Wildlife adventure @ Leofoo Resort & Leofoo Village Theme Park in Hsinchu, Taiwan (a review)
Date of travel: January 14-15, 2019
So, let me start this with how I got to discover this place. I am an avid fan of Running Man (a korean variety show) and ever since I watched them went to this place, this has been an addition to my travel bucketlist.
☑️ Stay @ Leofoo Resort
☑️ Ride Screaming Condor (first row) @ Leofoo Village Theme Park
☑️ Touch a giraffe 🦒
It’s 2019 and I decided to start the year traveling! I know it will be a bit pricey but I’ve promised myself that when I go to Taiwan, I will surely go to this place.
So, when I was planning this trip and searched through the Trivago app (to get the best deals!) and we got this deal for Leofoo Resort.
The package includes:
- 1 overnight stay @ Leofoo resort for 2 persons
- 2-day pass pass tickets @ Leofoo Village Theme Park for 2 persons
- 6-course dinner for 2 persons @ Leofoo Resort’s Cape of Good Hope Restaurant
- Buffet breakfast for 2 persons @ Leofoo Resort’s Phoenix Restaurant
- Shuttle service going to and from Leofoo Village Theme Park
Overall package price is NTD 10,349.80 (includes hotel tax + service fees) approx. Php 18,500 - 19,000 depending on current exchange rate.
You may also book a room and check out prices on their website.
You may also book a room and check out prices on their website.
From Taipei, we rode the MRT to Jingan Station (orange line). From outside the mrt station, we turned left until we reached the bus stop (a 3 minute walk). As soon as we arrived, we’ve seen the bus going to Leofoo Village Theme Park (Bus No. 5350) picking up passengers. The Bus has a schedule so be sure to arrive on time or you’ll have to wait another 30 mins to 1 hour for the next bus.
To double check we're riding the correct bus, we asked the driver first if the bus is going to Leofoo and when he nod, we put our luggage in the bus compartment and went up the bus. The bus has a few stops but it will stop at Longtan ticketing office. The bus conductor will advise passengers without tickets to buy their tickets there (in their language).
Note: Language barrier.
We have to eventually ask the bus conductor if we will get down to buy tickets since we don’t have tickets yet. Good thing, he can understand us well and explained us what we will do.
Note: Language barrier.
We have to eventually ask the bus conductor if we will get down to buy tickets since we don’t have tickets yet. Good thing, he can understand us well and explained us what we will do.
I went down and bought a one way ticket. I explained to the lady at the counter that we came from Jingan and we will buy tickets going to Leofoo. She asked if we want a roundtrip ticket but I declined since we have to return the next day. One-way ticket price is NTD 96. After buying, just keep your ticket because you will have to give this to the driver before you alight once you arrive in your destination. Overall, the ride took us about 1 hour to 1 1/2 hours from MRT Jingan station bus stop to Leofoo Village Theme Park bus stop.
Upon arriving at the theme park, we went to Leofoo theme park’s service counter and told them we are going to Leofoo resort. They called the resort and an employee there assisted us to where we will go and wait for the shuttle car going to the resort. It only took 5 minutes until the car arrived.
The car drivers cannot speak nor properly understand English but they assisted us well from putting our luggage in car compartment to closing the car doors for us. It only took 3 minutes to arrive to the resort.
Upon arrival to the resort, they again assisted us with our luggage. As soon as we entered the door, we were welcomed with the smell of animals. It was not a really bad smell but you can really know it is a zoo-type resort. They also have a welcome tea (choice of 2 kinds of tea) where you can freely get and taste as you like. We skipped the tea and went straight to the reception area. It was only way past 9 AM but the check-in time is 3 PM and we were just there to drop our luggage.
Some of the receptionists doesn’t understand English well so we were assisted by one who can speak and understand English. He gave us our 2-day pass tickets for 2 persons, a VIP card for a free calendar with our picture on it which we will need to claim later, a coupon for a free postcard in their gift shop, 2 dinner stubs and 2 breakfast stubs. We were not given our room number and key pass yet which they will give upon our check-in by 3pm.
@ the hotel lobby
Upon getting those, we dropped our luggage and went in the landscape platform for a quick view wherein we can see different animals such as giraffes, zebra, lemur, meerkats, tortoise and even rhinoceros. We just took some pictures then went outside of the hotel and ride the shuttle back to the theme park.
Rhinos.
Outside the theme park, you can also see Leofoo Waterpark which are closed during Winter season in Taiwan so since we are there January, the waterpark is closed.
Leofoo Waterpark (left) then Leofoo Village Theme Park (right)
Leofoo Village Theme Park is the first fantasy world in Asia that combines both Amusement Park and Safari. A full day ticket for adults costs NTD 999. The theme park is open from 9AM to 5PM on all months of the year except July and August (summer) where it is open from 9AM-8PM.
Leofoo Village Theme Park entrance
As soon as we entered the theme park, we were welcomed with different areas of the theme park: African Safari, Wild West, South Pacific and Arabian Kingdom.
African Safari: Our favorite part is the Monkey Trail ride the wherein you can ride a bike from above and tour the area for sightseeing and see the animals around African Safari. They also have activities like feeding alpacas, sheeps and goats and some roller coaster rides. They even have a carnivore bus tour wherein you can see bears, lions and tigers up close.
Monkey trail ride
Wild West: This is the part I’ve been waiting for! To ride the Screaming Condor ride. It is a very fast U-shaped twisted coaster which even needs to restart operations for 10-15 minutes every ride. So this is 1 part of my bucket list I have ticked off. We rode the first row and it was solid! The best!
Screaming Condor
South Pacific: The best ride here is the Mighty Mountain Flume Adventure which has a lost world Jurassic theme. Also one of the good rides is the Pagoda’s revenge which seems like a not so tall one but is actually a 17-story free fall experience.
Mighty Mountain Flume Adventure
Arabian Kingdom: This area of the theme park seems to be themed after Aladdin and it even has an Aladdin themed restaurant.
Aladdin themed restaurant
It was indeed an enjoyable day at the theme park and since it is on a weekday, there are no lines at the park and we got to ride almost everything we wanted.
We decided to go back to the resort at 3pm. Upon arrival, there is a Welcome Show ongoing which features Africans singing and dancing. Upon checking in, we were asked if we’d like to skip the toiletries for a NTD 50 voucher for each person which we skipped. The toiletries include slippers, toothbrush set and comb.
Welcome show
We were given a room at the zebra cottage. We booked a Congo Sky Room. Our room has a full length window with a view of free roaming goats. The room is about 40 sqm. with 2 queen beds and 2 showers. The room and bed is so big it can actually fit 6 people in the room. There are complimentary cookies from Leofoo Select elite bakery and 4 bottles of mineral water.
Our room @ Leofoo Resort
Dinner @ Cape of Good Hope Restaurant: This is a restaurant which serves mainly African cuisine. Upon booking the hotel, I did not know we will be served a 6-course dinner so I was surprised. It was a different kind of food but we enjoyed it. Saw the menu when we asked to choose from the options which food we like to be served and the course meal costs NTD 900/person.
Dinner @ Cape of Good Hope restaurant.
Breakfast @ Phoenix Restaurant: They have a variety of dishes from Pasta, Rice, and even authentic Taiwan dishes. What my boyfriend liked most is the unlimited Yakult! Well, what I liked most is the view from the restaurant. You can have a good and yummy breakfast looking at the animals outside.
My choice of breakfast.
Unlimited Yakult!
After eating, we went to the landscape platform and saw the giraffe near the platform. We went near the giraffe and I was given a chance to touch it! Oh my gosh! Too bad I wasn’t able to capture it in the video and I prioritized touching it rather than getting it caught on cam. Note: This only happened since the giraffe is near me. There is no way you can actually call the giraffe to come near you so you can touch it. Once in a lifetime experience!
View from the landscape platform.
Giraffe coming close to us where I got the chance to touch it quickly.
Leofoo resort also offers paid activities wherein you can interact with the animals in the resort.
Here are some:
- Beasts encounter: NTD 1,999 / person.
- Rhinoceros encounter: NTD 1,999 / person
- Meerkat experience: NTD 899 / person
- Lemur experience: NTD 499 / person
- Alpaca experience: NTD 499 / person
- African tortoise experience: NTD 499 / person
Note: Every activity only has a specific schedule since animals have a food quota and there is also a quota for persons who can join a schedule.
For more details on activities they offer, you may check this out.
For more details on activities they offer, you may check this out.
We tried the lemur experience. This is a 30-minute experience feeding the ring-tailed lemurs. In the lemur area, there are also meerkats roaming around. We were advised not to touch or try to feed the meerkats since meerkats are fed on worms. Lemurs are fed with lettuce and squash and fruits such as banana and grapes. You will also wear boots, mouth mask as well as hats. It is also advisable to wear longsleeves because I was wearing 3/4 sleeves and my arms got scratched which ended up with a small wound with the nails of the lemur.
Lemur feeding
We had so much fun feeding the lemurs and having to take videos and pictures with the experience. They were so jolly and they really liked eating. They are also clumsy and can jump to your head, shoulders and to another person. This is a also a once in a lifetime experience wherein you can experience first hand in the resort.
We went back to Taipei at past 4 in the afternoon. We just waited at the bus stop where we alight the previous day and saw a long line there. Maybe because the park closes @ 5pm and some decided to go home early. The bus no. 5350 is the same bus you will ride going back to Taipei. Good thing, there are 3 consecutive buses that arrived. Same with what happened when we went there, the bus again stopped at Longtan ticketing office wherein we bought tickets going back to Mrt Jingan station. Ticket price is still at NTD 96. I would suggest you keep track of your location using the Google Maps app to make sure you don’t miss your stop.
Overall, even with the price, our hotel and theme park stay is enjoyable and super memorable! I can't wait to go back to this place. Maybe next time, we can get to try the other animal encounters too.
Overall, even with the price, our hotel and theme park stay is enjoyable and super memorable! I can't wait to go back to this place. Maybe next time, we can get to try the other animal encounters too.
P.S. This is not a paid post nor I am advertising anything ☺️
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