The Tourism Administration yesterday said it aims to increase how much international tourists spend in Taiwan in the next three years.
Last year, the nation welcomed 7.85 million international visitors, despite the negative reports amid Chinese military exercises and a magnitude 7.2 earthquake that devastated Hualien County, it said.
However, that was short of the Tourism Administration’s goal of 10 million.
Photo: Taipei Times
The agency has set the same goal of 10 million for this year.
“That is not the only goal we hope to achieve. We also need to raise the output value generated from tourism,” Tourism Administration Director-General Chou Yung-hui (周永暉) said.
International tourists spend about US$180 per day on average, Chou said.
That figure should increase to US$185 this year, US$190 next year and US$195 in 2027, he said.
“We will discuss with the Ministry of Economic Affairs’ Administration of Commerce about supporting measures to reach the goal,” he said.
Taiwanese cuisine should be leveraged to boost the attractiveness of scenic areas, he said, adding that instead of hoodwinking tourists, vendors in scenic areas should do business honestly.
“That does not mean that they must keep prices low. A product can cost a bit more if it is one of a kind and is linked to a special part of Taiwan,” Chou said.
Public transport systems, including airlines, shipping services, the high speed rail, as well as the services of Taiwan Railway Corp, Taiwan Tourist Shuttle Service and Taiwan Tour Bus, should facilitate travel for all tourists, he said.
Artificial intelligence technology should be used to upgrade the tourism industry, Chou said.
With the Taipei International Travel Fair targeting individual travelers, the agency would expand travel fairs for industry operators and to facilitate partnerships, he said.
“We should use theme tours, such as bird-watching and railway tours, to attract European tourists to transit through Taiwan,” Chou said.
The agency is recruiting a contractor to manage the facilities at Dapeng Bay (大鵬灣) in Pingtung County’s Donggang Township (東港), Chou said.
The contractor would manage a racetrack, a dock and a hang gliding area, as well as build a golf course and a water villa resort and operate them before transferring them to the government, he said.
The golf course, once completed, would be the first in Taiwan on the coast, Chou said, adding that it would be expected to attract high-end tourists.
The government is to stop giving subsidies to domestic travelers unless there is a natural disaster, he said.
The government last year spent about NT$1.26 billion (US$38.49 million) in subsidies for people who traveled to Hualien or Taitung counties, which helped boost hotel occupancy in the counties to 50 percent in November after the earthquake on April 3, he said.
The occupancy rate slid to 20 percent when the subsidy program ended last month, agency data showed.
The Executive Yuan is to convene a meeting later this month to address challenges facing Taiwan’s tourism industry, such as shortage of workers in the hotel and accommodation services, Chou said.
EVA Air is prohibiting the use of portable chargers on board all flights starting from Saturday, while China Airlines is advising passengers not to use them, following the lead of South Korean airlines. Current regulations prohibit portable chargers and lithium batteries from check-in luggage and require them to be properly packed in carry-on baggage, EVA Air said. To improve onboard safety, portable chargers and spare lithium batteries would be prohibited from use on all fights starting on Saturday, it said. Passengers are advised to fully charge electronic devices before boarding and use the AC and USB charging outlets at their seat, it said. South
Hong Kong-based American singer-songwriter Khalil Fong (方大同) has passed away at the age of 41, Fong’s record label confirmed yesterday. “With unwavering optimism in the face of a relentless illness for five years, Khalil Fong gently and gracefully bid farewell to this world on the morning of February 21, 2025, stepping into the next realm of existence to carry forward his purpose and dreams,” Fu Music wrote on the company’s official Facebook page. “The music and graphic novels he gifted to the world remain an eternal testament to his luminous spirit, a timeless treasure for generations to come,” it said. Although Fong’s
WAR SIMULATION: The developers of the board game ‘2045’ consulted experts and analysts, and made maps based on real-life Chinese People’s Liberation Army exercises To stop invading Chinese forces seizing Taiwan, board gamer Ruth Zhong chooses the nuclear option: Dropping an atomic bomb on Taipei to secure the nation’s freedom and her victory. The Taiwanese board game 2045 is a zero-sum contest of military strategy and individual self-interest that puts players on the front lines of a simulated Chinese attack. Their battlefield game tactics would determine the theoretical future of Taiwan, which in the real world faces the constant threat of a Chinese invasion. “The most interesting part of this game is that you have to make continuous decisions based on the evolving situation,
China’s military buildup in the southern portion of the first island chain poses a serious threat to Taiwan’s liquefied natural gas (LNG) supply, a defense analyst warned. Writing in a bulletin on the National Defense and Security Research’s Web site on Thursday, Huang Tsung-ting (黃宗鼎) said that China might choke off Taiwan’s energy supply without it. Beginning last year, China entrenched its position in the southern region of the first island chain, often with Russia’s active support, he said. In May of the same year, a Chinese People’s Liberation Army Navy (PLAN) force consisting of a Type 054A destroyer, Type 055 destroyer,
RSS