For our post-graduation trip, Joanna and I travelled to Kaohsiung for two main reasons. 1) Kaohsiung is a relatively small city, just enough for us to finish exploring at a comfortable pace when we only have 4 days. 2) I love love loveeee Taiwan, and I haven't been to Kaohsiung yet!

Flight (Singapore to Kaohsiung direct)


We decided to travel to Kaohsiung at only the eleventh hour so we didn't manage to secure good deals for our flight. Since Scoot only flies to Kaohsiung thrice weekly, and Scoot is the only airline that flies directly from Singapore to Kaohsiung, our choices were limited. To save cost, we decided to only check in our luggages on our way back from Kaohsiung (because we know we were going to be shopping a lot).

Our flight departed Singapore at 6:00am and we reached Kaohsiung at 10:20am.

Kaohsiung International Airport to Kaohsiung City


Compared to Taoyuan International Airport to Taipei City, it was way easier to get from Kaohsiung International Airport to Kaohsiung City.

There's a direct train from Kaohsiung Airport to Kaohsiung City, which costs about NT$20 one way. Take note that you can use Taipei's EasyCard (you-you-ka) in Kaohsiung, but you can't top up there. It takes only about 15 minutes to get to the hearts of Kaohsiung by Kaohsiung Rapid Transit Corporation (KRTC). You should familiarise yourself with their KRTC system as it is Kaohsiung's main form of transport.

During my recent holiday to Kaohsiung with Joanna (yes my third time travelling to Taiwan in half a year!), we stayed at Hotel R14 Kaohsiung. We were lucky to chance upon this hotel, aptly named after the train station it's located at, because it was so convenient! For one, we never had to remember what station was our hotel located at — R14 is the number of Kaohsiung Arena Station, on the red line, and Hotel R14 Kaohsiung was right across the road of Kaohsiung Areana Station.

We were initially worried about locating Hotel R14 Kaohsiung since neither of us have travelled to Kaohsiung before, but our worries were completely unfounded. When you exited from Kaohsiung Areana Station Exit 2, you'll spot a playground and Hotel R14 Kaohsiung is opposite the playground, across a road.

Because we landed at 10am, we had plenty of time to spare before the hotel's check-in time of 3pm but the hotel staff's impeccable hospitality warmed our hearts from the very beginning of our trip. From taking care of our luggage before check in to guiding us to the toilets (so we vain girls can apply our make up), the staff of Hotel R14 Kaohsiung went out of their way making sure we had everything we need for a pleasant stay.


After a day of exploring Kaohsiung, we finally returned to Hotel R14 Kaohsiung to check in to our Tree Sea Family room that comes with two queen size beds. I love that their pillows are anti-bacterial and anti-mite because hygiene is a huge deciding factor when I travel!


When we entered our room, I was blown awed by... Hotel R14 Kaohsiung's toilet. Pardon me for sounding like an old lady, I was blown away by Hotel R14 Kaohsiung's high tech toilet bowl with smart washlet (the kind that is usually found in Japan).

From anti-smell technology to warm seat cover perfect for winter — there was absolutely nothing more I need. My favourite function has still got to be the bidet function, adjustable right down to water temperature and water pressure Like what I told Joanna, I'd find it hard to adapt to peasant toilets again in Singapore.