experiences - were wonderful. Per the Terms & Conditions listed on their website, the full cost of the tour was due 30 days in advance of the tour's start date.
Of course, the cost also included our amazing guide Joe, who was friendly and knowledgeable. He expertly ensured that our tour went smoothly, even when we unexpectedly veered off-schedule. More than once, when we were unable to see a particular site on the scheduled day (due to poor weather or lack of time), because we had 2 days at each location, Joe was able to incorporate the missed site into the next day's schedule. (One place we made 2 attempts to see, but were foiled by heavy rain one day, and traffic control the next; though we ended up missing the site, I really appreciated the effort.) When a restaurant was unexpectedly closed, Joe made a seamless on-the-spot transition to another location which met our needs just fine. Other days, when we had extra time in our schedule, Joe gauged our interest in a couple nearby options, allowing us to choose a destination not listed on our itinerary, or to have some rest time before the next scheduled event; even after just a couple days, he had a good understanding of our group's tastes and desires. Joe was especially attentive to bathroom breaks, and we never drove more than 1.5 hours in one stretch. Finally, as a photo fiend, I especially appreciated that Joe took fantastic group pictures for us, always making the suggestion at the best vantage points and taking beautifully framed photos. I should mention, too, that our visit to Tainan included a "walking tour and food adventure" with a local guide who was just as friendly, knowledgeable, and skilled as Joe.
Our group had 2 members with food allergies, both allergic to tree nuts and one additionally allergic to sesame. As you can imagine, managing a sesame allergy in Taiwan was difficult, made even trickier because apparently the use of "xiang you" - literally, "fragrant oil" - is very common, but many people don't know it's made from sesame! Joe helped relieve us of the heavy burden of allergy management by clearly communicating with restaurant staff to ensure safe meals for all our tour members.
The level of service provided was truly remarkable. In one case, a few hours after we checked out of a hotel, the hotel contacted Joe about an item left behind; the item's owner hadn't even realized it was missing yet. Joe arranged for the item to be returned by having the hotel deliver it to the final hotel on our tour! The last day of our tour actually involved 3 members leaving earlier than the rest to catch a flight out of TPE; Maggie's planning and Joe's execution meant that these 3 people were able to make the most of their last day sightseeing while still getting to the high-speed rail station on time and having an effortless transfer via driver to the airport - the HSR tickets & transfer were included in the cost, and everything went off without a hitch!
Having Life of Taiwan plan our tour as a road trip, with stops along the way, also allowed us to see much more of Taiwan than we would have seen if we had planned it on our own, using trains between cities. Even if we drove ourselves, we never would have attempted the Central Cross-Island Highway on our own, with its challenging roads and traffic control schedule, yet our hike up Hehuanshan, located en route, turned out to be one of the highlights of our trip.
So what was not included? As described in the Terms and Conditions, the cost does not include driver or guide tips, so that needed to be budgeted separately. Also, we paid for our own lunch and/or dinner some days; Joe always made time for meals and suggested local places to eat with typical Taiwan prices.
I absolutely recommend Life of Taiwan to anyone looking to experience a tour of multiple destinations around the island. Even if you're usually a DIY traveler, if you have the means, it's definitely worth considering a private, customized tour with LIfe of Taiwan.
I'm usually a DIY traveler, but trying to coordinate logistics from the U.S. with limited Chinese language skills for a 7-day/6-night trip around Taiwan for a multi-generational group of 8 people (ages ranging from 15 to 80) proved overwhelming. I was using Nick Kembel's super helpful online Taiwan Travel Guide, and he recommended Life of Taiwan for private, customized tours.
I admit, being used to DIY travel, the cost at first gave me sticker shock; but now that we've completed our tour, I can say with 100% confidence that the price was 100% worth it.
My initial inquiry email was answered by Mark (the company's founder). I had 1 phone call with Mark early in the process to get a lot of questions answered (since this was my first time using a tour company like this), otherwise all the planning was done via email with Mark and Maggie (a tour designer). They were both incredibly professional, courteous, responsive, and attentive. I described my ideal tour (essentially Life of Taiwan's "9-Day Classic Tour" with customizations and without Taipei, which we explored on our own), and they quoted me a per-person-per-day price range. I chose a value on the lower end of the range, and they provided me with a detailed, personalized itinerary complete with site descriptions and photos. The itinerary was made available online as a web page, so it was easy to share with the rest of my group. I acted as the point person, collecting feedback from others and then going back and forth with Mark and Maggie until the itinerary was exactly what we wanted. Having everything planned in advance by Life of Taiwan truly allowed me to sit back and enjoy the trip stress-free!!
So what did we get for the price of our tour? Our tour included a very spacious and comfortable mini tour bus with a professional driver (whom we called A-Long) who was clearly skilled in driving both Taiwan's busy city streets and narrow, winding mountain roads. The tour bus was stocked with water bottles, umbrellas, even emesis bags for the zigzagging mountain roads. (These came in handy for one of our teenagers, who quickly acclimated after temporary initial discomfort.) We had excellent hotel accommodations, and the price included all entry tickets needed along the way. It also included 1-3 meals per day, averaging 2 meals a day. All food arranged by Life of Taiwan - including both restaurant meals and some snack/tea experiences - were wonderful. Per the Terms & Conditions listed on their website, the full cost of the tour was due 30 days in advance of the tour's start date.
Of course, the cost also included our amazing guide Joe, who was friendly and knowledgeable. He expertly ensured that our tour went smoothly, even when we unexpectedly veered off-schedule. More than once, when we were unable to see a particular site on the scheduled day (due to poor weather or lack of time), because we had 2 days at each location, Joe was able to incorporate the missed site into the next day's schedule. (One place we made 2 attempts to see, but were foiled by heavy rain one day, and traffic control the next; though we ended up missing the site, I really appreciated the effort.) When a restaurant was unexpectedly closed, Joe made a seamless on-the-spot transition to another location which met our needs just fine. Other days, when we had extra time in our schedule, Joe gauged our interest in a couple nearby options, allowing us to choose a destination not listed on our itinerary, or to have some rest time before the next scheduled event; even after just a couple days, he had a good understanding of our group's tastes and desires. Joe was especially attentive to bathroom breaks, and we never drove more than 1.5 hours in one stretch. Finally, as a photo fiend, I especially appreciated that Joe took fantastic group pictures for us, always making the suggestion at the best vantage points and taking beautifully framed photos. I should mention, too, that our visit to Tainan included a "walking tour and food adventure" with a local guide who was just as friendly, knowledgeable, and skilled as Joe.
Our group had 2 members with food allergies, both allergic to tree nuts and one additionally allergic to sesame. As you can imagine, managing a sesame allergy in Taiwan was difficult, made even trickier because apparently the use of "xiang you" - literally, "fragrant oil" - is very common, but many people don't know it's made from sesame! Joe helped relieve us of the heavy burden of allergy management by clearly communicating with restaurant staff to ensure safe meals for all our tour members.
The level of service provided was truly remarkable. In one case, a few hours after we checked out of a hotel, the hotel contacted Joe about an item left behind; the item's owner hadn't even realized it was missing yet. Joe arranged for the item to be returned by having the hotel deliver it to the final hotel on our tour! The last day of our tour actually involved 3 members leaving earlier than the rest to catch a flight out of TPE; Maggie's planning and Joe's execution meant that these 3 people were able to make the most of their last day sightseeing while still getting to the high-speed rail station on time and having an effortless transfer via driver to the airport - the HSR tickets & transfer were included in the cost, and everything went off without a hitch!
Having Life of Taiwan plan our tour as a road trip, with stops along the way, also allowed us to see much more of Taiwan than we would have seen if we had planned it on our own, using trains between cities. Even if we drove ourselves, we never would have attempted the Central Cross-Island Highway on our own, with its challenging roads and traffic control schedule, yet our hike up Hehuanshan, located en route, turned out to be one of the highlights of our trip.
So what was not included? As described in the Terms and Conditions, the cost does not include driver or guide tips, so that needed to be budgeted separately. Also, we paid for our own lunch and/or dinner some days; Joe always made time for meals and suggested local places to eat with typical Taiwan prices.
I absolutely recommend Life of Taiwan to anyone looking to experience a tour of multiple destinations around the island. Even if you're usually a DIY traveler, if you have the means, it's definitely worth considering a private, customized tour with LIfe of Taiwan.
Written 29 July 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Thanks so much for such a wonderful and detailed review. Joe really enjoyed his time with your family. We look forward to your return!
Written 26 August 2023
This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.
JoshP
9 contributions
Jul 2023 • Family
Maggie and the staff at Life of Taiwan did an excellent job creating a 10 day private tour for our family. Maggie listened carefully to all my thoughts on where we wanted to go and things we liked to do and came up with a suggested itinerary. She was quick to respond to any changes or additions I wanted to make, and really worked with us to come up with a great trip. Our son is adopted from Taiwan, and part of the trip was a visit to his orphanage and his birth mother, and Maggie was great at organizing both - even though they are definitely not activities that are part of any normal tour package.
She also has some wonderful and unique contacts, such as the night she arranged for us to spend in a Zuo village with a couple who run an NGO working with the Zuo. We spent the night in a private home, ate dinner and breakfast with the couple in small local restaurants run by the villagers - a fantastic night.
For us, the best part of the trip was our incredible guide, Stephen. He really got to know us over the course of many days spent together, quickly changing up plans and itineraries if he felt like something on the schedule wasn't going to work. Parking a van in most Taiwanese cities can be very challenging, so Stephen was always dropping us where we wanted to be while he went to park the van, and then making sure we had a comfortable place to wait in the shade while he picked it up. He looked after us every step of the way.
Most important of all, Stephen was willing and able to serve as our translator when we met our son's birth mother, and helped us communicate with her though some very personal and difficult questions and conversations.
From the time we landed to the time we left, there was very little we had to worry about - other than where to eat the occasional dinner on a night where that wasn't covered by the tour, but our hotels were always in spots teeming with great places to eat. Maggie and Stephen made sure we were well looked after the whole time, and we saw a lot of incredible sights, and got to many parts of the country that would have been incredibly hard to reach on our own.
Thank you for an amazing experience!! I highly recommend Life of Taiwan to anyone visiting this wonderful, diverse, and beautiful island!
She also has some wonderful and unique contacts, such as the night she arranged for us to spend in a Zuo village with a couple who run an NGO working with the Zuo. We spent the night in a private home, ate dinner and breakfast with the couple in small local restaurants run by the villagers - a fantastic night.
For us, the best part of the trip was our incredible guide, Stephen. He really got to know us over the course of many days spent together, quickly changing up plans and itineraries if he felt like something on the schedule wasn't going to work. Parking a van in most Taiwanese cities can be very challenging, so Stephen was always dropping us where we wanted to be while he went to park the van, and then making sure we had a comfortable place to wait in the shade while he picked it up. He looked after us every step of the way.
Most important of all, Stephen was willing and able to serve as our translator when we met our son's birth mother, and helped us communicate with her though some very personal and difficult questions and conversations.
From the time we landed to the time we left, there was very little we had to worry about - other than where to eat the occasional dinner on a night where that wasn't covered by the tour, but our hotels were always in spots teeming with great places to eat. Maggie and Stephen made sure we were well looked after the whole time, and we saw a lot of incredible sights, and got to many parts of the country that would have been incredibly hard to reach on our own.
Thank you for an amazing experience!! I highly recommend Life of Taiwan to anyone visiting this wonderful, diverse, and beautiful island!
Written 16 July 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
We are so pleased that everything worked out for you. We understood that this was a very important trip for you and we are delighted that we delivered. Thank you for this very kind review. Welcome back to Taiwan again!
Written 16 July 2023
This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.
Chas
2 contributions
How many hours of touring are there per day? Are meals usually on our own? What level hotels do you use? What meals are included in the food tour? thanks
Mark Pemberton
Tainan, Taiwan5 contributions
Dear Charles,
Please excuse my belated response. We work on a basis of 8 hours a day. Food is included in our food tours.
Please feel free to send over any questions you have.
When are you thinking of visiting?
We look forward to be of service to you.
Kind regards,
Mark
