The Ministry of Transportation and Communications (MOTC) yesterday pledged to work with local travel agencies to promote tours to Palau.
The ministry made the remarks after Palauan President Surangel Whipps Jr last week accused China Airlines of “poisoning” its tourism market by frequently canceling flights to the Micronesian nation.
In March, Taiwan and Palau signed a “travel bubble” agreement, but due to a spike in locally transmitted COVID-19 infections in Taiwan, flights between the two countries were temporarily suspended from mid-May to the end of July, before being resumed on Aug. 1.
Photo courtesy of Cola Tour
While flights to Ngerulmud reached an average load factor of 70 percent in August and September, all departing flights from Taipei were canceled this month due to a lack of travelers.
Whipps’ criticism of China Airlines was the focus of a meeting of the legislature’s Transportation Committee yesterday, as lawmakers reviewed the ministry’s budget plans for the Tourism Development Fund and the Freeway Construction Fund.
Taiwan People’s Party Legislator Chiu Chen-yuan (邱臣遠) said that the airline should dispatch at least one flight per day to stabilize the Taiwan-Palau tourism market, but the Central Epidemic Command Center (CECC) remains cautious toward diplomatic allies, even though they might have relatively few COVID-19 cases.
The “travel bubble” agreement with Palau not only helped shore up the outbound tourism market, but it also enhanced Taiwan’s image in the international community, Chiu said, adding that the ministry should work with travel agencies to offer a series of package tours.
“Taiwan does not have many diplomatic allies and it is not good when the president of one of our allies publicly expresses dissatisfaction with tourism between the two countries,” he said.
Independent Legislator Chao Cheng-yu (趙正宇) said that, initially, flights to Palau were packed, because many people wanted to get vaccinated there due to a vaccine shortage in Taiwan at the time.
He asked Wang what the government would do now that Taiwan has a sufficient supply of COVID-19 vaccines.
This month’s flights before Saturday were canceled because each one had fewer than 20 passengers, Wang said, adding that China Airlines has reduced its service to Palau from five flights per week to one per week.
“The Tourism Bureau will discuss how to better target scenic attractions in Palau with travel agencies arranging tours there. The ministry will also work with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and China Airlines to solve issues related to flights to Palau,” he said. “We hope to find a solution that will not disrupt the airline’s operations, while stabilizing the tourism market between the two countries.”
Tourism Bureau Director-General Chang Shi-chung (張錫聰) said that Palau is a “paradise for water sports enthusiasts,” and a safe country because it does not have any COVID-19 cases.
Bureau statistics showed that 697 people traveled to Palau in August and 965 visited the country in September, but the number fell to 385 people last month.
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