Excursão de um dia para Shifen, Jiufen, Jinguashi e Museu do Ouro com traslado do hotel

There was a language barrier as the driver does not know how to speak english but we enjoyed and taken care of during the tour.

Hotel pickup was good, small group, total of 7 people. Managed to visit a few places. 1.5 hours for Jiufen is slightly too short.

We visited many places in one day, departing directly from the hotel. Our guide and driver shared many stories along the way, highly recommended.

Muy bien si solo quieres un conductor que te deje en diferentes destinos y explores por tu cuenta. El conductor fue muy eficiente, comunicativo y profesional. Ojalá el itinerario hubiera sido un poco diferente (quizás pasar menos tiempo en el museo del oro).

Nuestros conductores son muy amables y siempre nos abren las puertas. Esto es altamente recomendado. ¡Reserve ahora!

Toca y ve a algunos lugares para tomar fotos. El recorrido cubre una buena proporción de lugares de interés cercanos.

First, let me explain that the reason we chose a one-day tour with hotel pick-up in Taipei this time was because two of our travel companions were over 75 years old, and we wanted to reduce their physical burden. This tour only had two groups of guests, a total of seven people. The arranged car was very new and spacious, and the driver drove very safely. All the attractions described in the itinerary were visited without missing a single one. Therefore, the issue I want to raise this time is not about misrepresentation, but about the overall travel experience. 1) The driver, who also served as the tour guide, basically provided no information about the attractions. Except for a brief mention of minerals at the Yin Yang Sea and Golden Waterfall, and a comment about the gold exhibits before arriving at the Gold Museum, the guide simply announced the name of each attraction and the pick-up time. He spoke very little throughout the trip, and guests had to suggest where to have lunch themselves. Essentially, guests had to figure out the characteristics of each attraction on their own or read the information boards. The Gold Museum is a large outdoor museum, with the main hall located at the innermost part of the park. We didn't know that the most valuable exhibits were in the main hall, and because the elderly walked slowly, we only had time to briefly visit the outer sections and had no time left for the main hall. If the guide had introduced it beforehand, we would have gone directly to the main hall according to our time. Now, the elderly are inevitably left with some regret. 2) The weather on the day of the one-day tour was very bad, with continuous heavy rain. Of course, bad weather is an uncontrollable factor. However, the guide did not show consideration for the needs of the travelers under these circumstances. There was a distance between the parking lots and some attractions, such as Shifen Old Street. The guide could have driven the car closer to the attraction, dropped us off, and then gone back to park, as we observed that the road conditions allowed it. However, the guide directly had us get off at the parking lot, and we had to walk a distance to the attraction in the rain. We understood that parking is not allowed near Jiufen Old Street, so we accepted that we had to walk up and down the slopes from the parking lot; there was no other way. However, when it was time for us to gather and leave, the wind and rain were very heavy. We stood at the entrance of the outdoor parking lot waiting for the car (see attached photo). Both of our groups arrived 15 minutes early, and we WhatsApped the guide to see if he could pick us up earlier. The guide did not read the message, so both groups of guests, including two elderly people and one child, were completely drenched in the wind and rain. The guide even arrived a little later than the agreed time; and when the car arrived, it didn't stop close to the guests (we saw cars from other tours stopping near their guests), but instead made us walk further in the wind and rain to get in! In fact, the guests in our group were all very responsible and arrived early. Besides Jiufen, there were also instances at other attractions where guests arrived early but the driver hadn't (see attached photo). Of course, it's not a given that the driver should arrive early, but what's the point of having a communication group if there's no response to guests at all? I have participated in many one-day tours in Europe, America, Japan, Korea, and Taiwan, and this experience was definitely the worst. I would have been better off just calling an Uber at each spot and not having to wait so long.