Foreign tourist arrivals have risen 40 percent since Taiwan removed border controls in October last year, led by travelers from South Korea, Japan and Southeast Asia, travel e-commerce platform KKday said yesterday.
South Koreans topped the ranking of inbound tourists, followed by travelers from Japan, Hong Kong, Macau, Singapore and Malaysia, KKday said.
The findings were in line with Taiwan’s bid to attract 6 million foreign tourists this year and return to pre-COVID-19-pandemic levels next year.
Photo: CNA
As of Sunday, 1.85 million tourists had arrived in Taiwan this year, the Ministry of Transportation and Communications told a legislative hearing yesterday.
That number might reach 2 million by the end of this month after Taiwan downgraded COVID-19 and made travel into the country easier, it added.
The ministry has offered NT$5,000 worth of travel subsidies for 500,000 free independent tours and 90,000 group tours to attract foreign visitors, it said.
It was closely monitoring the target and would introduce more stimulus measures, if necessary.
The bulk of foreign tourists, 70 percent, visited Taipei and New Taipei City, followed by Taichung, Kaohsiung and Tainan, KKday said.
The destination survey showed that the Taipei 101 Observatory and the National Palace Museum were the top two tourist attractions, followed by New Taipei City’s Jioufen Township (九份), Hualien County’s Taroko Gorge (太魯閣) and the Alishan National Forest Recreation Area (阿里山國家森林遊樂區) in Chiayi County, it said.
Nantou County’s mountainous areas and beaches in Pingtung County’s Kenting National Park (墾丁國家公園) also ranked high.
Inbound tourists’ travel focus differs based on nationality, with South Koreans seeking out Taiwanese cuisine, while Japanese travelers consider Jioufen a must-visit destination, KKday said.
Tourists from Hong Kong and Macau like to travel as much as possible during their visits, but those from Singapore top the list for spending, it said.
Transportation is among the most in-demand services among foreign tourists, as they need high-speed rail tickets, car rentals and one-day or multiday tours to reach New Taipei City’s coastal areas, Nantou County’s Cingjing Farm (清境農場), Taroko Gorge or Alishan, KKday said.
Unique experiences, hot springs, lighting sky lanterns and do-it-yourself bakery activities also rank high on the itinerary of foreign tourists, it said.
Taiwan’s technology protection rules prohibits Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電) from producing 2-nanometer chips abroad, so the company must keep its most cutting-edge technology at home, Minister of Economic Affairs J.W. Kuo (郭智輝) said yesterday. Kuo made the remarks in response to concerns that TSMC might be forced to produce advanced 2-nanometer chips at its fabs in Arizona ahead of schedule after former US president Donald Trump was re-elected as the next US president on Tuesday. “Since Taiwan has related regulations to protect its own technologies, TSMC cannot produce 2-nanometer chips overseas currently,” Kuo said at a meeting of the legislature’s
Semiconductor shares in China surged yesterday after Reuters reported the US had ordered chipmaking giant Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電) to halt shipments of advanced chips to Chinese customers, which investors believe could accelerate Beijing’s self-reliance efforts. TSMC yesterday started to suspend shipments of certain sophisticated chips to some Chinese clients after receiving a letter from the US Department of Commerce imposing export restrictions on those products, Reuters reported on Sunday, citing an unnamed source. The US imposed export restrictions on TSMC’s 7-nanometer or more advanced designs, Reuters reported. Investors figured that would encourage authorities to support China’s industry and bought shares
TECH WAR CONTINUES: The suspension of TSMC AI chips and GPUs would be a heavy blow to China’s chip designers and would affect its competitive edge Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電), the world’s biggest contract chipmaker, is reportedly to halt supply of artificial intelligence (AI) chips and graphics processing units (GPUs) made on 7-nanometer or more advanced process technologies from next week in order to comply with US Department of Commerce rules. TSMC has sent e-mails to its Chinese AI customers, informing them about the suspension starting on Monday, Chinese online news outlet Ijiwei.com (愛集微) reported yesterday. The US Department of Commerce has not formally unveiled further semiconductor measures against China yet. “TSMC does not comment on market rumors. TSMC is a law-abiding company and we are
FLEXIBLE: Taiwan can develop its own ground station equipment, and has highly competitive manufacturers and suppliers with diversified production, the MOEA said The Ministry of Economic Affairs (MOEA) yesterday disputed reports that suppliers to US-based Space Exploration Technologies Corp (SpaceX) had been asked to move production out of Taiwan. Reuters had reported on Tuesday last week that Elon Musk-owned SpaceX had asked their manufacturers to produce outside of Taiwan given geopolitical risks and that at least one Taiwanese supplier had been pushed to relocate production to Vietnam. SpaceX’s requests place a renewed focus on the contentious relationship Musk has had with Taiwan, especially after he said last year that Taiwan is an “integral part” of China, sparking sharp criticism from Taiwanese authorities. The ministry said
RSS