Scooter rental in Taiwan is convenient, cost-effective, and hassle-free as long as you have the correct driving license and observe the country’s driving laws. In Hualien City many people get around on scooters, the roads are not busy, and well-maintained. We felt very safe and the scooter rental process was easy. At the end of this blog post, we share the details of the company we used and would recommend to you too.
If you are researching scooter hire in Hualien, you are likely to be planning a visit to Toroko National Park (Toroko Gorge) since it is one of the main reasons visitors come to the city. The good news is that scooter rental in Taiwan is one of the best ways for independent travelers to see the local sights! Who doesn’t enjoy exploring a new city at your own pace?
We spent two nights and 3 days in Hualien exploring the city, Toroko Gorge, and the local beaches. Here are our top 5 tips for scooter rental in Hualien, Taiwan:
1. Bring the correct driving license with you
Yes, they do check this and make a copy before you are allowed to hire the scooter. As we are British this is the current UK Government advice, at the time of writing: You need a 1949 international driving permit (IDP) as well as a UK driving license to drive in Taiwan. You cannot buy an IDP outside the UK, so get one before you travel. You can buy an IDP in person from some UK post offices – find your nearest post office branch that offers this service.
If you are from elsewhere check your requirements as they may differ for each country. Our IDP 1949 has a Chinese language transcribed page which comes in handy if you are using a scooter hire company where their English Language is limited and your Taiwanese is worse.
2. Cash deposit or Credit Card
You will be required to leave your Credit Card details in case of any future speeding or traffic contravention fines the hire company may receive after you have returned the bike and left the city. This is standard practice. You can offer to leave a non-returnable cash deposit if you do not have a credit card. But who doesn’t travel with a credit card these days?
3. Insurance
Make sure your scooter insurance is included in your hire agreement as well as your travel insurance. The scooter insurance provided by the company only covers damage to the vehicles involved, and not for any personal injuries.
In case of a traffic accident, stay at the scene, and call the police to deal with it. Do not under any circumstances leave the scene. You will be breaking the law.
4. Two-stage Turn Left Rule
The Taiwan two-stage left turn is a unique traffic maneuver that is also commonly used in other countries in Asia. It is a way for drivers to make a left turn at an intersection without crossing oncoming traffic. This website spells out the rule well but our scooter hire company also took the time to explain it to us too. This is important and you will get a hefty fine if you do not follow the rules and are caught by the Police or traffic cameras.
5. Parking on sidewalks
We were advised that you could be fined for parking on the sidewalk, despite it being common practice. A quick Google search found that the rules are currently under review which means the situation can change or be interpreted differently by people. Therefore our advice is to park in designated bays, we never paid for parking, and walk a bit further to where you want to be. Hualien is not a massively busy city and we rarely struggled to find parking.
Scooter Rental Recommendation
We hired our scooter from Toroko Rental Car you will find them directly across the road from the main entrance to the train station and they are super helpful and very friendly.
We did not book in advance and were given a well-maintained scooter along with a comprehensive safety talk, including information about the two-stage left-hand turn and traffic rules. The owner’s son speaks good English and shared great tips on getting around the main sites.
Toroko Rental Car provide as standard helmets, helmet liners, a phone holder, and a city map.
We also asked for a recommendation on where to eat locally were directed to a very affordable canteen further up the road where local office workers were queuing to get their mid-day meal. The food was simple, healthy and tasted like home cooking. Unfortunately, we didn’t note the name of the shop but here’s the meal we ate. You pickthe dishes you want from an open display and are charged per item. Free soup is available at the self-service area where you get your cutlery.
We never felt it was unsafe to park the scooter up and everyone would leave helmets hanging off the handlebars. We were super cautious so we would put them inside the seat storage area, but this just goes to show how Taiwan earns its reputation for a low crime rate.
We would highly recommend scooter rental as a way of transport around Hualien and for easy access to Toroko Gorge. We had been trying to book a coach trip and were struggling, probably as it wasn’t quite the season for tourism yet, and having the scooter was the best decision we made!
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