China vows to ease curbs on tourists visiting Taiwan

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BEIJING, Feb 24 (Reuters) - China pledged on Friday to ease curbs on tourists visiting Taiwan as part of efforts to win over the people of the self-ruled island it claims as its own.

China has issued volleys of rhetoric against Taiwan President Chen Shui-bian this week over his plan to scrap a council advising on eventual unification with the mainland and said it was ready to deal with "any possible complicated situation".

The two sides split in 1949 when the Nationalists lost the Chinese civil war to the Communists and and fled to Taiwan, which China has vowed to attack if it formally declares statehood.

But Chinese officials on Friday stopped short of saying the abolition of the 15-year-old National Unification Council and unification guidelines would mean war and instead repeated their previous offers of economic sweeteners.

Dai Xiaofeng, a senior official at China's policy-making Taiwan Affairs Office, said China would soon announce a set of specific regulations on managing trips by Chinese residents to the island, a ban on which was removed last May.

"We hope Taiwan authorities can bow to public opinion and take a practical and positive attitude on the issue of opening up to mainland tourists," Dai told a news conference.

China has taken a stick-and-carrot approach since 2005, when it hosted heads of Taiwan's three pro-unification opposition parties and offered the sweeteners that also include scrapping tariffs on Taiwan fruits imports and the gift of a pair of pandas.

But it also refused to deal with Chen's government of the independence-leaning Democratic Progressive Party and passed an Anti-Secession Law last March mandating the use of "non-peaceful means" if Taiwan slips towards formal independence.

Li Weiyi, a spokesman for the Taiwan Affairs Office, dodged questions on whether Chen's latest move, which many speculate could happen as early as next Tuesday, would evoke any "non-peaceful means" from China.

"Let's just see what his next step and his intention are," Li said.

Taiwan has cautiously welcomed the tourism offer, saying it could accommodate 1,000 Chinese tourists a day and might allow them to stay for up to 10 days, which analysts say would boost hotel sales at best by 15 percent.

But no formal negotiations have taken place, despite the visit to the island by China's tourism minister Shao Qiwei last October.

China has restricted visits by citizens to Taiwan since 1949, while Taiwan has its own tough rules limiting mainland visitors and bans direct air links on grounds of national security.

A small number of mainlanders are now able to travel to Taiwan, mostly on business, but the figure is marginal compared to the 4.1 million trips to the mainland last year by Taiwan people, who have invested billions of dollars in China.

Mainland tourism administrations to actively promote visits to Taiwan
27 February 2006
Xinhua's China Economic Information Service

BEIJING, February 27 (CEIS) -- The tourism administrations on the Chinese mainland will continue to promote cross-Straits tourism in a bid to enable the mainland residents to visit Taiwan as soon as possible.

Liu Kezhi, a senior official with the National Tourism Administration, made the remarks at a regular press conference held by the Taiwan Affairs Office of the State Council on Feb. 24.

"The mainland is ready to send tourists to Taiwan," Liu said.

"We expect the Taiwan side to make arrangements as soon as possible so both sides can work together to open a new chapter for cross-Straits exchange and cooperation in the field of tourism," Liu added.

The mainland will again invite representatives from the Taiwan tourism industry to join the second Cross-Straits Tourism Expo, which is to be held in Xiamen next September, and the eighth China International Travel Mart in Shanghai, planned for November 2006.

Tourism administrations on the mainland will also encourage local tourism sectors to promote their tourism schemes at the cross-Straits tourism expo in Taipei in November 2006, according to Liu.

The Chinese central government permitted mainland residents to tour Taiwan last May for the first time since 1949, when the mainland and the island province were separated by a civil war. A mainland tourism inspection delegation visited Taiwan for nine days late last year.

Shao Qiwei, head of the China Tourism Association and also head of the delegation, said before leaving the island that the tourism administrations and all relevant parties on the mainland welcome non- government tourism organizations from Taiwan's tourism industry to start consultations with their mainland counterparts as soon as possible.

"We hope to see a wholesome and orderly development of cross- Straits tourism exchanges in the near future so as to achieve a mutually beneficial result for both sides," Liu said.

Surprises await Chinese at fabled Taiwan scenic spot

SUN MOON LAKE, Taiwan, Feb 29 (Reuters) - When tourists from China drop by Chen Mei-hui's shop at one of the foremost natural scenic spots in Taiwan, they are miffed to find set prices on tea and packaged snacks.

Chinese customarily haggle on everything from peanuts to diamonds, while Taiwan shoppers seldom bargain on smaller items.

"When Chinese people come and want me to cut the prices, I tell them 'This isn't China, this is Taiwan,'" Chen said, complaining that she can't afford discounts.

The few Chinese tourists who make it to Sun Moon Lake face set rates among other surprises at the fabled landmark that most Chinese children read about in school but seldom see because they are usually barred from visiting.

China claims self-ruled Taiwan as its own, occasionally threatening force to make it unite, and in turn is viewed by leaders in Taipei as a security threat. Tourists can come now on professional exchanges or via permits arranged outside China.

But more Chinese tourists, up to 1,000 per day, could be on the way with prospects of a broader China-Taiwan travel agreement looking up after a new Taiwan president is elected on March 22.

Sun Moon Lake offers views of a clear, sometimes mist-shrouded reservoir rimmed by multiple layers of mountains, a scene that has been compared to a Chinese landscape painting.

"Why do we come here? It's in the primary school literature textbooks, in the number two edition," recalled Shanghai visitor Jackie Chen as he hustled onto his tour boat. "And it's not bad."

Chen's group of seven and most others on tightly guided tours often find themselves so rushed that they can't stop at will or linger to catch the scenery. Some travel agencies restrict stops to approved vendors who have special deals with the agents.

"When Chinese visitors hear about Sun Moon Lake and can't go they figure it's got to be special," said Hu Shan-wen, owner of the Spa Home hotel. "Here they move too fast. There are Chinese visitors who will look out and say 'Sun Moon Lake is so small?'"

Most cannot afford to spend the night at lakeside lodging that starts at about $80 for cramped single-bed rooms, forcing them into cheaper hotels elsewhere in Taiwan.

"Right now we don't have enough hotels for the Chinese tourists, and they don't want to pay high prices," said Tseng Kuo-chi, director of Sun Moon Lake National Scenic Area.

Some mainland visitors are pleasantly surprised to find that one of the chief lakeshore attractions is a faux aboriginal village, a tribute to the native Thao group, as ethnic minority theme parks are also a hit in parts of China.

Members of the Falun Gong spiritual movement, which is banned in China, sit in wait at a nearby temple to hand brochures out to the unsuspecting Chinese tourists.

Merchants want to see more Chinese tourists, who they say are often more willing than local travellers to spend money.

"They haggle on price, but they do buy," said Wang Yi-fen, manager of a souvenir shop in the shoreline's larger village.

Tourism brightens, darkens Taiwan's Sun Moon Lake

SUN MOON LAKE, Taiwan, March 7 (Reuters) - Sun Moon Lake has been compared to a classical Chinese landscape painting with its crystal waters reflecting surrounding snow-capped mountains.

But a hotel building boom around the mountain resort in central Taiwan has locals and environmentalists worried the unspoilt beauty of the lake, which draws 3 million tourists a year, might be ruined.

"Sun Moon Lake is a very important international site, and such an important resource should be protected," said Liu Ming-lone, spokesman for the Environmental Quality Protection Foundation, a Taipei-based non-governmental organisation.

Seven hotels are being planned and built on the lake shores, with some of them charging as much as $500 per night.

One 200-room hotel just opened, while two more hotels are under construction. Another four hotels are being planned, including a high-end 100-room hotel resort and a 400-room two-star hotel geared toward budget tourists from mainland China.

Prospects for a tourism deal with China, which does not have diplomatic relations with Taiwan, have spurred development as the region prepares to host millions of well-heeled Chinese visitors should tourism agreements be reached between Beijing and Taipei.

The lake is well-known in China where descriptions in literature and text books give the impression that its beauty is unmatched on the mainland. Legal barriers to Chinese citizens entering Taiwan, a self-ruled island that China regards as a renegade province, give the lake an extra mystique.

But some locals suspect the hordes of tourists in China eager to visit the lake might be disappointed as development has already caused water pollution and traffic congestion. Locals also complain about unregulated construction without a unified theme as well as breaches of building codes.

"We don't need to limit the number of people, but we need to limit the number of buildings," said Roger Chang, 28, a regular visitor to the lake.

One of the hotels under construction will be 30-storeys high, far above new lake area height restrictions of seven storeys.

"With such a beautiful lake, we need some sort of master planned design to make it work out," said Hu Shan-wen, owner of the 6-year-old Spa Home hotel on the lake shores.

Faced with a faltering economy and high unemployment, the Taiwan government is keen to ramp up tourism to stimulate the services sector. Some critics believe it's eagerness is overcoming any prudence over Sun Moon Lake development projects.

Local authorities promise to put a cap on lakeshore development after the hotels in the pipeline are built, although construction will be allowed to proceed in the surrounding mountains with easy vehicle access to the lake.

There's concern the already congested two-lane highway to the lake will further clog with traffic when the new hotels open up despite a new shoreline shuttle bus route around the lake.

"There's still space to develop, but we should add only a few more hotels as there are transportation limits," said Joe Tseng, general manager of The Lalu, the shoreline's most famous lodging.

POLLUTION

Locals are also concerned that the development boom will cause pollution that might muddy the lake's pristine waters.

Last year, lake pollution rose about 2 percent from 2006 and the Taiwan Environmental Protection Administration fined four hotels for improper treatment of wastewater.

"Lake water quality is very important," said tourism official Tseng Kuo-chi. "Right now it's being maintained well but as tourist numbers go up, we're afraid the quality could go down."

Seeking to cope with new pressures, two public water treatment systems will open up next year, handling 95 percent of the lakeshore's sewage, local tourism officials said.

Last year, the government approved funds to landscape the tip of Lalu Island, a boat tour landmark that was once a hill considered sacred by the local Thao aboriginal group.

China and Taiwan want a deal to bring up to 1,000 Chinese tourists to Taiwan per day, but negotiations are stalled. Taiwan is in the throes of a March 22 election and negotiations could be restarted when the new president takes office in late May.

An influx of visitors from China could mean that profits from tourism might outweight concern about environmental impacts.

China execs tour hot new travel destination Taiwan

TAIPEI, June 17 (Reuters) - China travel industry executives this week set off on a tour of neighbouring Taiwan, which agreed on Friday in the first talks in almost a decade to receive more than a million tourists per year from its political rival.

The 33 travel agency leaders reached Taiwan on Monday for 11 days of visit to landmarks across the island but have said little to their Taiwan counterparts or to the local media, which trailed the group on its first day.

Communist China has claimed sovereignty over democratic, self-ruled Taiwan since 1949, when Mao Zedong's Communists won the Chinese civil war and Chiang Kai-shek's Nationalists fled to the island. Beijing has vowed to bring Taiwan under its rule, by force if necessary.

But on Friday the two sides signed a landmark deal which will permit regular, direct weekend charter flights between the two sides and let Chinese tourists visit the island in large numbers, averaging up to 3,000 people per day, starting next month.

Taiwan currently bars most Chinese tourists due to concerns about security and visa overstays.

The agents face a packed schedule of visits to major attractions such as Sun Moon Lake and the Taipei 101 skyscraper as well as the rugged east coast, obscure restaurants and a range of hotels to get information useful for planning client trips.

"They didn't have time to say much and didn't want to," said a Taipei museum publicist who saw the group on Monday.

Taiwan officials and business people are nervous about making a good impression on Chinese tourists, whose business they hope will stimulate the sagging domestic service sector.

"I hope they can see the differences between China and Taiwan," said Bruce Wang with the Taipei Airlines Association. "But their itinerary is very tight, I'm sure."

Flights raise hopes of economic boost
Taiwan may see a flood of mainland visitors as ties and infrastructure improve
23 June 2008
South China Morning Post

Taiwan has always feared a mainland invasion. But an incursion of a different kind into the island from next month is likely to be welcomed with open arms.

Newly approved weekend cross-strait charter flights and visits by mainland tour groups could provide a much-needed boost to the Taiwan economy, which faces slowing growth amid the global downturn.

The tourist industry is eyeing more than NT$60 billion in tourism earnings and 45,000 extra jobs that the new government of President Ma Ying-jeou has promised to create in the first year of the closer links policy. As Beijing still considers Taiwan a breakaway province, direct flights and tourism are banned. Flights between the two go through a third destination, usually Hong Kong.

But while relations between Beijing and Taipei are the warmest in decades, questions are being asked about whether Taiwan or its infrastructure is ready for up to 1 million mainland tourists each year. The answer is yes and no.

In the run-up to the March presidential election, mainland-friendly Mr Ma promised to launch direct weekend charter flights across the Taiwan Strait and open the island to 3,000 mainland visitors daily. He secured mainland support after landmark talks less than two weeks ago in Beijing.

Under their agreement, from July 4 mainland and Taiwanese airlines will each operate 18 return flights from Friday to Monday with a further increase in flights depending on future demand. The flights must still fly over Hong Kong airspace, although the two sides are expected to discuss new direct routes soon.

The mainland will open Beijing, Guangzhou, Nanjing, Shanghai and Xiamen to the flights and gradually add Chengdu, Chongqing, Dalian, Guilin, Hangzhou and Shenzhen. Taiwan will open eight of its airports - Hualien, Kaohsiung, Kinmen, Penghu, Taichung, Taipei, Taitung and Taoyuan.

While the first mainland tour group of 600 tourists will visit Taiwan on July 4, as many as 3,000 tourists will start arriving daily from July 18. Unlike foreign visitors allowed individual travel and a stay of up to three months, mainland tourists are restricted to travelling in groups of 10 to 14 for a maximum stay of 10 days.

Under Mr Ma's plan, there would be daily charter flights by the end of the year and regular flights by June next year. The number of daily mainland tourists would also increase each year to 10,000 by 2012.

Mainland tourists were previously banned from travelling to Taiwan directly because of security concerns stemming from hostilities following the 1949 civil war.

The Taiwan Tourism Bureau estimates each mainland tourist spent an average of NT$8,700 (HK$2,236) per day - including meals, accommodation, transport and shopping - on the island last year. If 3,000 came each day for a seven-day visit and each spent an average of NT$60,900 during their entire trip, NT$66 billion would flow annually into the tourist industry.

"Imagine by 2010, if there are 10,000 tourists coming from the mainland each day and staying for seven days, there will be 70,000 tourists staying in Taiwan on the same day," said an excited Cheng Ke-che, president of Kaohsiung City Tour Bus Association. "How many tour buses would be needed to carry them? You can see how big the profit would be."

That rosy prospect is boosted by news that more than 13,000 tourists from Beijing, Guangdong, Shanghai and Wenzhou are fighting for the 600 seats for the first tour group coming directly to Taiwan. The potential of the new market has prompted travel agencies on both sides of the strait to intensify preparations.

A 39-member delegation representing 33 mainland travel agencies arrived on June 16 for an 11-day visit to survey the Taiwan tourism market and design tour packages for mainland tourists.

Straits Travel Agency, an affiliate of the State Council's Taiwan Affairs Office, has prepared 20 thematic tour packages ranging from regular sightseeing to cultural and even wedding picture tours.

"Taiwan is known for its fabulous filming of deluxe wedding pictures for would-be couples," Feng Zhouzhi, director of the agency, told Taiwan's cable news network TVBS.

"Some Taiwanese wedding boutique shops have opened branches [on the mainland] to offer a similar service that has attracted a number of Chinese people."

He said tour packages offered by his agency were educational, such as showing tourists how the Dutch invaded Taiwan centuries ago and taking the visitors to Anping Castle in Tainan county.

"Otherwise, if you just show them the buildings without a story, it would make their trips less interesting," he said.

Taiwanese travel agencies agreed. Even local governments, eager to increase tourism revenue, have arranged for the opening or remodelling of former residences and memorial buildings of historical figures.

The Hsinchu county government has remodelled the old residence of former warlord Chang Hsueh-liang, who had been under house arrest in Hsinchu for 13 years. "Many mainland tourists are interested in historical figures like Chang," said county commissioner Cheng Yung-chin.

Chang, considered a patriotic hero by Beijing, gained fame for kidnapping Kuomintang generalissimo Chiang Kai-shek in Xian in 1936 and holding him until he agreed to form a united front with the Chinese communists against the Japanese invasion.

The Taipei city government is planning to open the former home of Chiang and his wife Soong May-ling in Shihlin, while Taoyuan county has reopened the mausoleums of the late Chiang and his son, President Chiang Ching-kuo, which were shut by the former pro-independence Democratic Progressive Party government in a bid to erase the Chiang legacy and the island's historic link with the mainland.

But the army of expected tourists could also bring big challenges. Janice Lai She-chen, director-general of the Taiwan Tourism Bureau, has warned local agencies against poor service quality.

"Authorities would step in to intervene if any travel agencies are found to be providing poor and unreasonable services," she said, adding that in serious cases, negligent agents would be banned from serving mainland tourists. There are 163 agencies qualified to operate cross-strait tours.

Her warning followed criticism that some Taiwanese travel agencies not only put tourists in low-class hotels, but also provide poor meals and force them to buy expensive merchandise, many of which are second-rate or even bogus.

"If we want to continue earning money from the mainland tourists, we must at least have a farsighted vision and prevent the business from being a one-time deal," said KMT chairman Wu Poh-hsiung, whose historic meeting with mainland President Hu Jintao late last month set the stage for the weekend charter flights and cross-strait tourism.

He said he had heard of complaints from mainland tourists that Taiwanese sold bogus tea to them on trips to Alishan, a must-visit mountain scenic spot.

According to government statistics, there are 60 international-class hotels, 30 ordinary-class and 2,601 small hotels. By 2010, if the number of mainland tourists increases to 10,000 per day, there will not be enough rooms for them. Tourism officials said these offered opportunities for local investors.

Billy Chang Kuo-cheng, director of the Civil Aeronautics Administration, said while there should be no problem Kaohsiung, Taichung, Taipei and Taoyuan airports to operate charter flights, facilities at the remaining designated airports needed to be improved or expanded.

Hsiao Teng-ke, director of the Taipei airport, said the airport authorities have spent NT$20 million to increase its facilities with the renovation and expansion expected to be completed before July 4.

The launch of the weekend charter flights is good news to Taiwanese airlines hurt by rising fuel costs and falling passenger numbers amid the global economic downturn.

Six airlines, including China Airlines and Eva Air, are eager to operate the lucrative route which will generate NT$6.5 billion in profits if 1.09 million mainland tourists arrive each year.

Taiwan tour operators sceptical about China boom
6 July 2008
Agence France Presse

The launch of regular direct flights between China and Taiwan has been hailed as a symbol of progress and a boon to tourism, but industry workers here are not all convinced.

Around 700 mainland tourists arrived on the island to much ceremony over the weekend after taking the charter route, seen as ushering in a new start and the most visible sign yet in the thawing of cross-strait relations.

Taiwan has restricted trade and travel since its split from the mainland in 1949 but the election of Beijing-friendly Ma Ying-jeou in March opened the door to warmer ties.

In a sign of rapprochement, the two sides last month held their first direct talks in a decade and signed agreements to launch the flights and treble the number of Chinese allowed to visit the island to 3,000 daily.

Tourism officials hope the extra visitors, beside promoting cordial people-to-people exchanges, will bring in 60 billion Taiwan dollars (1.97 billion US) annually, a big boost to local trade.

But some tour operators are sceptical.

"The agreements might look good on paper but I dare not think how much I can profit from that with a slow economy, rising inflation and high fuel prices," said Wu Shih-chih, who hires out yachts to tourists.

"I will not consider buying a new yacht or other equipment unless I can see a steady increase in business within six months," said Wu, who has four craft taking visitors around Sun Moon Lake, a popular destination in central Taiwan.

Others are concerned that Chinese tourists, sometimes seen as loud and ill-mannered, could drive away other international travellers.

"We have fewer Japanese visitors since the government opened up to more mainlanders," lamented a bus driver who works for a leading travel agency in Taipei.

"I am not thrilled at receiving the mainlanders because they can be proud and impolite, they think China is so important in the world," said the driver, who asked not to be named.

Jack Lee, manager of a Taipei travel agency, said he often gets complaints from restaurants or shops that Chinese tour groups are too noisy or pay no attention to no-smoking signs.

"Some waiters also complained that Chinese customers throw bones or leftovers on the floor instead of leaving them on the plates or let cigarette ash fall everywhere," Lee said, although most were willing to oblige when told.

Restaurateur Liu Ming-sung was blatant in expressing his dislike for mainland tourists, putting up a sign reading "refusing Chinese communists" at his establishment in southern Kaohsiung city.

"I think President Ma is wrong to see opening up to mainland investments and tourists as an elixir for Taiwan's economy," Liu said.

"Let's not forget that China is targeting Taiwan with thousands of missiles and they are still our enemies. Taiwan might be at risk under such rash moves," he said.

His sentiments mirror Ma's predecessor Chen Shui-bian, whose pro-independence rhetoric had angered Beijing. China claims Taiwan as its territory awaiting reunification, by force if necessary.

However, changes have been rapid since Ma took office in May.

Taiwan banks can now exchange Chinese currency, limits on Taiwanese investment on the mainland have been eased, and some Chinese media outlets which had been banned on the island now have clearance to work.

There will be 36 round-trip flights across the Taiwan Strait weekly, operating from Friday to Monday between six Taiwanese airports and five on the mainland.

Johnny Tsai, a manager at China Times Travel Service, called the weekend flights "a good start" to boost tourism although he expected a more tangible effect once the trips bed in.

Three Chinese tourists go missing in Taiwan
10 July 2008
Agence France Presse

Three Chinese tourists have gone missing in Taiwan, an immigration official said Thursday, only days after the two sides launched direct flights to boost tourism and thaw cross-strait relations.

The women arrived in Taipei from Thailand on July 3 and have not been seen since leaving their hotel late Tuesday, said an official at Taiwan's National Immigration Agency.

Their disappearance has highlighted the problems of increased cross-strait tourism less than a week after 700 mainland holidaymakers arrived here on the first regular direct flights between China and the self-ruled island in nearly six decades.

Authorities fear some Chinese tourists will try to stay on illegally. Including the three women, 27 have gone missing since Taiwan conditionally allowed visitors from the mainland in 2002, according to the immigration agency.

Lawmaker Lin Shu-fen of the opposition Democratic Progressive Party said Taiwan's government was now "paying the price" for a failure to prepare adequately for the influx.

Taiwan previously imposed a daily quota of 1,000 Chinese visitors who were required to make stopovers in a third destination.

The missing tourists will be banned from visiting the island for the next five years, while the local agency that arranged their stay will face a fine of 600,000 Taiwan dollars (19,800 US) if they are not found by July 13.

Taiwan banned direct trade and transport links following its split from the communist mainland in 1949, but the election of Beijing-friendly Ma Ying-jeou in March opened the door to warmer ties.

The two sides held their first direct talks in a decade last month, which led to the flights agreement, putting an end to the time-consuming stopovers travellers were forced to make for years in Hong Kong or elsewhere.

This is good news. I hope to see reunification of these two entities one day.

So where are all the mainland tourists?
Thousands await approval to visit Taiwan
16 July 2008
South China Morning Post

With fewer than 200 mainland tourists being approved to visit Taiwan so far this week, the island's tour operators cannot help but wonder whether the opening policy can really achieve what the government envisaged at the beginning.

Under a deal signed by Taipei and Beijing last month that lifts decades-old restrictions on mainland tourists visiting the island, about 3,000 visitors are allowed to come to Taiwan every day.

They would contribute NT$66 billion (HK$16.9 billion) to the island's economy during their stays, according to a plan by Taiwanese President Ma Ying-jeou, who has opted for an engagement policy with the mainland in the hope of reviving Taiwan's sluggish economy.

But the trial run on July 4 brought only 753 mainland visitors, including 31 officials and 60 journalists. The programme officially starts this Friday.

"I really wonder whether that 3,000 number can be reached at all," said an operator of a Taiwanese travel agency.

She said that according to her information, thousands of mainland tourists had applied to visit Taiwan since July 4, but as of yesterday, only 183 had obtained the travel permits from the mainland authorities.

Under the requirement by Taiwan's immigration authorities, it takes five working days to process the applications to visit Taiwan from tourists who have obtained the travel permits issued by the mainland.

"This means only 183 mainland visitors will come on Friday unless Taiwan's immigration authorities make some special arrangements to [speed up] the process," the travel agency operator said.

She said from what she had learned through her mainland counterparts, unfamiliarity with the new measures was the major reason for the delay. The Taiwanese operator said she hoped the procedure would take less time as the mainland authorities became more familiar with it.

For mainland tourists to get approval to visit, they must provide documents showing they are either students or properly employed. They must also have financial documents showing they have savings of at least NT$200,000.

The requirement is due mainly to the concern that some tourists may run away once they get to Taiwan and work illegally there.

Hsu Kao-ching, secretary general of Taiwan's Travel Agent Association, was, however, more optimistic. He estimated 2,000 to 4,000 mainland tourists would arrive from Friday to Monday. Mr Hsu said mainland agencies were expected to refer 500 applications per day in the next few days to the island's immigration department for approval.

To ensure at least 1,000 would come on Friday, Taiwan's immigration department said yesterday that it would make special processing arrangements to speed up the approval process, as long as the applications reached Taiwan by tomorrow.

David Chi - director of Phoenix Tours, one of the leading agencies operating cross-strait tours - said his agency had already referred 30 applications from Shanghai to the immigration department for processing.

"At least we will be able to organise one tour group this week," he said.

Taiwan mulls bridge linking offshore island to China

TAIPEI, Aug 24 (Reuters) - Taiwan is considering building a bridge linking Kinmen, one of its outlying islands, to Xiamen city in China's southeast, the semi-official Central News Agency said on Sunday, in a sign of improving ties.

"The idea, talked about by many Kinmen residents, of building a bridge between Kinmen and Xiamen in China's southeastern Fujian province could also be discussed," the agency quoted Taiwan President Ma Ying-jeou as saying.

The government will complete a proposal by the end of the year on whether constructing the bridge would be feasible, Ma was quoted as saying in Kinmen, a former battlefield known historically as Quemoy.

Ma, who was in Kinmen to mark the 50th anniversary of the 1958 artillery battle between Taiwan and China, also said his administration planned to offer landing visas or multiple visas to mainland Chinese visiting Kinmen, to boost tourism exchanges.

Ma from the Nationalist Party has been unveiling a slew of policies to boost trade ties with China, such as allowing more tourists to visit Taiwan and increasing direct flights.

China sees self-ruled democratic Taiwan as its own and has vowed to take it back into its fold, by force if necessary. The Nationalist Party, or Kuomintang, fled to Taiwan after losing a Chinese civil war to the communists in 1949.

In 1958, Kinmen was locked in a battle with China that lasted for 44 days when Chinese artillery troops bombed the island with 500,000 shells, the Central News Agency said.

Taiwan mulls bridge linking offshore island to China

TAIPEI, Aug 24 (Reuters) - Taiwan is considering building a bridge linking Kinmen, one of its outlying islands, to Xiamen city in China's southeast, the semi-official Central News Agency said on Sunday, in a sign of improving ties.

"The idea, talked about by many Kinmen residents, of building a bridge between Kinmen and Xiamen in China's southeastern Fujian province could also be discussed," the agency quoted Taiwan President Ma Ying-jeou as saying.

The government will complete a proposal by the end of the year on whether constructing the bridge would be feasible, Ma was quoted as saying in Kinmen, a former battlefield known historically as Quemoy.

Ma, who was in Kinmen to mark the 50th anniversary of the 1958 artillery battle between Taiwan and China, also said his administration planned to offer landing visas or multiple visas to mainland Chinese visiting Kinmen, to boost tourism exchanges.

Ma from the Nationalist Party has been unveiling a slew of policies to boost trade ties with China, such as allowing more tourists to visit Taiwan and increasing direct flights.

China sees self-ruled democratic Taiwan as its own and has vowed to take it back into its fold, by force if necessary. The Nationalist Party, or Kuomintang, fled to Taiwan after losing a Chinese civil war to the communists in 1949.

In 1958, Kinmen was locked in a battle with China that lasted for 44 days when Chinese artillery troops bombed the island with 500,000 shells, the Central News Agency said.

China further eases travel to Taiwan

BEIJING, Sept 8 (Reuters) - China on Sunday further eased travel to self-ruled Taiwan, an island it considers sovereign territory, in a further sign of revitalised trade and transit links between the two sides.

Historic regular flights between Taiwan and China began in July in a show of conciliation between the long-time rivals that could bring large numbers of mainland Chinese visitors to the island.

No such regular flights, aside from a few charters on select holidays, had flown since 1949, when defeated Nationalist forces fled to Taiwan after the Chinese civil war.

China has claimed sovereignty over the island since then and has vowed to bring it back under mainland rule, by force if necessary.

Now Chinese mainland residents with permits to travel to Taiwan will be able to travel to and from the Chinese islands of Kinmen and Matsu and the Taiwan-administered island of Penghu, Wang Yi, director of the State Council's Taiwan Affairs Office, said.

Until July, mainland travellers had two ways to reach Taiwan -- indirect flights via Hong Kong or Macao or non-stop charter flights on weekends and some holidays.

Since July 20, residents of selected cities and provinces have been allowed to visit Taiwan in groups. Wang said the mainland was considering expanding the list further.

The July flights were largely the work of new Taiwan President Ma Ying-jeou, who took office in May on pledges to revitalise the island's economy with closer trade and transit ties to China. He has estimated that 50 million Chinese want to visit Taiwan.

But trickier issues remain, such as the signing of a formal peace treaty and the hundreds of missiles Taiwan says China has aimed at the island.

Wang hoped that both sides would do more to establish direct cross-Strait links for mail, trade and transport.

"Since March, significant and positive changes have taken place in Taiwan, presenting precious opportunities for the development of cross-Strait ties," Xinhua news agency quoted Wang as saying.

"With concerted efforts by both sides, cross-Strait ties have moved into a track of peaceful development, bringing concrete benefits to compatriots on both sides." (Reporting by Nick Macfie)

FACTBOX-Taiwan opens to Chinese tourists, investors

TAIPEI, Oct 1 (Reuters) - Since taking office in May, the administration of Taiwan President Ma Ying-jeou has announced a steady stream of initiatives aimed at boosting the economy through closer ties with political archrival China.

Ma kicked off his string of initiatives with a landmark tourism and air agreement shortly after taking office. The following are some of the major new moves and announcements from Ma's government since May:

-- In June, Taiwan signed a landmark agreement with China to allow as many as 3,000 mainland tourists in per day. That deal, which some said could add as much as 0.8 percentage points to Taiwan's GDP, also included the launch of cross-strait charter flights every weekend.

-- In June, local media reported that Chinese banks will be allowed to buy up to 20 percent of their Taiwan counterparts under a plan being developed by Taiwan's banking regulator.

-- In July, Premier Liu Chao-shiuan said the government aimed to open the financial, economic, transport, human resources and land sectors to Chinese investors by year end.

-- In July, Taiwan's cabinet said it would allow qualified Chinese institutional investors to pump more than $1 billion into the island's stock market.

-- In August, local media reported Taiwan was considering allowing mainlanders to set up bank accounts on the island as it prepared to open its markets to Chinese institutional investors.

ANALYSIS-China tourists, dollars could charm, alarm Taiwan

TAIPEI, Oct 1 (Reuters) - Two decades after letting its people and companies go to China, Taiwan is opening itself to Chinese investors and visitors -- a move that could carry big economic dividends but also one fraught with political risk.

By opening itself to a flood of Chinese tourists and investment dollars, Taiwan is exposing its markets, economy and political and social systems to huge influence from its much larger neighbor and political rival.

Some forecast the injection of new activity could boost Taiwan's laggard economy by as much 2 percentage points. But lack of progress or a backlash if change occurs too quickly could also undermine the new China-friendly government.

"There will be some initial apprehension when mainland capital comes in to buy real estate, business or other things," said Wu Ray-kuo, managing director of risk consultancy at Fu-Jen University.

"After that, it will depend on how the mainland capital is used. If all these control relaxations don't lead to the desired result, there could potentially be public backlash."

Since President Ma Ying-jeou took office in May, his administration has announced a steady stream of initiatives aimed at opening Taiwan to Chinese and their investments, ending six decades of prohibition.

The first of those, a landmark tourism deal in June, could result in up to $3.2 billion in additional tourism spending each year, adding 0.8 percentage points to Taiwan's gross domestic product, BNP said in a July research note.

Since then, Ma's administration has discussed or announced plans to open Taiwan's stock, real estate, infrastructure and manufacturing markets to China in the near to medium term.

In the longer term, Ma has also talked up the idea of creating a Greater China common market modeled on Europe.

BIG BENEFITS

The potential benefits to Ma's initiatives are economic, designed to help Taiwan share in China's rapid economic growth, which has averaged more than 10 percent in recent years.

If handled properly, allowing Chinese consumers and investors into Taiwan could add up to 2 percentage points to Taiwan's economic growth, Roth Capital Partners forecast in April.

"We believe globally oriented investors have not yet sufficiently focused on the improved long-term opportunities that Taiwan represents," Roth said in a note at that time.

JP Morgan economist Grace Ng said the extra boost could be as high as 1 percentage point, citing Hong Kong as an example of what could happen.

GDP growth in the former British colony shot up to the 6-7 percent range from previous rates closer to 4 percent after it opened its doors to large numbers of Chinese tourists in 2003.

"It's a matter of how much they can unlock the potential benefits from the cross-strait links," she said.

China has claimed self-ruled Taiwan as its territory since the end of the Chinese civil war in 1949 and pledged to bring the island under its rule, by force if necessary.

Political rivalry aside, Taiwan firms have pumped more than $100 billion into China over the last 20 years, and Taiwan now counts China as its favourite export destination. Some 1 million of Taiwan's 23 million people now live or work in China.

Following Ma's election, many hope capital will start to flow back to Taiwan. Credit Suisse economist Joseph Lau said that could happen, but any results will take time.

"Over the next couple years, Taiwan will still probably be one of the laggards in the region and pretty much as a whole will be trying to find ways to stimulate the economy," he said.

DOWNSIDE RISKS

While the upside looks good, analysts caution that Ma and his government must tread carefully to avoid potential negative reaction if Taiwan is perceived as giving away too much without getting enough in return.

If it fails to deliver, the administration could see vocal public protest in the short term, and stiff competition longer term from his party's main opponent, the China-wary Democratic Progressive Party, now mired in a series of scandals that led to its defeat in the March presidential election.

"I would guess that Ma is going to face pretty strong backlash because he's changing things quite a bit and there's generally resistance to change no matter what is," said Syd Goldsmith, a former U.S. diplomat and current Taiwan resident.

"There's also the feeling that he's giving away (Taiwan's) negotiating chips on China."

Disappointment at the lack of instant results beyond the tourism agreement has already shown up visibly in Taiwan's stock and currency markets.

In the first three months of the year, the Taiwan dollar gained 6.3 percent, only to drop 5.8 percent since then.

The Taiwan stock market has moved similarly, rising 19 percent from the end of January through May, only to plummet 35 percent since that time, though part of that has been due to the global financial crisis.

One day they will just reunite. Perhaps with transition period like HK.

Taiwan's China tourism boom stumbles amid financial turmoil
26 October 2008
Agence France Presse

Taiwan welcomed the first Chinese visitors arriving on direct flights three months ago as a boon for tourism, but global financial troubles and local political uncertainty might deflate such hopes.

Taiwan has severely limited trade and travel with China since the two sides split at the end of a civil war in 1949, but change has been rapid since Beijing-friendly Ma Ying-jeou became president in May.

His government resumed talks with Beijing in June, which led to the launch of regular direct flights and tripling the number of Chinese allowed to visit the island to 3,000 daily the following month.

The authorities here were counting on the extra visitors to bring in 60 billion Taiwan dollars (1.87 billion US) annually in a major boost to tourism and the economy.

Despite the rapprochement, fewer than 300 Chinese visitors came to the island on average every day since July, and the number only doubled during China's October 1 "Golden Week" holiday, according to government data.

Industry watchers, however, are not surprised by the low turnout.

"Many of our customers lose interest once they learn that it takes one and a half months just to complete the paperwork to visit Taiwan," said a tour guide from the southeastern Chinese city of Shenzhen.

"Instead they opt for places like Thailand which is cheaper and only takes three days to get a visa," said the guide surnamed Xu.

China has imposed various restrictions on travel to Taiwan, which it considers part of its territory awaiting reunification, by force if necessary.

Currently, Beijing only allows people from 13 provinces and cities to apply for permits to visit the island, while 33 mainland agencies are authorised to manage Taiwan tours.

Tour operators are also concerned that the recent incident of a top Chinese negotiator who was mobbed in southern Taiwan could dissuade more mainland visitors.

Zhang Mingqing, vice president of China's Association for Relations Across the Taiwan Strait, was shoved to the ground by pro-independence protesters in a scuffle earlier this month.

The episode triggered an angry response from the Chinese government, which demanded Taiwan severely punish the activists who manhandled Zhang.

"The incident is likely to impact tourism in the short term," said Eric Chang, chief executive officer of the Taiwan Visitors Association.

"But I think the Chinese people will come to see that this was an isolated case and that the vast majority of Taiwanese are friendly toward them," he said.

Politics aside, the tourism industry is bracing for the global financial storm which is likely to force many people to scrap or alter holiday plans.

"The cost of visiting Taiwan from the mainland is as high as to Europe or America and travel will be affected in an economic downturn," said Ivan Lin, a manager at China Travel Service (Taiwan), a leading agency handling Chinese tourists.

According to travel agencies, an eight-day trip to Taiwan is priced between 7,000-10,000 Chinese yuan (1,030-1,475 US) while a seven-day Thai tour is around 1,800 yuan.

"The harsh winter has just begun for us after the global market crash. I'm afraid that more and more people will cut travel spending to save money in difficult times," said a travel agency manager in Taipei.

"We were optimistic that the Ma government would boost tourism by improving ties with China but I think the current (economic) situation is beyond its hands," he said.

Ma rose to power on a platform of improving the economy, particularly through closer trade ties with China, as trade between the two sides last year rose to more than 100 billion US dollars.

Still, there is a silver lining as industry workers are hopeful that Beijing will agree to relax more rules on travel to the island when its top negotiator Chen Yunlin is scheduled to hold talks with Taipei next month.

Chinese pandas to arrive in Taiwan by Christmas: official
12 December 2008
Agence France Presse

A pair of giant pandas offered by China were expected to arrive in Taiwan by Christmas in yet another sign of improving ties, an official said Friday.

"The Taipei city government plans to send a small delegation to Sichuan, China to bring the pandas here sometime between December 20-25," said spokesman Yang Hsiao-tung.

Taipei mayor Hau Lung-bin expects the pandas to attract more than six million visitors to the city's zoo annually in a major boost to the capital's tourism industry.

Local media said officials were keen to bring the pandas to the island by Christmas in time for them to debut at the Lunar New Year holidays -- the peak tourism season -- after a 30-day quarantine.

The city government has invested some 320 million Taiwan dollars (around 10 million US) to build an enclosure for the pandas called Tuan Tuan and Yuan Yuan, which comes from the Chinese word "tuanyuan", or "reunion."

Ties with Beijing have improved dramatically since China-friendly President Ma Ying-jeou took office earlier this year.

The pro-independence Chen Shui-bian had banned the import of Chinese pandas during his tenure, accusing Beijing of looking to curry favour with the Taiwanese people through so-called "panda diplomacy".

Beijing made the panda offer during a historic trip to China in 2005 by Taiwan's then opposition leader, former Kuomintang chairman Lien Chan.

Taiwan and China split in 1949 at the end of a civil war. Beijing still considers the self-ruled island to be part of its territory awaiting reunification, by force if necessary.

China, which has used panda diplomacy worldwide since the Cold War, has reportedly made at least three other attempts to give pandas to Taiwan -- none through official channels.

Beijing's pandas usually come with enormous rental fees, but the Chinese have said there would be no charges for Taiwan.

Prospects for cross-strait tourism seen as uncertain

Taipei, Feb. 1 (CNA) Although both Taiwan and China took concrete steps last year to upgrade cross-Taiwan Strait tourism, the number of tourist arrivals from China has fallen short of the average daily target of 1000 people, casting doubts over the future prospects of the business, industry sources said Sunday.

According to Chang Chih-yuan, owner of E Trip tour agency based in central Taiwan's Taichung City, the problem is rooted in the many restrictions imposed by the governments on both sides, rather than in the global economic downturn.

Taiwan government restrictions, such as the condition that only groups of more than five members are allowed to visit and that they must enter and depart the country at the same time, have discouraged many individual Chinese businessmen who are most likely to visit Taiwan and to spend heavily, he said.

The Taiwan government's stipulation of the type and price of accommodation that Chinese tourists must take is another obstacle to the free development of the market, Chang noted, adding that free market competition will settle the issue itself.

What the government should do is set up a sound system to monitor business practices, instead of imposing such regulations, he suggested.

In line with the terms of an accord signed by Taiwan and China last November, the two sides agreed to operate a maximum of 108 charters each week, based on a framework established in July when they began allowing non-stop cross-strait charters on weekends.

Taiwan opened eight of its airports to local and China-based airlines plying the daily cross-strait charter flights, but the aviation companies have concentrated most of their business on four of the airports. These are Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport and Taipei Songshan Airport in northern Taiwan, Taichung Chingchuankang Airport in central Taiwan and Kaohsiung International Airport in the south.

In China, the number of destinations for the direct cross-strait charters were increased from five to 21 when the flight service was upgraded to a daily one in mid-December last year.

However, he added, only a small number of 33 Chinese travel agencies have been given permission to arrange tours to Taiwan and the limited number of direct charter flights between popular destinations on the two sides have dampened the interest of many people who were keen to cash in on the business.

Too many unnecessary government restrictions will only hamper market mechanisms, Chang contended.

With the governments on both sides interfering in the market, it is difficult to predict when cross-strait tourism would fully take off, he said.

In addition, Taiwan is facing a long-existing gap in cross-strait tourism revenue, which Chang said has become a thorny issue for all concerned.

Taiwanese people make more than 2 million visits to China every year, while less than 10 percent of Chinese tourists traveling abroad come to Taiwan, he said. "This is a serious issue that both Taiwan government authorities and the private sector must address."

Taiwan set to welcome up to 360,000 Chinese tourists in 2009 as limits eased
3 February 2009
Agence France Presse

Around 13,000 Chinese tourists have travelled to Taiwan for the Lunar New Year holidays, and the number is expected to reach up to 360,000 this year amid warming cross-Strait ties, officials said Tuesday.

The Chinese tourists spent a daily average of 293 US dollars during the holidays from January 24 until February 1, according to a survey by Taiwan's Tourism Bureau.

"The number of Chinese arrivals did not beat our forecast," Anthony Liao, president of Taiwan's leading tour operator Phoenix Tours, said.

But he added that he was "cautiously optimistic" that Chinese arrivals would average 1,000 a day as Beijing is expected to further ease restrictions on Taiwan-bound tours.

Chinese authorities on January 20 opened up a further 12 provinces and cities to Taiwan, meaning its citizens from 25 provinces and cities are now allowed to visit the island.

China is expected later this month to raise from 33 to 100 the number of Chinese tour operators offering Taiwan visits, Liao said.

Shao Qiwei, of China's National Tourism Administratio,n is scheduled to lead a group of 500 tour industry delegates to Taiwan on February 25, he said.

"If the target of bringing 1,000 Chinese tourists to Taiwan per day is realised, it would generate business opportunities worth up to 20 billion Taiwan dollars (591.7 million US) this year, and therefore increase 10,000 jobs here," Liao said.

Taiwan's China-friendly Ma Ying-jeou administration and Beijing held talks and signed agreements in June to launch regular direct flights and treble the number of Chinese allowed to visit the island to 3,000 daily.

But Taiwan's pro-independence opposition Democratic Progressive Party warned the Ma administration not to rely too much on China for economic stability.

China and Taiwan have been governed separately since the end of a civil war in 1949 but Beijing considers the island part of its territory and is determined to get it back, by force if necessary.

But relations have improved dramatically since Ma Ying-jeou of the Kuomintang party took office last May.

Taiwan okays Star Cruises to operate direct cruises to China

TAIPEI, Feb 10 Asia in Focus - After many twists and turns, Taiwan's Ministry of Transportation and Communications (MOTC) finally approved Friday an application by STAR CRUISES (SEHK:0678) to operate direct cruises to China without having to stop in a third territory. It marked the first time that Taiwan has given the green light to the operation of direct cross-Taiwan Strait cruise service.

* The MOTC said in a press statement that the one-year license for Star Cruises was issued on a case-by-case basis in terms of the regulations governing direct cross-strait shipping links.

* According to a schedule listed in the Star Cruises application, the largest cruise line in the Asia-Pacific will launch direct cruise service between Keelung Harbor in northern Taiwan and Xiamen in the southeastern Chinese province of Fujian in the first half of this year.

China pledges to boost tourism to rival Taiwan

TAIPEI, Feb 26 (Reuters) - China pledged on Thursday to try to increase the number of Chinese tourists visiting neighbouring Taiwan, addressing a sore spot in recently improved ties between the long-time political rivals.

Chinese Tourism Administration director Shao Qiwei said he would allow more Chinese agents to sell Taiwan tours and let tourists from more provinces and cities visit the once forbidden island.

China would increase the number of eligible provinces and municipalities from 13 to 25 and the number of qualified agents from 113 to 146, Shao said.

"We need to raise the confidence of tourists," Shao told a conference.

China has claimed sovereignty over self-ruled Taiwan since the end of the Chinese civil war in 1949. Beijing has vowed to bring the island under mainland rule, by force if necessary.

But ties have warmed since China-friendly Taiwan President Ma Ying-jeou took office in May and the two sides have signed a deal to let up to 3,000 Chinese tourists a day visit the island.

Taiwan is looking to Chinese tourism as a way to shore up its own economy, which entered recession earlier this month.

The number of daily arrivals has hovered around 300, despite the launch of direct China-Taiwan flights, disappointing Taiwan officials.

Steep collateral required by some Chinese agents, qualification hurdles for both agents and tourists in China and fear of political hostility in Taiwan have limited the inflow, travel sources say.

Taiwan welcomes biggest Chinese tourist group
Mon Mar 16, 1:59 am ET

KEELUNG, Taiwan (AFP) – Taiwan rolled out the red carpet Monday for the biggest group of Chinese tourists to arrive on the island since the launch of direct transport links with mainland China last year.

A passenger ship docked in northern Keelung harbour, close to the capital Taipei, bringing some 1,600 tourists from Shanghai who walked ashore on a red carpet laid out in their honour.

"We have long anticipated the trip," said one man who arrived here with his fiancee, adding that they planned to hold their wedding on the boat.

It is the biggest tourist group to arrive from China since direct flights and maritime services began in December in a sign of rapidly improving ties between Taiwan and China, which claims sovereignty over the island.

The visitors are all Chinese workers for the American direct selling giant Amway, which says it plans to send eight more groups from the mainland.

Hundreds of people from the port authorities, Keelung city and Amway Taiwan were there to welcome the visitors, who were also treated to dragon and lion dances.

Local media here say the total number of Amway visitors would total 12,000 and that they were expected to generate more than 600 million Taiwan dollars (17.44 million US) in revenue for the island.

President Ma Ying-jeou's China-friendly administration signed agreements with Beijing last June to launch regular direct flights and treble the number of Chinese allowed to visit Taiwan to 3,000 daily.

Since then, daily arrivals have averaged only a few hundred, triggering opposition warnings that Ma's administration should not rely too heavily on China for Taiwan's economic stability.

China and Taiwan have been governed separately since the end of a civil war in 1949, but Beijing considers the island as part of Chinese territory and is determined to get it back -- by force if necessary.

China, Taiwan grow closer with new surge in tourism

TAIPEI, March 17 (Reuters) - Taiwan has seen a sudden spike in tourism from China, as an effort by Beijing to improve ties helps its political rival battle recession with a long-sought boost to the service sector.

The number of tourists from China, which considers the self-ruled island part of its territory and has historically been blocked from sending visitors, has reached an average of 2,285 per day since February when the new push began.

The sudden boom, which comes as people around the world cut back on travel amid the global economic crisis, has fuelled a rally in tourism stocks, with Taiwan's two leading airlines, China Airlines and Eva Airways, both up more than 20 percent over the last week and the broader tourism sub-index up 16 percent.

"It's because the Taiwan government added pressure on China to relax rules on tourism," said Winston Hsieh, a director at Martin Travel in Taipei. "Chinese are curious about Taiwan."

China has claimed sovereignty over Taiwan since the end of the Chinese civil war in 1949. Beijing has vowed to bring the island under mainland rule, by force if necessary, but ties have improved vastly since China-friendly Taiwan President Ma Ying-jeou came to power in May.

China has sought to win hearts in Taiwan, a strategy for eventual unification, by helping Ma honour a campaign pledge to revitalise his economy by letting in a daily maximum of 3,000 visitors from China.

New trade and transit agreements between the two sides saw daily charter flights launched on Dec. 15 as a prelude to scheduled services.

Beijing in January nearly doubled the number of citizens eligible for trips and simplified the sign-up process to visit Taiwan, which once saw Chinese visitors as security threats.

Chinese people's wealth and ability to travel have surged over the past two decades as the economy has boomed.

Airlines previously at about 70 percent capacity on China-Taiwan routes are suddenly up to 92 percent full this month and clamouring for new flights, Taiwan's aviation authority said.

Beijing's Air China chairman, Kong Dong, told tourism officials in Taipei on Monday he wanted to add flights. Competitors, which include Taiwan's China Airlines and Eva, have expressed similar interest.

But airlines can add nothing until today's daily charters, which began in July, are upgraded to regular scheduled flights.

"Passenger volumes are huge, so the airlines say they need more flights," an aviation authority publicist said. "But we have to wait for the two sides to talk again."

Some tourists are also coming by sea.

A liner from Shanghai dropped off 1,600 Chinese tourists in Taiwan on Monday on a four-day, T$500 million ($14.5 million) trip. Travellers said they would spend up to several hundred dollars on souvenirs for envious friends at home.

"This is China's treasure island, so we need to come have a look at it," said camera-toting passenger Chen Xiaobo, of east China's Zhejiang province, who arrived on the ship from Shanghai.

It's great, but still 3,000 chinese tourists a day? How do they directly control how many people come in or out of the country?

It's great, but still 3,000 chinese tourists a day? How do they directly control how many people come in or out of the country?

I thought they all have to come in group tours, and get visas, hence the total numbers can be controlled.

Chinese Tourists Generated Over US$300M Rev Jul-Mar
7 April 2009

TAIPEI (Dow Jones)--Chinese tourists visiting Taiwan from mid-July to late-March generated more than US$300 million worth of tourism revenue for the island, the Mainland Affairs Council said in a statement Tuesday.

Nearly 150,000 mainland tourists visited Taiwan during the period, with the daily arrivals rising to 2,206 in late March from 274 in July, said the council, Taiwan's top China policy maker, in the statement.

KMT caucus proposes easier trips to China
13 April 2009
Taipei Times

Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) lawmakers have proposed an amendment to the Act Governing Relations between the Peoples of the Taiwan Area and the Mainland Area that would allow mayors and county commissioners to visit China without seeking permission.

The proposal, initiated by KMT legislators Chu Fong-chi, Chang Ching-chung and others, would also lift cross-strait travel restrictions on high-ranking public servants and police officers.

The Act requires senior public servants, senior police officers and officials of various agencies related to national security to apply with the Ministry of the Interior (MOI) for approval to travel to China.

It also requires mayors and commissioners to obtain approval from a committee of officials from the MOI, the Ministry of Justice (MOJ), the Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) and the National Security Bureau (NSB) before visiting China.

Chu said the restrictions make trips to China inconvenient and ineffective for mayors and county commissioners.

Mayors and county commissioners could promote Taiwan's agricultural products, tourism, business and culture in China, she said, adding that their posts did not concern issues of national security.

The proposal says that only officials from the Ministry of National Defense, the NSB, the MOJ's Investigation Bureau and public servants working with national security issues should be restricted from visiting China.

The legislature's Internal Administration Committee is scheduled to review the amendment on Wednesday.

The Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) caucus said it opposed the amendment.

Senior officials could leak information on national security if they make frequent visits to China without restrictions, DPP caucus whip Lee Chun-yee said.

Lee said that in a number of cases, government officials from various agencies had been charged with spying for China.

"The proposed amendment would hurt Taiwan's national interests and put the county in danger," Lee said. "Such an amendment is irresponsible because it was proposed without a thorough review of its potential impact on national security."

In related news, former vice president Annette Lu and Legislative Speaker Wang Jin-pyng yesterday disagreed on communication between the KMT and the Chinese Communist Party (CCP).

While Lu said she was in favor of abolishing the party-to-party platform, Wang said it remained essential.

The two made the remarks at a fundraising event in Taipei.

Wang said the KMT and CCP had both been founded in China and had been at odds for a long time. Now they have begun interacting and set up a platform that serves as a buffer and a preliminary communication channel, he said.

Lu said she could not know whether any secret deals were being made between the KMT and CCP, but that the KMT could not represent the government or President Ma Ying-jeou in negotiating.

TAIWAN'S TOURISM BUREAU REVISES INCENTIVE PLAN TO INCLUDE CHINA
25 May 2009
Asia Pulse

TAIPEI, May 25 Asia Pulse - Chinese tour operators who organize charter flights to Taiwan that bypass Taiwan's two main northern airports are now eligible for subsidies from the Tourism Bureau, after the bureau recently revised a tourism incentive program.

Under the modified regulations, Chinese travel agents will receive NT$160,000 (US$4,878) per charter as long as it does not use Taipei City's Songshan Airport and Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport and carries at least 100 foreign passengers who stay a minimum of two days in Taiwan.

Tourism Bureau officials said that if the charters either take off or land at one of the two northern airports, or carry between 50 and 100 passengers, the charter operators will be eligible for partial subsidies.

The incentive is designed to expose foreign tourists to parts of the country outside of the popular northern gateways, including its outlying islands, bureau officials said.

The vast majority of the current 108 direct charter flights between Taiwan and China per week use one of the two northern airports even though a total of eight local airports have been authorized to handle the direct charters.

Of the 108 direct charters per week, only four serve the southern port city of Kaohsiung and only two serve Taichung in central Taiwan.

The Tourism Bureau launched the incentive program in May 2005 to encourage travel agents, primarily in Hong Kong, Macau, Japan and South Korea, to organize large groups to visit Taiwan.

With the rising number of Chinese tourists visiting the country since the beginning of the year, the Tourism Bureau recently decided to include China in the incentive program to channel more Chinese visitors to other parts of Taiwan.

Taiwan still has a daily quota of 3,000 Chinese tourist arrivals per day.

Chinese mainland, Taiwan score big progress in relations
6 June 2009
Xinhua News Agency

During the interval of the two meetings between Hu and Wu, ARATS and SEF, two organizations authorized by the Chinese mainland and Taiwan to handle cross-Straits issues, held three rounds of talks in June 2008, November 2008 and April 2009.

During the first two talks, the two signed agreements on weekend charter flights, tourism, direct shipping, air transport, postal services and food safety. In their latest round of talks held in in Nanjing from April 25-26, they focused on regular cross-straits flights, joint efforts on cracking down on crime, and financial cooperation.

On Dec. 15, 2008, the Chinese mainland and Taiwan started direct air and sea transport and postal services amid warming ties, ending decades of practice that air and sea movements -- including mail -- had to go by way of a third place -- usually Hong Kong or Macao.

Tourism to Taiwan was boosted. As of May 15, more than 300,000 mainland tourists have traveled to the island while the figure is expected to surpass 600,000 this year.

On Dec. 31, Hu offered six proposals to promote the peaceful development of the cross-Straits relationship in a speech to commemorate the 30th anniversary of the mainland's "Message to Compatriots in Taiwan".

Hu said the mainland is willing to discuss with Taiwan proper and reasonable arrangements for Taiwan's participation in activities of international organizations, as long as this does not create a scenario of "two Chinas" or "one China, one Taiwan".

In May, China's State Council announced a plan to support the development of an economic zone on the western side of the Taiwan Straits. The plan is aimed to boost development in a region led by Fujian Province and promote cooperation between the region and Taiwan.

In the Straits Forum which opened in the southeastern coastal city of Xiamen in May, Wang Yi, director of the State Council Taiwan Affairs Office, announced measures aimed at expanding mainland's business investment in Taiwan.

Wang encouraged companies to buy more Taiwan-made products, invited Taiwan businesses to take part in the mainland's construction of infrastructure and key projects, pledged to send more mainland tourists to the island, and beef up agricultural cooperation.

Those measures also include opening up more mainland professional qualification tests to Taiwan residents and allow Taiwan's law firms to open branches in Fujian Province.

Those measures meant that more Taiwan enterprises would benefit from the mainland's 4-trillion yuan (585.3 billion U.S. dollars) economic stimulus package. The Chinese mainland announced the package in November last year to boost domestic demand and economic growth amid global economic downturn.

A series of economic stimulus plans put forward by the mainland has brought to the Taiwan businessmen direct benefits and market confidence.

The past 12 months also witnessed increasing contact and mutual support between people on the two sides of the Taiwan Straits, such as the donations and contributions from Taiwan when the mainland was hit by a magnitude-8.0 earthquake last May, and contributions from Taiwan people for the success of the 2008 Beijing Olympics.

Taiwan cruise into history
Hong Kong Standard
Thursday, June 11, 2009

The first mainland tour group traveling to Taiwan via Hong Kong on the city's home-ported cruise liner will sail on August 2.

Star Cruises has tailor-made a six-day, five-night itinerary in response to the new initiative announced by the central government in April to allow mainland tour groups to travel to Taiwan by taking Hong Kong-registered vessels.

Several mainland travel agents have already signed agreements with Star Cruises to organize tour groups for the voyage.

Executive vice-president William Ng Ko-yin said Star Cruises has for years been studying and exploring the feasibility of sailing to the three places across two shores. The advanced planning led to the speedy launch of the special tour.

Before cruising to Taiwan aboard the 51,039-tonne SuperStar Aquarius, guests can stop over in Hong Kong for sightseeing, dining and shopping. The six-day trip will also have stop in Tainan and Taichung before guests disembark at Keelung.

The itinerary includes tours to the Anping ancient city, Cigua Salt Mountains, Sun Moon Lake, Taipei and National Palace Museum and the landmark Taipei 101 tower.

Mainland tourists can opt to continue their journey on land upon arriving at Keelung.

Taiwanese guests can also embark from Keelung and sail directly to Hong Kong.

Commissioner for Tourism Margaret Fong Shun-man welcomed the new itinerary, saying it will enrich the travel experience of mainland visitors on the multi-destination trip.

"This new measure will also add impetus to Hong Kong's development as a leading regional cruise hub," she said.

The Tourism Commission, through the Advisory Committee on Cruise Industry and other channels, is working with the Hong Kong Tourism Board and the industry to jointly formulate strategies to strengthen Hong Kong's position as a cruise hub in the Asia-Pacific region.

Taiwan, China to mark peace with cross-strait swim
12 June 2009
Agence France Presse

One hundred swimmers from Taiwan and China will take part in a swim between the mainland and a Taiwan-held island, in a further sign of warming ties between the two sides, organisers said Friday.

Fifty swimmers from each side will swim from the southern Chinese city of Xiamen to Kinmen island on August 15, said Fu Yang-tu, a spokesman for the island's county government.

Taiwanese organisers will hold competitions starting Saturday to select the fittest swimmers for the six-kilometre (3.72 mile) event, Fu said.

The Xiamen city government, which is co-organising the activity, was expected to hold similar selections for swimmers, he said.

"The event will celebrate peace between the two sides and we hope it will also help promote tourism for Kinmen," Fu said.

Kinmen, an island on the mainland side of the 170-kilometre Taiwan strait, has been a constant reminder of lingering hostilities between the two sides since they split in 1949 at the end of a civil war.

In August 1958 the Chinese army fired more than 470,000 shells on Kinmen and several other Taiwan-held islets in a 44-day artillery bombardment that killed 618 servicemen and civilians.

Taiwan's government once had up to 120,000 troops based on Kinmen, as both a first line of defence against a possible Chinese invasion and a contingent capable of attacking the mainland.

However, ties between the rivals have improved dramatically since the Beijing-friendly President Ma Ying-jeou took office last year promising to promote reconciliation and trade links.

Officially, China still regards Taiwan as part of its territory awaiting reunification, by force if necessary.

The sparkle of closer strait links
20 June 2009
Shanghai Daily

Closer cooperation between the Chinese mainland and Taiwan in the financial sector is expected to trigger growth in cross-strait trade and investment, industry watchers said yesterday in Shanghai.

"Now with a higher volume of cross-strait business and tourism flows, closer cooperation in different aspects is needed," Peter Yu, a partner at PricewaterhouseCoopers in Taiwan, said yesterday in Shanghai. "The closer cooperation in the financial industry is inevitable to support the growth."

Randy Ko, a PwC partner in Shanghai, said there will be more purchases from the mainland while mainland firms will be investing more actively in Taiwan over the next two years.

PwC said the two sides are also expected to cooperate in auto parts, retail, tourism and real estate in the first stage of cross-strait cooperation and investment.

Close to 800,000 tourists from the mainland are expected to visit Taiwan this year, a jump of 21.57 percent from a year ago. The occupancy rate among Taiwan hotels is set to grow 12.7 percent to 77.38 percent this year.

"Taiwan appears to be the bigger winner for now," said Sherman Chan, a Moody's Economy.com economist. "The mainland also gains from the stronger ties with benefits to be realized in the longer term."

Taiwan's expertise in technology and telecommunications can help the mainland upgrade its industrial sector.

"Efforts from the mainland alone may not be sufficient to lift the island out of the recession, but should at least help ease the pain," Chan said.

System launched to approve Chinese travel plans
1 July 2009
The China Post

TAIPEI, Taiwan -- The Tourism Bureau's new system to approve mainland visitors' travel plans before visas can be applied for has been launched today, local media said yesterday.

Officials from the bureau said the plan is being executed with the aim of assuring the quality of Chinese tourists' traveling experience.

All travel agencies will need to submit details of the accommodation, the transportation and the assigned tour guide to the new system, officials added.

Once approved by the Bureau, the travel agencies may then apply for visitor visas for those who wish to come to Taiwan, they continued.

Officials stressed that the approval will not be given if the transportation, such as tour buses, has been running for more than ten years.

The acceptable age of the transport had been extended from seven to ten years, they said.

Officials said they believe the four most important elements for a good traveling experience include the people, accommodation, transportation and the tour guide.

Previous visitors were allowed to apply for a visa to enter Taiwan as late as a day before the actual trip but plans must be planned in advance from today.

The amount of Chinese visitors has drastically increased since March this year, while incidents of transportation shortages started to occur late April, local media said.

The Tourism Bureau is taking several measures to prevent more of these shortages from happening again.

Chinese mainland tourists make 350,000 trips to Taiwan
3 July 2009
China Economic Review

Tourists from Chinese Mainland have made more than 350,000 trips to Taiwan so far after the travel ban was lifted a year ago.

Du Jiang, deputy director of the National Tourism Administration, said the tourism cooperation across the strait has been vibrant and the tourists from Chinese Mainland to Taiwan has been on a steady rise.

When meeting with an official delegation from Taichung City and three central Taiwan counties Friday, Du said the two sides should complement each other with unique resources, step up tourism promotion and improve tourism services.

China View reported that the head of the delegation said that central Taiwan has abundant natural and cultural resources, and is willing to improve its infrastructure to attract more visitors from the Chinese Mainland.

TAIWAN, CHINA OFFICIALS TO DISCUSS TOURISM ISSUES

TAIPEI, July 13 Asia Pulse - Tourism officials from Taiwan and China will get together in Beijing in mid-July to discuss solutions to problems facing tour operators on both sides.

Janice Lai, director-general of the Tourism Bureau under the Ministry of Transportation and Communications, said she is slated to lead a delegation of tourism officials on a visit to the Chinese capital July 17 in her capacity as chairwoman of the Taiwan Strait Tourism and Travel Association.

According to Lai, the major purpose of her upcoming visit to Beijing is to exchange views with Shao Qiwei, chairman of China's Cross-Strait Tourism Association, on ways of helping travel agencies that handle cross-strait tours on both sides to overcome their difficulties.

"The main aim is to review the problems cross-strait tour operators have been encountering and to find quick fixes for those problems, " she said. "We will focus our discussions on improving the quality of service to Chinese tourists in Taiwan rather than seeking more visitors from China to Taiwan.

"Over the past year, the relevant authorities have done their best to implement the agreements reached by the two sides to establish direct cross-strait air links and allow more Chinese tourists to visit Taiwan for sightseeing,"she said.

"However, it takes time to set up new market mechanisms," she added.

Lai predicted that the number of Chinese tourists to Taiwan will stabilize from August.

In April, Taiwan recorded an average of 3,280 Chinese tourists arrivals per day, but that number fell to 1,500 in late May and has averaged only 950 per day so far in June due to the spread of swine flu.

Taiwan to welcome 700,000 Chinese tourists this year: Ma
14 July 2009
Agence France Presse

Up to 700,000 Chinese tourists are expected to visit Taiwan in 2009 amid improving ties between the two sides, a report here quoted President Ma Ying-jeou as saying Tuesday.

With mid-July marking the start of peak holiday season, Ma told the Commercial Times that Taiwan is set to welcome 700,000 mainlanders -- or 2,000 a day -- by year-end, citing a tourism bureau estimate.

"I believe many people would be willing to invest (in tourism) if the number can stay to 2,000," Ma said.

Taiwanese authorities in April temporarily increased the quota on Chinese visitors to 5,000 a day in response to a sharp rise in demand for the May 1 Labour Day holidays, but the number has been dropping since then.

Ma attributed the decline to June being the traditional low season, worsened by the spread of swine flu, which dissuaded some mainlanders from travelling to the island.

Some 360,000 Chinese have visited Taiwan since July 2008, after Ma's Beijing-friendly government trebled the daily quota on Chinese visitors to 3,000.

Ties with China have improved dramatically since Ma took office last year pledging to boost cross-Strait trade links and tourism.

But officially China still views the island as part of its territory awaiting reunification, by force if necessary. The two sides have been governed separately since they split after a civil war in 1949.

Chinese tourists bring in 764 million dlr to Taiwan: report
18 July 2009
Agence France Presse

Chinese tourists have generated 764 million US dollars in revenue for Taiwan in a year, as ties rapidly improve between the formal rivals, a report here said Saturday.

Some 370,000 Chinese tourists have visited Taiwan since July 2008, after President Ma Ying-jeou's Beijing-friendly government trebled the daily quota on mainland visitors to 3,000, said the China Times.

Each mainlander spent an average 295 US dollars daily on a typical trip of approximately a week, bringing in more than 764 million US dollars in total tourism revenue for the island, the report said, citing government data.

Taiwanese authorities in April temporarily increased the quota on Chinese visitors to 5,000 a day in response to growing demand for the May 1 Labour Day holidays, but the number dropped sharply in June.

Tourism officials attributed the decline to concerns over swine flu and expected a new influx of Chinese tourists starting August to bring the total number to 600,000 by year-end, the paper said.

Ties with China have improved dramatically since Ma took office last year pledging to boost cross-Strait trade links and tourism.

Officially China still views the island as part of its territory awaiting reunification, by force if necessary. The two sides have been governed separately since they split after a civil war in 1949.

Taiwan eases curbs on tourism by individuals
24 July 2009
South China Morning Post

Taiwan will allow individual mainland tourists who have worked in Hong Kong or Macau for at least a year to visit the island, and the scheme is expected to start as soon as next month.

The latest plan - a further step towards opening Taiwan to individual mainland tourists - is expected to generate NT$11.3 billion (HK$2.7 billion) in extra tourism revenue.

At a meeting last week, departments including the Mainland Affairs Council, the Tourism Bureau and the Interior Ministry discussed the plan to allow mainland tourists to travel to Taiwan individually rather than in tour groups.

"It was decided that mainlanders who had worked in either Hong Kong or Macau for at least one year and had valid work permits would be allowed to visit Taiwan individually," a Tourism Bureau spokeswoman said.

She said that under existing regulations, mainlanders who had worked in Hong Kong or Macau for four years could apply to visit Taiwan as individual tourists. "The Mainland Affairs Council agreed to relax the regulations to shorten the period to one year from four years."

Officials were tight-lipped over when the plan would become effective, but a person in the government close to the situation said that if everything went smoothly, such tourists could start arriving as early as next month.

Taiwan has opened up to mainland tourists since last July as part of the efforts of mainland-friendly President Ma Ying-jeou to improve cross-strait relations and increase the island's tourism revenue.

Up to 3,000 mainland tourists per day are now allowed to visit Taiwan, but they must come in groups, and only day trips are permitted. Under the new measure, there will be no restrictions on the number of visits or the length of stay for eligible individual mainland tourists who travel to the island from Hong Kong or Macau.

The estimated NT$11.3 billion - from an anticipated 300,000 extra visits - was expected to boost the tourism revenue received from mainland travellers to at least NT$36.5 billion a year, officials said.

Statistics showed that 370,000 mainland tourists had visited Taiwan in the past year, and generated NT$25.2 billion in revenue.

Tourism Bureau director general Janice Lai Seh-jen was reported to have exchanged views with mainland officials on the possibility of allowing tourists from the mainland to travel to Taiwan individually, during a roundtable talk in Beijing last Saturday.

The conversation came after Premier Liu Chao-shiuan instructed relevant authorities in Taiwan to work out a plan to allow individual mainland tourists to visit Penghu and Taiwan's other islands.

Local tourism operators said that if the government allowed all mainland tourists to travel to the island individually, business would at least double.

Because of pricing, five-star hotels and upscale restaurants in Taiwan are often excluded from the itineraries of groups organised for tourists coming directly from the mainland.

Kinmen aims to increase tourism
The county chief said that investors and property developers in Hong Kong, China and the US had expressed interest in working on the BOT project
4 November 2009
Taipei Times

Taiwan Land Development Corp yesterday signed a 50-year build-operate-transfer (BOT) agreement with the Kinmen County Government, promising to turn the former war-torn island into an international tourism and leisure spot in five years with an initial budget of NT$3.69 billion (US$113.3 million).

"We hope that when the project is completed, it will bring in tens of billions [of New Taiwan dollars] in economic benefits to Kinmen," Kinmen County Commissioner Lee Chu-feng told a signing ceremony.

The project will create 1,500 job opportunities, more than 60 percent of which will be reserved for local residents, he said.

That excludes workers that will be employed during the project's construction, the land developer said.

The BOT project covers a 7.45 hectare lot 200m north of Kinmen Shanyi Airport, where a hotel, exhibition and conference halls, bonded warehouses, recreation and shopping malls, as well as a duty-free shop will be built starting next year and completed in three to five years.

Taiwan Land Development chairman Chiu Fu-sheng said the entire project could cost up to NT$10 billion, 50 percent of which would come from company funds and the remaining 50 percent would be raised from investors at home and abroad.

Chiu said institutional investors or property developers in Hong Kong, China and the US had expressed interest in taking part in the project. He did not elaborate, citing confidentiality.

Seven retailers, including duty-free Ever Rich DFS Corp, Hsin Tung Yang Co and local specialty shops such as Sheng Zu Food and Beverage Corp and knife manufacturer Master Wu Co, have agreed to set up outlets in the leisure district there, the developer said.

Taiwan Land Development president Andy Lai said that the soon-to-be-built hotel would be a three or five-star establishment with 300 to 500 rooms.

He estimated that the 50-year project could contribute a minimum of NT$2.4 billion in tax revenue to the county government, while potential tourism revenue could reach at least NT$2 billion per year.

If the estimated 1.7 million visitors traveling via the "small three links" - with the number forecast to rise to 2 million in two years - were to spend NT$1,000 each, the county government could get a revenue boost of NT$2 billion per year, he said.

Moreover, if 1 percent to 10 percent of 21 million tourists traveling to Xiamen, China, could extend their trip to include Kinmen at a cost of NT$10,000, the county government could further see an income of between NT$2.1 billion to NT$21 billion each year, he added.

Lee said Kinmen now attracts about 500,000 tourists per year, including 150,000 Chinese tourists since late last year, including 50,000 who stayed overnight.

High-quality kaoliang liquor, which is sold for 300 yuan (US$44) in Kinmen and 1,188 yuan in China, is popular among Chinese tourists.

Fears aside, Taiwan to allow solo Chinese tourists

TAIPEI, July 7 (Reuters) - Taiwan plans to let tourists from China travel on their own on the island, government officials said on Wednesday, a boost to the service sector as suspicions over spying and illegal immigration fade and relations improve.

Taiwan has admitted only tightly controlled tour groups since mid-2008. From as early as the end of the year it will allow individuals from China, just 160 km (100 miles) distant, wishing to travel on their own.

An influx of tourists will boost the service sector, from listed Taiwan hotels and airlines to small shops in the countryside where groups rarely venture.

"Individual travellers can go to every corner and spend money," said Anthony Liao, standing supervisor with the Taipei Association of Travel Agents.

"They don't necessarily have to stay in star-level hotels. They can take the high-speed rail or a bus instead of coaches. They can do the night markets and the small stores, not just souvenir shops. It's an advantage to the Taiwan economy."

The Taiwan stock exchange's tourism sub-index rose 2.36 percent on anticipation of individual travellers from China.

Permitting individual tourists, even if they still must obtain travel permits, marks a new high in fast-warming relations between Taiwan and China, which claims sovereignty over the self-ruled island.

The two sides set aside differences in 2008 to work out trade and transit deals including direct flights and an agreement that allows up to 3,600 Chinese group tourists per day.

Concerns about spying and unauthorised stays on the relatively wealthy island that had long barred Chinese tourists have eased as most groups follow rules while pouring money into the service sector.

Still, Taiwan is studying a daily headcount limit on individual travellers and may initially allow them only from China's wealthier cities, tourism and news officials said.

Taiwan opened to all mainland tourists amid warming ties
20 July 2010
SCMP

Beijing is now allowing tourists from all parts of the mainland to visit Taiwan, in a move tipped to further boost the island's tourism industry amid warming cross-strait ties.

Beginning yesterday, mainland tourists from four autonomous regions, including politically sensitive Tibet and Xinjiang, as well as Inner Mongolia and Ningxia, can join mainlanders from other provinces on group tours to Taiwan.

The new arrangement also applies to people from Gansu and Qinghai provinces, the mainland's first tourism envoy to Taiwan, Fan Guishan , said.

"With the opening of these areas, there are no more restrictions on mainland tourists who want to visit Taiwan," said Fan, who heads the mainland's first semi-official Cross-Strait Tourism Exchange Association in Taipei.

Travel to Taiwan was opened to 25 mainland provinces, municipalities and the Guangxi autonomous region after the two former rivals signed a travel co-operation agreement in July 2008.

That deal was made possible after Taiwan's mainland-friendly President Ma Ying-jeou took office that year and adopted a policy of engaging Beijing.

The two sides also agreed to swap tourism offices in May this year to deal with rapid increases in the number of travellers, and other tourism matters.

In the past two years, more than 13.3 million mainland tourists have visited the island, injecting US$2.6 billion into the Taiwanese economy, according to the association.

However, statistics released by Taiwan's tourism bureau show that between July 2008 and the end of June this year, total tourism revenue brought by all mainland tourists, including those coming from a third territory, topped US$3.45 billion.

Before the July 2008 agreement, Taiwan permitted only mainland tourists coming from a third country to visit. Since then, mainlanders have been able to visit directly, but only if they travel in groups.

The two sides are still working on the timing of allowing mainland tourists to visit Taiwan individually.

In the first six months of this year, some 673,000 mainland tourists visited the island, up 105 per cent from the same period last year, prompting Taiwanese authorities to predict that between 1.2 and 1.5 million mainland tourists will visit this year.

To cope with the influx of mainland tourists, the mainland side has agreed to increase the number of travel agencies dealing with cross-strait travel from 146 to 164.

The mainland authorities would further expand the number of agencies to speed up application procedures for travel to Taiwan, Fan said.

Aside from opening the island to mainland tourists, the two sides have also signed direct flight agreements to carry travellers, a lucrative business that has sharply increased the profits of airlines.

The two sides have each expanded their weekly flights to 135, but that has failed to meet the growing demand for cross-strait flights, leading to an agreement in May to each increase the number by 50.

Luxury resort opens at Sun Moon Lake
27 July 2010
Central News Agency English News

Taipei, July 27 (CNA) The Wen Wan Resort at Sun Moon Lake that was built to resemble a cruise ship opened Tuesday, with tourism industry operators touting its gold-gilded "mast" and interior fittings as the latest trend in luxury accommodation.

The 92-room hotel stands 12 stories tall on the site of what was once a holiday home of the late President Chiang Kai-shek on a hill overlooking one of Taiwan's most popular tourist destinations.

At the opening ceremony, Premier Wu Den-yih read a poem that he wrote especially for the occasion.

"The natural beauty of the mountains and the lake are free, " Wu said in his Chinese-language poem, extolling the natural attractions of the Nantou County area.

The resort project was initiated by the Nantou County government and constructed on the build-operate-transfer model at a cost of NT$2.4 billion (US$74.93 million) , said County Magistrate Lee Chao-ching.

It was designed to look like a luxury clipper and its "mast" was gilded with 479.54 ounces of gold.

"Some suites are equipped with gold-gilded toilets and washbasins and prices start at US$1,000 per night, " a tour guide on a lake boat tour told the passengers.

The new resort is located on the highest point of the Hanbi Peninsula, close to the Lalu, a premium resort hotel.

"Once the new resort begins operations, it will start a trend for luxury tourism at Sun Moon Lake," Harbor Resort Hotel General Manager Liu Chih-fan forecast.

Sun Moon Lake is one of the fastest growing tourism areas in Taiwan, particularly since Taiwan eased its restrictions on tourism from China.

According to statistics from the the Sun Moon Lake National Scenic Area Administration, 720,000 Chinese tourists visited the area in the first half of this year, which was more than the number for the whole of 2009. The number is expected to exceed 1.2 million this year, said Tseng Kuo-chi, head of the administration.

Taiwanese wary about China amid warming ties
Associated Press
30 July 2010

TAIPEI, Taiwan – In the crowded Taipei theater, Eddy Fang laughs politely at the Chinese ensemble's comic references to jealous husbands and overweight wives but can't help thinking it's all a bit lowbrow in relatively sophisticated Taiwan.

The performance by the Zhao Benshan troupe from Liaoning province ostensibly aims to bring the Chinese and Taiwanese closer culturally and overcome the love-hate relationship they have shared for decades.

But the crude comedy "underscores more of our cultural differences than our similarities," observes Fang, a 36-year-old office worker in Taipei, the capital of the island that broke away from China 61 years ago.

Despite China's efforts to win over local hearts and hasten the return of the island to mainland control, the cultural gap between the two peoples remains as large as the 100-mile (160-kilometer) wide Taiwan Strait that separates the two sides.

In the two years since Taiwanese President Ma Ying-jeou took office, relations between the once bitter enemies have warmed considerably, sparked by a sharp uptick in commercial initiatives — including last month's landmark trade deal — and China's soft pedaling of its long-standing threats to take over Taiwan by force.

Rather than calling attention to the estimated 1,300 missiles now aimed at Taiwanese targets, Beijing is resorting to a well-modulated charm offensive led by free spending tourists, freer spending purchasing missions and entertainment ensembles like the Zhao Benshan.

But the closer ties and the attempts by Beijing to play up both sides' common cultural history may actually highlight the ways the island and mainland have grown apart in their decades of postwar separation.

Taiwanese artist Su Hui-yu, 34, insists the island's 23 million people don't identify culturally with the mainland — despite their common language — because 50 years of Japanese colonial rule and another six decades of political separation has created a distinct Taiwanese identity.

"In Taiwan, you can see traces of the Chinese culture," Su said. "But unlike China's continent-based culture, Taiwan has a young, ocean-based culture, which is more adaptable and open to all foreign influences."

Su noted Taiwanese authorities have switched to using an ultramodern Taipei skyscraper as a symbol of the island, dropping the long-used image of the National Palace Museum — the celebrated Taipei repository of Chinese art, whose contents were spirited to Taiwan in 1948 and 1949 by Chiang Kai-shek's retreating Nationalist forces.

"Young Taiwanese see the museum's artifacts as Chinese, not Taiwanese," he said.

Thirty four-year-old tour guide Tai Kai-lin identified another aspect of the cultural gap between Chinese and Taiwanese — the tendency of some mainlanders to be less cultivated and polite than their island cousins, who pride themselves on their good manners and restrained behavior.

"All they bring here is their litter and their spittle," said Tai, referring to the tendency of some mainland visitors to expectorate freely during their visits to Taiwanese landmarks.

Recent college graduate Quentin Hu, 24, says all that's unimportant because of the considerable economic benefits the Chinese visitors are bringing to the island. Government statistics show that in 2009, 953,000 mainland tourists spent $1.13 billion and accounted for 0.49 percent of Taiwan's GDP. Expectations are that the number of tourist arrivals could grow by as much as 25 percent this year.

"In the long run mainland visitors will boost our service industry and economy substantially and everyone here will benefit from that," Hu said. "So I don't mind some of the minor inconveniences they bring."

Hu's comments were echoed by freelance writer Jean Chiu, 52, who said initiatives like last year's government decision to end a long-standing ban on advertising by Chinese companies will deepen understanding between the sides, despite charges that some Taiwanese publications might slant their treatment of China to gain ads from mainland firms.

"Our media are heavy with China coverage because people need to know more about the mainland," she said. "We don't have to worry too much."

But many Taiwanese do worry. Their belief that Beijing is camouflaging the true purpose of its cultural exchanges and touristic onslaught — bringing the island into its fold — may have led them to focus on the cultural differences between the two sides and fed the desire to keep a separate Taiwanese identity.

Opinion polls remain split on how friendly Chinese intentions toward Taiwan really are, but all show a continuing resistance to accepting Chinese control, the ultimate aim of Beijing's Taiwan policy for the past six decades.

"The Chinese are more friendly lately, but with a political purpose," said Fang, the theatergoer.

Bao Guozhong, a tour operator from Fujian's capital of Fuzhou on the mainland, doesn't see what all the fuss is about.

"We have the same roots and should get along well," he said.

___

Associated Press Writer Debby Wu contributed to this report from Taipei.

TAIWAN-CHINA TRAVEL FAIR HOSTS RECORD VISITORS BUT MISSES TARGET
17 August 2010

TAIPEI, Aug 17 Asia Pulse - A travel fair in Taipei that hosted a record number of participating Chinese travel agents failed at its close Monday to reach the organizers' goal for the total number of visitors over its four-day run.

A total of 118,003 people visited the Taipei Cross-Strait Travel Fair, a number that fell short of the organizers' original target of 150,000 visitors.

This year also marks the first time Chinese exhibitors will not attend the Taipei International Travel Fair slated to take place Nov. 5-8 this year, after taking part in the fair organized by the Taiwan Visitors Association (TVA) and the Beijing-based Cross-Strait Tourism Association.

TVA spokeswoman Chen Ying-ting blamed the upcoming start of the new school semester for the poorer- than-expected turnout.

"As the summer vacation is coming to an end, not many families have further travel plans," she told CNA in a telephone interview.

"Some parents might also be looking to save money to pay for tuition as the schools open next month," Chen added.

"So although many big discounts were offered at the fair, many people were still not attracted," she said.

The organizers of the show said that in an effort to boost visitor numbers in future, they are considering moving the fair to June next year.

A record of nearly 1,200 representatives from 190 tourism associations or travel agencies throughout China took part in the fair, the organizers added, saying that a total of 871 booths were manned, including 516 by Taiwanese exhibitors.

Chen lauded the Chinese exhibitors for adopting different promotion tactics this year.

"This year, their booths were better designed. They also put on folk songs, dances and martial arts performances," she noted.

Despite their tactics, however, the Chinese exhibitors apparently failed to compete with their Taiwanese counterparts in attracting visitors to their booths, as the majority of visitors lined up for discounted dining coupons offered by some of the Taiwanese exhibitors, mainly local major hotels.

Another favorite among the visitors was the Taiwan agricultural pavilion, consisting of 250 booths offering tea, dried fruit, nut cookies, grilled sausages, dried squid and other well-known local delicacies.

Asked whether the Chinese exhibitors were dissatisfied with the turnouts at their booths, Chen said they actually had better turnouts than they had enjoyed for the past four years, but she did not provide specific figures.

"This year, they also learned from their Taiwanese counterparts how best to cater to local visitors, and will probably follow suit next year," she added.

CHINA STILL MULLING ENTRY OF TAIWAN TOURISTS: OFFICIAL
16 August 2010

TAIPEI, Aug 16 Asia Pulse - China will allow individuals to visit Taiwan for tourism purposes when the conditions are right, a visiting tourism official from China said Saturday.

Shao Qiwei, director of China's National Tourism Administration and head of the Cross-Strait Tourism Association (CSTA), said that China will seek to revise the relevant regulations on the basis of a "gradual opening" policy.

"The CSTA will consult with its Taiwanese counterpart, the Taiwan Strait Tourism Association (TSTA), and will select suitable cities to start allowing visits by individual tourists when the time and conditions are right," he said.

Shao said the move will be in line with world trends, and will help to enhance people-to-people exchanges between the two sides of the Taiwan Strait.

The regulations on both sides would need to be revised, he said, noting that currently tourists from China are only allowed to visit Taiwan in groups.

Shao was at a roundtable meeting in Hsinchu on cross-strait tourism exchanges, which was chaired jointly by him and Taiwan's Tourism Bureau Director-General Janice Lai. More than 100 tourism officials and representatives across the Taiwan Strait attended the meeting.

Shao said that two years after the easing of restrictions on visits by Chinese tourists to Taiwan, cross-strait tourism is still in the budding stage.

However, with the June 29 signing of a cross-strait trade deal, known as the economic cooperation framework agreement, bilateral economic cooperation has entered a historic new stage, he said.

Shao also said that he will push for bilateral tourism investment and that both sides should compile a priority list for such investment.

In response, Lai said that because of the difference in market sizes on both sides, "the travel agent sector cannot be liberalized." Meanwhile, China Tourism Academy's president Dai Bin said that Fujian province, which has the highest volume of exchanges with Taiwan, would be the best choice to begin allowing individual visits to Taiwan.

Majority of Taiwan's Outbound Tours Go to Mainland China in First 8 Months

Taipei, Sept. 28, 2010 (CENS)--Statistics recently released by the Ministry of the Interior shows 56.6% of the 6.8 million outbound trips made by Taiwan citizens in the first eight months this year were destined for mainland China (including Hong Kong and Macau) as their first leg.

The statistics show that the aggregate number of inbound and outbound travelers came to 20.1 million in the first eight months of the year, up 21.6% from the same period of last year.

Taiwan's citizens accounted for 6.8 million of the 10 million outbound travelers while mainland Chinese citizens (including citizens from Hong Kong and Macau) constituted around 45% of the 3.6 million entries made by non-Taiwan citizens.

The 6.8 million outbound trips made by Taiwanese people included 1.59 million trips to the mainland, 1.61 million trips to Hong Kong and 470,000 trips to Macau. Around 14.7% of the trips were destined for Japan while only 5.1% made the United States the destination.

Japanese tourists accounted for 19.2% of the inbound trips made by non-Taiwan citizens in the first eight months this year, followed by 7.4% made by U.S. citizens.

Officials with the Ministry of the Interior pointed out that the 1.08 million tourist arrivals from mainland China in the first eight months represented an increase of 460,000 from the same period of last year while the 530,000 Taiwan-bound trips by Hong Kong and Macau travelers represented an annual e of some 30,000 trips.

Director General S.J. Lai of Tourism Bureau estimated the number of tourist arrivals from all over the world to cross 5.2 million people this year, the highest number since Taiwan started the record.

Chinese visitors attributed to Palace Museum's souvenir sales growth
8 October 2010

Taipei, Oct. 8 (CNA) Sales of the National Palace Museum's souvenir shop grew 10 percent in the first week of October compared with the same periods of August and September, the general manager of the museum's souvenir department said Friday.

Ho Chun-huan told CNA that although the number of Chinese tourists who visited the museum in the Oct. 1-7 period -- the long national day holiday called "golden week" in China -- did not appear to be an obvious rise from the previous two months, souvenir sales were up.

Most of the tourists spent between NT$1,400 (US$45.27) and NT$1,500 on souvenirs at the museum in the week-long period, higher than the NT$1,000-NT$1,200 they spent in August and September, she said.

One of the tourists spent a whopping NT$1.06 million in a single day, making him the biggest spender the store has seen since Taiwan opened its doors in 2008 to tourists from China, Ho said.

The National Palace Museum was one of five most popular tourist destinations in Taiwan among Chinese visitors during the week-long holiday, behind Sun Moon Lake in Nantou County, the Taipei 101 building and Sizihwan Bay in Kaohsiung City, according to the Tourism Bureau.

However, shops and vendors in the Sun Moon Lake scenic area said nothing had changed during the week, with no discernible increase in the number of Chinese visitors.

Tea egg vendor Chou Chin-pen complained of low business throughout the holiday, especially in the last three days.

"We were so idle we could fall asleep in the daytime," she said.

According to statistics compiled by the Sun Moon Lake National Scenic Area Administration, Chinese tourist arrivals in the first week of October were not as numerous as expected.

As of the end of September, the number of Chinese visitors to Sun Moon Lake had reached nearly 840,000 people, which breaks down to 3,100 per day, the administration said.

The peak for arrivals was in April and May, with a daily average of 4,756 Chinese visitors per day, it said.

In comparison, the golden week tallies reached only 3,169 people per day, it added.

China is one of Taiwan's biggest sources of tourists. In 2009, 560,000 Chinese people visited the country, while the first seven months of the year saw 740,000 Chinese tourist arrivals, according to Tourism Bureau statistics.

Taiwan to allow more mainland tourists next year

TAIPEI, Dec 21 (Reuters) - Taiwan will increase the number of mainland Chinese tourists allowed to visit to 4,000 a day from next year and expects to welcome individual visitors by June, in the latest sign of warming ties between the rivals.

The increase in the daily quota from 3,000 will take effect as soon as Jan. 1, the government said on Tuesday during the latest round of trade talks in Taipei.

Taiwan's top negotiator later told reporters that individuals from the mainland would likely be allowed to visit by June, at the latest. People from the mainland can now only visit on group tours.

"The sooner the better," the negotiator, P. K. Chiang, said. "We had hoped to open Taiwan to individual tourists around February, but the Chinese side said that was too soon."

The mainland and the island have been rivals since China's civil war in the late 1940s. China sees self-ruled Taiwan as a renegade province which must be reunited with the mainland.

But economic relations have expanded in recent years and ties are at their best in 60 years following the signing of a trade pact this year that lifted tariffs on thousands of items.

Taiwan's government sees better China trade as key to the export-dependent island's economic security, while Beijing is hoping strong economic ties will lead to political agreement with the island.

About 1.3 million Chinese nationals visited Taiwan in the first 10 months of this year and China is surpassing Japan as the island's biggest source of visitors.

Taiwan's tourism stocks have surged this year on hopes for more mainland tourists. The sub-index has risen about 30 percent this year, well ahead of the benchmark index which is up about 7 percent.

The two sides also signed a medical and healthcare cooperation agreement on Tuesday, but in a sign that some tension remains, have put off an investment protection pact for further discussion after failing to agree on measures for dispute resolution.

Published on ShanghaiDaily.com (http://www.shanghaidaily.com/)
http://www.shanghaidaily.com/article/?id=460624&type=Metro

City to trial individual tourist trips to Taiwan
Created: 2011-1-4 0:27:08

INDIVIDUAL tourists, not traveling with an organized group, are expected to be able to travel to Taiwan from Shanghai and Beijing in April.

Local travel companies have already started designing packages in preparation.

Taiwan opened to Chinese mainland tourists in 2008, but visitors were required to travel in organized groups.

But now, according to China Times, a Taiwan local newspaper, the mainland and the island have reached an agreement that the two cities will trial individual trips.

It is expected that 500 independent tourists will make the journey to Taiwan daily, where they can stay for up to 15 days. The first are likely to set off on April 5, the Qingming Festival, reported the newspaper.

Mainland tourism authorities, however, have not confirmed the news.

Shanghai travel service companies said individual tours will mainly appeal to young people, attracted by the leisure options in Taiwan.

"We're thinking of 'air-and-hotel' packages that let tourists design their itinerary themselves," said Zhou Yingfeng, deputy general manager of Shanghai CYTS Tours.

Travel agencies are also designing short tours in which visitors can take in a live show or explore the countryside.

Since Taiwan opened to mainland tourists in 2008, most tourists making the trip have been middle-aged people or seniors, many to visit relatives who they haven't seen for decades.

The most popular option has been an around-the-island package, lasting from six to eight days.

In 2009, the mainland and Taiwan began discussing individual tours, and late last year reports emerged that Taiwan was expected to accept business travelers this year.

Last year, around 1.6 million mainland tourists went to Taiwan, and the number is expected to reach 2 million this year, according to the China Tourism Administration.

Meanwhile, chilly weather made Shanghai residents reluctant to venture out of the city over the New Year holiday, tour company officials said. The Shanghai Sightseeing Tour Bus Center reported that around 4,000 people took trips to outlying areas or neighboring provinces through the center - down 23 percent from last year.

"The cold weather was to blame," said Shen Li, an official with the center. "The mercury was too low, so people stayed at home."

Officials said "wish-making" tours were the most popular. Many people went to Putuo Mountain in Zhejiang Province or to the Lingshan Buddha in Jiangsu Province to make New Year wishes.

CHINESE TOURIST ARRIVALS IN TAIWAN HIT 1.16MLN IN 2010: TSTA

SHANGHAI, Jan 17 Asia Pulse - A total of 1.16 million Chinese tourists visited Taiwan last year, according to statistics compiled by the Taipei-based Taiwan Strait Tourism Association (TSTA).

The association was set up by the Tourism Bureau of the Ministry of Transportation and Communications to promote Taiwan tourism in China.

Yang Ruey-tzong, director of the association's Beijing office, said Sunday that of the arrivals, 186,000 were from Guangdong Province, 182,000 were from Zhejiang Province and 103,000 came from Jiangsu Province, indicating that people living in coastal China were more likely to visit Taiwan as tourists.

The three provinces were followed by the cities of Beijing and Shanghai, which accounted for 89,000 and 84,000 tourist arrivals, respectively.

In light of the increasing number of Chinese interested in touring Taiwan, Yang said, his office was planning to stage a briefing session for Shanghai's tourism industry the following day.

He added that he and his staff will also visit other provinces to promote Taiwan tourism.

Yang said he plans to introduce the Official Taiwan Lantern Festival that will take place this year in Miaoli County, central Taiwan, in which a delegation from Yangzhou in Jiangsu Province will participate.

Taiwan is also sending a group to participate in Yangzhou's lantern show in late January in a reciprocal move, he noted.

Later in 2011, Yang went on, the TSTA will hold activities in Beijing and Shanghai highlighting Taiwan's catering service, in which famous Taiwanese chefs will show off their skills.

Mon, Jan 24, 2011
Taipei Times
Inbound, outbound travel figures reach highest levels ever
Staff Writer, with CNA

A record high of almost 30 million people traveled to or from Taiwan last year, 19.5 percent more than in 2009, government statistics released over the weekend showed.

The latest statistics released by the Ministry of the Interior showed inbound passengers totaled 14,980,936 last year, a 19.72 percent increase from 2009, while outbound passengers totaled 14,909,299, an annual increase of 19.27 percent.

Both the arrival and departure figures were historical highs.

The combined 29,890,235 arrivals and departures were 19.5 percent more than a year earlier.

Ministry officials attributed the increase to an economic recovery and a jump in cross--Taiwan Strait travel following the relaxation of restrictions on Chinese tourists from the middle of 2008.

Since Taiwan conditionally opened its doors to some groups of tourists from China in 2002, the number of tourists from there visiting Taiwan has grown steadily.

In terms of travelers’ nationalities, Taiwanese accounted for 63 percent of the total outbound and inbound travel, while Chinese nationals (including Hong Kong and Macau residents) made up 15.4 percent. Individuals from other countries accounted for the remaining 21.5 percent.

Some 5.57 million foreign passengers entered Taiwan last year, with 43.6 percent of them coming from China (including Hong Kong and Macau), 19.4 percent from Japan, 7.1 percent from the US and 5.1 percent coming from Malaysia, ministry figures showed.

About 57 percent of the 9.42 million outbound trips made by Taiwanese began with travel to China, while 14.6 percent went to Japan on the first leg of their trips.

About 4.6 percent flew to the US and 4.3 percent traveled to South Korea.

Taiwan proposes allowing solo tourists from China

TAIPEI, Jan 25 (Reuters) - Taiwan has proposed that up to 500 mainland Chinese a day can visit the island as individual tourists, as the two sides look to deepen their burgeoning economic relationship.

Government officials, speaking on condition of anonymity, said on Tuesday individual visitors would be limited to stays of up to 15 days. The quota would be in addition to an existing limit of 4,000 mainland tourists per day allowed on group tours.

Though still politically sensitive, opening up to individual tourists is the next stage in boosting economic ties between the two political rivals, whose relations have reached the best in 60 years since the signing of a landmark trade deal last year.

Mainland tour groups accounted for 1.63 million visitors in 2010, up 68 percent from the previous year, and for the first time the number of mainland tourists exceeded those from Japan, which for decades has been Taiwan's biggest source of visitors.

Taiwan's tourism shares sub-index has risen some 30 percent in the last year on hopes of an influx of free-spending mainland tourists, and a string of luxury hotels have opened up or are under construction on the island to meet expected demand.

The officials said China had yet to express an opinion on Taiwan's proposal. But they did not rule out the possibility of an increase to the proposed number.

Wed, Jan 26, 2011
Taipei Times
Kaohsiung mayor defends policies on PRC tourists
By Flora Wang / Staff Reporter

Greater Kaohsiung Mayor Chen Chu (陳菊) yesterday defended her government’s policies to attract Chinese tourists and said Kaohsiung was preparing itself for independent Chinese travelers.

Chen said on the floor of the Greater Kaohsiung City Council that the city had been drawing up itineraries for independent Chinese travelers.

“The city is always happy to greet visitors from China,” Chen said.

Taiwan and China have been negotiating to allow independent travelers from China to visit Taiwan. Currently Chinese visitors are only permitted to visit by joining tour groups.

Chen’s defense came after criticism from local tourism industry representatives and Council Speaker — Hsu Kun-yuan (許崑源) of the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) — that the city government had not made sufficient effort to attract Chinese tourists or launched a campaign in China to promote Greater Kaohsiung.

The representatives visited Hsu at the council on Monday, urging Hsu to help bring more Chinese tourists to the city.

During the meeting, Hsu accused the city government of being blinded by political ideology and failing to compete for Chinese tourists.

The speaker lashed out at the city government over the fact that the city will only have six cross-strait charter flights during the Lunar New Year holidays.

Hsu said he was willing to step up and promote Kaohsiung, along with other KMT city councilors.

“We need to let Chinese nationals know that Kaohsiung residents are friendly,” Hsu said, adding that he would urge the central government to hold the eighth round of cross-strait talks in Kaohsiung.

Chen yesterday said she had previously told Premier Wu Den-yih (吳敦義) that she was dissatisfied with the limited number of cross-strait charter flights to and from Kaohsiung.

Chen said the city’s Tourism Bureau director, Chen Sheng-shan (陳盛山), had just returned to Kaohsiung after concluding a promotional trip to Beijing and Hong Kong.

Decision on Chinese tourists could be made next month
Taipei Times Staff Writer, with CNA
Sun, Feb 27, 2011

A major decision may be made on a proposal to allow Chinese tourists to travel to Taiwan independently when representatives from Taiwan and China meet next month to discuss the issue, Taiwan’s Tourism Bureau said yesterday.

The bureau made the comment after Shao Qiwei (邵琪偉), director of China’s National Tourism Administration, announced in Taipei last week that citizens from pilot Chinese cities would be allowed to travel to Taiwan independently from the second quarter of this year.

“Shao’s visit has greatly enhanced mutual understanding between Taiwan and China on an unofficial basis,” Chief Secretary of Tourism Chang Shi-chung (張錫聰) said.

Shao arrived in Taiwan on Feb. 22 as the head of a Chinese delegation for a one-week visit to promote broader cross-strait tourism links.

Chang declined to discuss a timetable for negotiations on Taiwan’s broadening of its tourism policy, saying only that it was likely to be based on the consensus reached during the sixth round of talks between Taiwan and China last December.

At present, Chinese tourists are only permitted to enter Taiwan as members of tour groups, with a limit of 4,000 tourists per day.

According to earlier reports, Taiwan may set a ceiling of 500 independent Chinese tourists per day when the proposal takes effect.

Finding common ground with Chinese tourists
The China Post Staff
26 February 2011
The China Post

In the past decade Hong Kong and Macau have benefited substantially from mainland Chinese policies of letting an increasing number of tourists into the two cities. Many believed that mainland tourists were part of the contributors that helped lift Hong Kong's economy out of the abyss following the 2003 SARS (severe acute respiratory syndrome) crisis. Mainland travelers, especially high rollers, are the main source of income for casinos in Macau, which has surpassed Las Vagas to become the world's biggest gambling center.

In recent months, however, the two cities were dealing with the side effects of playing host to one of the richest groups of tourists in the world. The clashes between tour guides and visitors in Hong Kong and Macau offer good examples for Taiwanese tour agencies and tourism-related businesses as they are gearing up for the increasing number of individual mainland tourists.

Two Chinese tourists went to court with a Hong Kong tour guide over a brawl that broke out after the Chinese said they were forced to buy items from a jewelry shop during their trip.

It is a common practice among travel agencies to offer extremely cheap, sometimes even free, packages to tourists with the condition that they will visit places such as jewelry, Chinese artifact or herb shops. The agencies then earn commissions from the shops according to the purchases made.

Tour guides generally do not actually “force” people to purchase items in these places but tourists can expect to spend a lot of time, sometimes hours on end, at these “shopping stops.” Arguments often stem from the differences between visitors who are bored by these non-sightseeing trips or feel cheated, and the tour guides who insist to the clients that these stops are part of the deal.

In theory the solution to this problem is straightforward. After all, it is not difficult for people to understand that there is no such thing as a free lunch. Many no doubt half expect these “mandatory” shop visits when they sign up for the cheap trips. In fact, such practices are not reserved only for Hong Kong and can be seen in many Chinese tour packages. To even make it more clear, regulations can be made to demand tour agencies to clearly notify their clients on the number and length of shopping stops in their trips.

CHINA PITCHES 'FASTER, DEEPER' CROSS-STRAIT TOURISM DEVELOPMENT
24 February 2011

TAIPEI, Feb 24 Asia Pulse - China's top tourism official on Wednesday envisioned a future where 5 million tourists from China would visit Taiwan each year and urged the two sides' tourism sectors to move in that direction.

Shao Qiwei, head of China's National Tourism Administration, said at the opening of a conference in Taipei on cross-Taiwan Strait tourism that cooperation in the sector should "go deeper and move faster, " even with Chinese visitor arrivals setting a record high 1.63 million in 2010.

Describing the tourist pool in China as "extremely sufficient, " Shao asked the audience to consider the possibilities if one-tenth of China's 1.3 billion population, or 130 million people, wanted to visit Taiwan for pleasure.

"Based on 5 million visits per year, it would take 26 years to have all of those people travel to Taiwan," Shao said.

Also, 25,000 round-trip cross-strait flights would be needed to transport those travelers every year if the average flight's capacity is 200 passengers, he said.

Shao contended that having 5 million Chinese tourists visit Taiwan was not beyond the realm of possibility, because while most Chinese visitors at present were middle or upper income earners, many lower-income people were also saving up for a trip to Taiwan.

He said he hoped Taiwan and China would expand and deepen cooperation in all tourism-related fields, including recreational agriculture, travel product manufacturing and tour services.

The tourism official, in Taiwan for a week-long visit at the head of a delegation composed of over 400 officials and travel agency executives, did not mention the issue of allowing independent Chinese tourists to visit Taiwan.

But at a welcoming party the previous day, Shao said his office would try to push for the highly anticipated program by the second quarter of the year and open it to Beijing and Shanghai residents on a trial basis "in order to be prepared for a further opening, " Shao said.

At present, Chinese tourists are only permitted to enter Taiwan as members of tour groups.

Trial for individual tours to Taiwan
8 March 2011
Shanghai Daily

Tourists from China's mainland will be able to make their own way to Taiwan later this year when pilot trials of individual travel to the island from the mainland begin.

At present, mainland tourists have to go as part of an organized tour.

Shanghai and Beijing will be the two cities taking part in the trials, which are due to begin in the second quarter of this year, Shao Qiwei, director of the National Tourism Administration, said yesterday.

Shao said that higher income groups would take part at first and then the market would be expanded to more people.

Shanghai travel agencies said they had begun to design individual packages, mainly targeting the better off.

They said flight tickets and room charges for individuals would be higher than those for groups, and tourists should be prepared to pay about 25 to 30 percent more for the packages.

"An eight-day trip to Taiwan costs about 6,000 yuan (US$857) for group travelers, and the same trip, with the same dining and accommodation standard, would cost 8,000 to 9,000 yuan for individuals," said Wang Yan, general manager of Shanghai Airlines International Travel Service Co Ltd. "But, of course, self-service travelers will be able to choose hotels which are suitable for their budget."

Since the Taiwan-bound tourist market opened to tourists from the Chinese mainland in 2008, most visitors have been middle-aged or elderly, travel agencies said. Young people showed less interest in the island.

That meant most Taiwan packages at present were "round-island" trips geared to older people, allowing tourists to visit several cities over a week.

That may change with the opening up of individual travel.

Agencies said packages for individual tourists would be more flexible. Usually they would be around four to five days, and designed for those with specific aims, such as honeymoon couples or pop music fans going to concerts.

Last year, nearly 1.23 million tourists from the mainland visited Taiwan, more than double 2009's figure. Taiwan-bound group tours are available to tourists from all 31 provinces, autonomous regions and municipalities on the mainland.

Leofoo Tourism to strengthen facilities to expand business
17 March 2011
Taipei Times

Leofoo Tourism Group, which owns hotels, theme parks, movie theaters and bakeries, aims to strengthen facilities to boost business this year, company executives said yesterday.

The conglomerate intends to spend NT$350 million (US$11.8 million) establishing a water theme park adjacent to Leofoo Village Theme Park in Hsinchu County that is to start operations in the summer, Leofoo Group chief operating officer Lulu Chuang told reporters.

TOURISM

The group is upbeat about the tourism industry as it may see an increase in both domestic and Chinese tourists this year amid the continued economic recovery, she said.

Leofoo also plans to invest another NT$420 million renovating the Westin Taipei to make the five-star hotel more appealing to upscale customers.

The group will also open a new bakery, Elite Concept, on the 88th floor of Taipei 101, a must-see spot among Chinese tourists, marketing director Dennis Liu said.

REBOUND

The groups revenue jumped 15.8 percent last year from a year earlier after the local tourism industry emerged from the global financial crisis, Liu said, declining to give a forecast.

Looking ahead, Leofoo expects a joint credit card venture with Chinatrust Commercial Bank to generate NT$500 million in revenue this year, Liu said. Cardholders can enjoy discounts at various Leofoo businesses.

Drop in Japanese visitors hurts tourism
Tourism officials are hoping that an influx of Chinese tourists once restrictions on cross-strait visitor are lifted would make up for the drop in Japanese tourists
17 March 2011
Taipei Times

The hospitality sector has seen falling room occupancy rates because of fewer Japanese travelers in the wake of the massive earthquake and tsunami on Friday, while travel agents acted quickly to adjust their business plans to minimize losses.

Leofoo Tourism Group, which operates The Westin Taipei, Leofoo Hotel and Leofoo Resort, saw the number of foreign guests falling 15 percent in the wake of Japans powerful earthquake on Friday, chief operating officer Lulu Chuang said yesterday at a media gathering.

The disaster dealt a heavy blow to Leofoo Hotel because Japanese tourists account for 42 percent of its occupancy rate, Chuang said, adding that about 10 percent canceled reservations over the weekend and on Monday.

Another 5 percent of US and European guests changed plans to visit Taiwan, citing radiation concerns, Chaung said.

The worry, while reflecting a lack of information about the nuclear crisis in Japan, may wreak havoc on the hospitality industry here, Chuang said, calling on the government to help defuse the jitters.

Formosa International Hotels Corp, the nations biggest listed hotel operator, said yesterday it foresaw a drop of 6 percent in room occupancy rate this month, impacted by the cancellations from Japanese clients, which account for 38 percent of its total clientele.

The impact of cancelations from Japanese customers is still within control, Ellen Chang, Formosa Regent Taipei public relations director, said by telephone. We have launched contingency plans to attract guests from Singapore, Hong Kong and Macau to offset the drop in Japanese clients.

Luckily, Chang said, 80 percent of Formosa Regents Japanese guests are business travelers and they are still going ahead with their business trips to Taiwan.

Executives of Taipei's Grand Hotel and Ambassador Hotel said they expected the situation to worsen in the coming months.

The Tourism Bureau yesterday estimated a 20 percent decline in Japanese visitors over the coming three months, or more than NT$1 billion (US$33.9 million) in lost income, Tourism Bureau Deputy Director-General Wayne Liu said.

Last year, 1.08 million Japanese people visited Taiwan, making Japan the second-largest source of tourists after China, he said.

The ripple effect from Japans earthquake has also been closely monitored by the local travel -industry owing to heightened concerns over the possibility of wider radiation leaks, a vice general manager of a major travel agency said on condition of anonymity yesterday.

Many travel agencies organized cherry-blossoms sightseeing trips to Japan for later this month and early next month, and the cancellations from customers have been non-stop for the past few days, she said.

The impact is very huge, she said. The industry cant put a loss figure to the impact just yet, but what we can say is that it is significant.

The Kaohsiung Association of Travel Agents said on Tuesday that its members were focusing on Chinese tourists, many of whom canceled travel plans to Japan.

Ma Yi-lung, chairman of the association, said more than 90 percent of people in Kaohsiung who purchased Tokyo tour packages arriving before March 21 have canceled their reservations. Even those planning to travel to the island of Okinawa, more than 1,500km away from Tokyo, have called off their plans, he added.

Overall, Taiwans hospitality stocks saw their share prices plunge for the third day yesterday, although at a less severe rate. Shares have gone down 12.1 percent over the past few days, the Taiwan Stock Exchanges data showed.

Formosa International closed down 4.6 percent at NT$416.5, after dipping by the 7 percent daily limit on Monday and Tuesday. Ambassador Hotel, which also nosedived 7 percent in the first two days of the week, was down 0.5 percent at NT$38.8 yesterday.

Phoenix Tours International, the only travel company that is listed on the GRETAI Securities Market, dropped 1.7 percent to NT$64.5. Its stock was also down by the daily limit for the earlier two days. To offset the losses, Ma said Kaohsiung travel agents hoped Taiwans plan to open its doors to independent Chinese tourists between next month and May would attract more Chinese tourists.

Taipeis hotel managers said they have already begun a campaign to attract more domestic customers, as well as travelers from China and Southeast Asian nations.

Kinger Lau, executive director at Goldman Sachs Group Ltd, said yesterday the brokerage has an overweight view on Taiwans tourism sector, because the decreasing tourists from Japan would be offset by increases in Chinese tourists.

Tourists from China became the biggest driver for Taiwans tourism sector last year, accounting for 29 percent of all travelers to Taiwan, compared with 19 percent from Japan.

Chinese tourists will keep growing this year because of the release of the Chinese Independent Visitors Scheme (CIVS), possibly starting from next month, Lau said at a press conference in Taipei.

The rising spending of Chinese visitors would offset the decreasing tourists from Japan, driving up the tourism sectors earnings and valuations, Lau said.

ADDITIONAL REPORTING BY CNA AND AFP

Cooperation seen as key in medical tourism industry
Staff Writer, with CNA
4 April 2011
Taipei Times

Taiwanese tour operators are trying to involve more industries in an effort to promote medical tourism, with the latest trial drawing interest from a local airline, according to a local travel agency.

Sammy Yen, general manager of Lion Travels medical tourism unit, yesterday said the company had partnered with Taiwans second-largest air carrier, EVA Airways Corp, in an experimental campaign that began on Friday to provide medical tours to travelers from Hong Kong and Macau.

COOPERATION NEEDED

The executive said medical tourism in Taiwan would only thrive if different sectors were to team up in similar cooperative strategies.

By working with airlines or hospitals, we can establish a network instead of relying on random points of business, he said.

CHINESE TRAVELERS

Yen also said he hoped independent tourists from China would provide a boost to the sector.

The upcoming individual trips offer visitors more flexibility and privacy in their tours, which will help contribute to medical tourism, Yen said.

TOUR GROUPS

Chinese tourists to Taiwan are currently required to visit as members of tour groups rather than independently, but Taipei and Beijing have reportedly discussed allowing independent travelers to enter Taiwan.

Shin Kong Wu Ho-Su Memorial Hospital, a major of player in promoting the medical tourism industry, works with Lion Travel.

However, it added that the government needed to play its part if the sector is to prosper in Taiwan.

Individual travel for Chinese tourists likely to be introduced by early July
8 April 2011
Taipei Times

The government is likely to lift the ban on visits by individual Chinese tourists by the start of July, Premier Wu Den-yih yesterday said, offering a further boost to increasing the cross-strait routes and flights of Taiwanese airlines.

Taiwans Tourism Bureau and Chinas Tourism Administration are expected to finish discussing the details in early June, Wu said.

The ban will be lifted no later than July 1, as both Taiwan and China want the change introduced as soon as possible, Wu told a media briefing after attending a business gathering yesterday afternoon.

The stocks of the nations two major airlines both rose to their daily limits, with China Airlines Ltd (CAL,) closing at NT$18.15 (US$0.62), and EVA Airways Corp (EVA,) closing at NT$24.65.

The two airlines have both supported the governments decision to lift the ban on visits by individual Chinese tourists.

EVA spokesman Nieh Kuo-wei said the company expected its cross-strait routes and flights to further increase as a result of the change.

CAL remained optimistic about the relaxation, but also expressed the hope that the Tourism Bureau would ease restrictions on such visitors during discussions with Chinas Tourism Administration, the companys public relations manager Jessica Pan said.

If too many restrictions are imposed on visits by individual Chinese tourists, fewer will want to come to Taiwan and that would limit benefits from the change, Pan said by telephone yesterday.

Currently, the passenger load factor on the two airlines cross-strait flights is about 80 percent.

We have not seen the number of passengers on cross-strait flights climb, as the relaxation has not yet been factored into the number of passengers, Nieh said.

However, Nieh still expected the companys revenues in the second quarter to be up from the first quarter on the back of stronger momentum in its cargo business.

The busy season for the airline sectors cargo business is usually the second quarter, while passenger business demand often recovers in the third quarter, Nieh said.

As for Japans massive earthquake, CAL and EVA both said the quake would have only a limited impact on their revenues.

Although EVA cancelled 55 flights to Japan, the impact on total revenue would be less than 10 percent, as the Japanese routes accounted for about 10 percent of its total revenue, Nieh said.

CAL also reduced its Taipei-Sapporo flights from seven to two per week starting from last Friday, though it had decided not to cancel any flights to Tokyo, Pan said.

But we have used smaller aircraft on the Taipei-Tokyo route to deal with flights with fewer passengers, helping the company save costs, Pan said.

Both CAL and EVA said the passenger load factor on their flights to Tokyo still stood at between 50 percent and 60 percent, thanks to continuing demand from business passengers.

Beijing and Shanghai get Taiwan green light
18 May 2011
SCMP

Taiwan says it will allow 500 individual mainland tourists from Beijing and Shanghai to visit the island every day, starting next month, in a further sign of warming cross-strait ties.

The new measure, expected to be implemented before the end of next month, would not only help increase the number of visitors to Taiwan, but would also give the island's tourism a boost, Taiwanese Premier Wu Den-yih said in Taipei yesterday.

"Initially, the [daily] ceiling limit will be set at 500, and hopefully they will be able to come visit before the end of June," Wu said in delivering the government's cross-strait policy during a press conference marking his third year in office.

Mainland tourists are allowed to visit only in groups, with the cap raised in April from 2,000 to 4,000 a day. The group policy went into effect in July 2008, two months after mainland-friendly President Ma Ying-jeou took office and adopted a fence-mending policy with Beijing, once Taipei's political rival.

Wu said officials from Taiwan and the mainland reached a consensus on general terms during talks this month, and all that remained were minor issues, such as what other mainland cities should be included in the agreement.

"Some people have suggested that Chongqing , Chengdu , Guangzhou, Hangzhou and Xiamen be included," Wu said, adding that officials were still discussing that option.

From July 2008 to April, more than 2.2 million mainland tourists visited the island, generating about NT$110 billion (HK$28.9 billion) in revenue.

The tourists have so far been allowed to visit only in groups over fears that they might overstay their visas and work illegally.

Wu said the opening up to mainland tourists had resulted in investors spending about NT$160 billion on building or expanding hotels. Local tourism operators have also bought about 1,500 new buses.

Taiwan Girds for Chinese Tourist Influx
Jun 1, 2011
Bloomberg

Chu Shuang-te is scrambling to finish building a restaurant in Taipei 101, the world’s second-tallest skyscraper, for Michelin-starred chain Din Tai Fung. He aims to open in time for Taiwan’s next wave of Chinese tourists.

“We’ve been working overtime since March,” said Chu, a manager at the dumpling specialist, as a 30-strong construction crew clattered drills behind him. Taiwan is about to permit more Chinese visitors and the restaurant wants to open in July to make the most of the opportunity, Din Tai Fung said.

Taiwan is preparing to allow individual tourists from China for the first time since a civil war ended in 1949, hoping they will throng attractions such as the 106-story tower. The move, due as early as this month, may take Chinese arrivals to 4 million next year from less than 200,000 in 2008, when a ban on group trips was lifted, according to estimates from Barclays Capital.

“Resurgent tourist spending as millions more Chinese visit Taiwan will boost consumption and real-estate investment, similar to the pattern seen in Singapore since 2004,” said Wai Ho Leong, an economist at Barclays Capital in Singapore. “The island’s pursuit of closer commercial ties with China is crucial to raising its long-term economic growth potential.”

Taiwanese President Ma Ying-jeou, aiming for re-election in January on a platform of improved economic links that opponents view as a threat to autonomy, has said tourism is booming since he let Chinese visit in organized groups. Allowing individuals will spur $4 billon of investment into the industry in the next five years, said Chiang Pin-kung, Taiwan’s top negotiator with China.

Shares to Gain

Formosa International Hotels Corp. (2707) and Ambassador Hotel (2704) are among the companies that will gain and their shares are worth buying, Fubon Securities Co. Ltd. said.

Taipei-based Formosa, Taiwan’s biggest listed hotel company, will climb about 7 percent to NT$630 ($22) over the next six months, while Ambassador will jump almost 12 percent to NT$54, according to Fubon.

Enmity between Taiwan and China has eased since Ma took office in May 2008, dropping his predecessor’s pro-independence stance and improving commercial ties with the world’s fastest- growing major economy. The two sides on Jan. 1 cut import taxes on more than 800 products under their first trade treaty.

China, which views Taiwan as part of its territory, overtook Japan last year as the island’s largest source of tourist arrivals with 1.63 million visitors, up 68 percent from 2009. The daily quota for Chinese traveling in groups is 4,000, and the Taipei-based United Daily News reported May 18 the initial limit for individuals will be 500.

Visitor Limits

“We believe that once the individual visitor scheme starts, the daily limit and other conditions will be loosened, benefiting the Taiwan hotel sector and retailers in the long term,” Yoshihiko Kawashima, an analyst at Daiwa-Cathay Capital Markets Co. Ltd., wrote in a research note in April.

Marriott International Inc. and Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide Inc. (HOT) are among global hoteliers increasing capacity in Taiwan. Marriott, the largest publicly traded U.S. lodging chain, is working with Taiwanese businessman B. V. Riu on a NT$6.2 billion, 352-room franchise agreement.

Taiwan’s Taiex Tourist Index, which tracks eight companies, has surged 47 percent in the past year, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. The benchmark Taiex stock index has jumped 22 percent in the same period.

Taiwan’s export-led economic growth quickened to a 24-year high of 10.88 percent in 2010 after a recession the previous year. Officials have raised interest rates and approved property and luxury taxes to curb price pressures, while increasing wages to help people cope with higher costs.

Political Risk

The more than 2 million Chinese visitors to Taiwan since 2008 have delivered an NT$100 billion economic benefit, said Chiang, chairman of the Straits Exchange Foundation.

Building on such gains depends on sustaining the thaw in ties. China has more than 1,000 missiles deployed at locations opposite Taiwan, according to the U.S. Department of Defense, and has threatened to invade if the island declares independence.

“There are political and military risks,” said Chang Wu- ueh, a professor of political science at Taipei’s Tamkang University. “Ma needs to assure Taiwanese people that he is improving ties with China and protecting Taiwan’s autonomy.”

The opposition Democratic Progressive Party candidate for president, Tsai Ing-wen, has accused Ma of selling Taiwan short with a policy of rapprochement “boxed in a frame set by China.”

The pro-independence DPP governed from 2000 until Ma’s Kuomintang took power in 2008. The DPP rallied tens of thousands of people in Taipei last year to protest the trade accord, saying it risked giving China too much sway over Taiwan.

Companies are betting tourism growth will weather political risks. China is Taiwan’s biggest trading partner and investment destination, adding pressure for detente.

Taipei-based Ambassador, Taiwan’s second-largest listed lodging company, plans to open a 162-room hotel in the capital this year and another with 220 rooms in 2013.

“Chinese tourists are going to help retailers and boost domestic consumption,” said Bill Chen, a vice president at Ambassador. “They will benefit everyone, not just hotels.”

Fri, Jul 08, 2011
Chinese tourism arrivals drop 30%
Taipei Times
By Shelley Shan / Staff Reporter

The ongoing plasticizer scare and a derailment on the Alishan Forest Railway in May could be behind a 30 percent drop in the number of Chinese tourists last month from the same period last year, the Tourism Bureau said yesterday.

Statistics from the bureau showed that about 150,000 Chinese tourists visited Taiwan in May, a drop of 16 percent compared with the same period last year.

While the bureau says the temporary decline could be attributed to the train derailment, in which five Chinese tourists were killed, and the plasticizer scare, some travel agents believe the decline could continue this month and into next month.

Chen Chen-hung (陳振宏), a representative of the Comfort Travel Service Co, said Chinese tourists could have decided to wait for the implementation of the free independent traveler (FIT) policy on June 28 before making their travel plans.

July and August were generally not peak seasons for Chinese tourists, Chen said, adding that Japan is also promoting itself to foreign tourists with low-priced deals and South Korea could introduce deals aimed at attracting families, so the number of visitors to Taiwan could drop 20 percent more this month and next.

The FIT policy would not necessarily boost the number of Chinese tourists, because they are confused about the details, Chen said, noting the FIT program and package tours require different travel permits and follow different regulations.

Travel Agent Association Secretary-General Roget Hsu (許高慶) said the Tourism Bureau should come up with new promotional strategies and scenic spots to attract tourists since it has been three years since Chinese tourists were officially allowed to visit Taiwan.

Tourism Bureau Deputy Director General Wayne Liu (劉喜臨) said the bureau planned to offer more information sessions in provinces from which most Chinese tourists came — and seek to reassure Chinese that traveling in Taiwan is safe by relying on Chinese journalists based here.

Meanwhile, the Splendor Hotel Kaohsiung in Greater Kaohsiung said it was offering special treatment to the first Chinese FITs to visit the city.

The four visitors, from Amoy, Fujian Province, were greeted upon arrival at Kaohsiung International Airport on Wednesday night by Tourism Bureau officials and hotel staffers.

The Splendor said it would provide the visitors with Taiwanese cellphones, free airport pick-up and free shuttle bus service to the Zuoying Taiwan High Speed Rail station. During their two-night stay, the four would also have access to the hotel’s gym and its observatory free of charge, the hotel said. The hotel has been working with Far Eastern Department Store in the city to entice each of the tourists with NT$1,000 in gift coupons for the store.

Other department stores have also said they are ready to welcome the solo tourists. TALEES Department Store said it has printed a sightseeing brochure in simplified Chinese characters, while Dream Mall said it would give the tourists special shopping coupons.

Additional reporting by CNA

Wed, Jul 27, 2011
http://taipeitimes.com/News/editorials/archives/2011/07/27/2003509220
Policies on tourism are driven only by money
By Philippe Mckay

The recent expansion of the tourism industry after President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) swept to power in the wake of pan-green voters staying at home is becoming a canary in the mine shaft scenario.

Earlier this year, protests against hotel developments on Aboriginal land in Taitung came to the public’s attention. The reality of the nation’s tourism policy is revealing itself in areas along the Northeast Coast National Scenic Area that are being expropriated.

Government policies and rules ensuring Aboriginal land rights and the preservation of nature have been revealed to be completely useless and not worth the paper they were written on.

The increasing emphasis on tourism reflects the government’s agenda, demonstrating an increased reliance on tourism to maintain economic growth, which in turn achieves political goals.

Government decisionmakers are setting their sights on meeting the needs of the tourism industry, which is increasing the repetition of the mantra that Chinese tourism will be the nation’s savior. However, tourism has negative effects. One needs to only look at Hainan Island in China and Bali in Indonesia, where social ills brought about by the rapid development of the tourism industry are becoming increasingly obvious.

Taipei has traditionally used the rest of the country as its playground and has regularly used its clout as the capital to shape policy to its own agenda. Compounding this is the change of focus of the tourism industry now that its target customer is Chinese.

The nation’s tourism policy is purely about monetary objectives. The idea of developing better relations with China through tourism is unrealistic.

Furthermore, the development of tourism in Taiwan has done little to help Aborigines. A quick look at the history of domestic tourism and how the tourism industry’s previous attempts at development with respect to Aboriginal communities reveals much.

The Aboriginal “parks” constructed to “exhibit” Aboriginal culture to Taiwanese visitors during the past 20 or so years have done little to help these communities. The reality is that the country’s tourism policy has done more to expropriate the cultural features of Aboriginal identity by forcing it to conform, as a product, to its consumers’ expectations rather than ensuring the survival and vivacity of these dynamic cultures.

Policies that protect the environmental, cultural and public good do not really exist in Taiwan. Only legislation that expands the material interests of bureaucrats, politicians and an exclusive group of private interests exists.

The reality of what is happening on the east coast, in regards to policy, is that there will be an increase in political and administrative corruption cases as funds flow in and fatten the pockets of a select few. Legislation for the good of all Taiwanese is now being swept aside as cross-strait “relations” are developing “positively.”

This is not a good sign for Taiwanese society. It definitely makes it hard for the canary.

Philippe McKay is a graduate student at National Sun Yat-sen University.

Mainland visitors to Taiwan to hit 1.6m
Updated: 2011-08-04 09:05
China Daily

HEFEI - The number of mainland travelers to visit Taiwan island this year is expected to reach 1.6 million, a remarkable rise over 2010, according to a Taiwan official in Anhui province.

David W. J. Hsieh, the vice-chairman of the Taiwan Strait Tourism Association said during the Taiwan Tourism Briefings on the Mainland in the provincial capital of Anhui on August 3 he anticipated a bright future for cross-Straits tourism in years to come.

During the first half year of this year, the number of mainland visitors to Taiwan had hit 600,000 trips after both sides allowed cross-Straits travel three years ago, he said.

Ming-Ching Chiang, the deputy executive secretary of the Taiwan Strait Tourism Association, said he was sure that the promotion of Taiwan trips among mainland visitors would be a great stimulus to those intending to travel to Taiwan, which is branded as "the Heart of Asia", in the future.

Zhang Xueping, the vice-president of the Anhui Tourism Association, said during the event's opening ceremony that she recalled Anhui Vice-Governor Hua Jianhui saying on August 2 while meeting visitors from Taiwan that she expected the number of visitors to Taiwan from Anhui province alone to climb to 100,000, five-and-a-half times more than the figure in 2010.

The choice by the Taiwan Strait Tourism Association to put the first station in Hefei for their briefings on the mainland trips showed their best wish and sincerity in luring more visitors from Anhui, Zhang said.

She said she was confident that Anhui will strive to increase the number of visitors from the province to Taiwan above the 100,000 mark.

Dr. Yang Ruizong, the director of the Taiwan Strait Tourism Association Beijing Office, said that he anticipated mainland tourists to Taiwan would visit with different themes and would have a better look instead of a quick glimpse.

Xu Daofu, the general manager of the Taiwan Entry Department of fly168.com, said all the people cross-Straits shared the same bond and mainland travelers would be treated to the full while touring Taiwan.

Sat, Aug 06, 2011
Penghu still waiting for a single Chinese traveler
Taipei Times Staff Writer, with CNA

Not a single independent tourist from China has visited Penghu, a week after the inception of a free independent traveler (FIT) program for Taiwan’s outlying islands.

“It might be just a short-term phenomenon in the initial stage, and we hope that more independent Chinese travelers will visit the islands,” Mainland Affairs Council Deputy Minister Liu Te-shun (劉德勳) said.

The government launched the FIT program for Kinmen, Matsu and Penghu on July 29, allowing residents from China’s Fujian Province to sightsee independently on the islands.

However, contrary to expectations, the number of such travelers to these destinations has been very small.

Only 280 tourists from Fujian Province have visited Kinmen and 111 have traveled to Matsu, but none have visited Penghu, the council said.

Chinese visitors to the islands under the FIT program cannot visit Taiwan proper.

FALLING SHORT

The number of Chinese visiting Taiwan proper on the FIT program, which began on June 28, has also fallen far short of the government’s expectations.

Up to 500 Chinese tourists per day can enter Taiwan proper under the FIT program, but only 852 have come so far.

Taiwan began allowing Chinese tour groups to visit in mid-2008, with a daily ceiling of 3,000.

The government came up with the FIT program with the aim of providing a fresh stimulus to the economy and providing more benefits to the retail sector and small businesses around the country.

Mon, Sep 12, 2011
Chinese tourist numbers bounce back
By Shelley Shan
Taipei Times

The number of Chinese tourists rebounded last month after a three-month year-on-year slump, registering a 17.6 percent rise compared with same period last year, the Tourism Bureau said yesterday.

Bureau statistics show that 90,599 Chinese tourists arrived last month, an average of 2,923 a day.

The bureau said the number of Chinese tourists had decreased consecutively from May to July, which was mainly attributed to the derailment of the Alishan Forest Railway train in April and the plasticizer scare in May.

The bureau said that 150,479 Chinese tourists arrived in May, a drop of 16.12 percent compared with the same period last year. The number then plummeted to 70,320 in June and rose to 90,483 in July, leading to a year-on-year drop of 27.94 percent and 2.7 percent respectively.

The decline was halted last month after the bureau stepped up its tourism campaigns in China, assuring Chinese media and tourists that it was safe to travel in Taiwan.

Asked if the growth momentum was likely to continue this month, the bureau said the peak travel season generally did not include September because it is the time when most students return to school.

The bureau’s report on the first week of this month showed an average of 1,500 Chinese tourist arrivals a day.

It said the number would gradually rise from the middle of this month and would peak on China’s National Day Golden Week, which begins around Oct. 1.

Meanwhile, the bureau has launched random inspections of Chinese tour groups to ensure Taiwanese travel agencies are offering quality tours.

The bureau said it would target the travel agencies that had received the most customer complaints.

More tourists await nod to visit island individually

BEIJING, Nov. 8 (Xinhua) -- Although winter is yet to arrive, Xia Tingting has been shopping for clothes to wear in spring, when she goes to Taiwan, to attend an outdoor Spring Scream Music Festival on the island's southern beach resort Kenting in April.

The 27-year-old Chongqing native, for whom the music carnival is going to be a stop in a do-it-yourself journey, if all goes according to plan, said she gave up a chance to visit the island with her parents three years ago.

"I prefer making travel plans more flexible," she said. "Visiting traditional scenic spots doesn't have much appeal for young people like me.

"I prefer to wander around the streets in Taipei and taste street snacks that other people have recommended online."

It's going to take a while yet before her dream is fulfilled, as Chongqing residents are not eligible to visit Taiwan as individual tourists. But this situation is expected to change.

In June, Taiwan first opened its door to 290 mainland individual tourists, but only residents of three selected cities - Beijing, Shanghai and Fujian's Xiamen - were allowed to go.

About four months later, the Taiwan Affairs Office of the State Council announced that the mainland tourism authority has proposed to include more mainland cities in the trial program, without giving specifics.

There's going to be an addition of two to five cities on the new list. Tianjin, Nanjing, Guangzhou, Shenzhen, Chongqing and Hangzhou are the most competitive candidates, the Guangzhou-based Nanfang Daily reported, citing insiders as saying.

Liu Yanxian, deputy head of the marketing department of Chongqing tourist bureau, told China Daily that the city was highly likely to edge past the others.

"Chongqing is a metropolis in Southwest China having many historical connections with the island," he said. "And the city has established direct air links with Taiwan a long time ago."

Ma Yiliang, a researcher at China Tourism Academy, said there were several reasons why different mainland cities were competing to send visitors to Taiwan.

"By pushing forward individual tourism, the local government can win the public's favor. The program could also bring economic benefits and improve the image of the concerned city," Ma said.

However, some tourism agencies were skeptical about the necessity of introducing a new tourism program at the moment.

"The turnout of individual tourists was far less than expected on earlier occasions," said Allen Y. L. Hai, chairman of the Taiwan-based Pro-Tour Express. "I don't believe adding more cities could change the situation."

Statistics from the Taiwan Strait Tourism Association show that in June, the first month Taiwan opened its doors to individual tourists from the mainland, only 633 visited the island.

The market share of the mainland's individual tourists was quite small compared to that of group tours, numbering 3,000 to 4,000 people a day, Hai said. "I suggest expanding the group tourism market first, rather than rushing to open more cities for individual tours."

Ma said the program hasn't taken off that well as the application procedure for individual tours is not convenient, and the cost is usually higher than that of going as part of a group.

"Taiwan tourism authorities should develop more travel products, and offer something different from group tour routes," Ma said.

Last year, about 1.66 million mainland tourists visited Taiwan, while the number of mainland tourists traveling to Hong Kong reached 22.68 million.

Travel fair opens in Taipei for cross-strait tourism development

TAIPEI, Nov. 11 (Xinhua) -- The Taipei Cross-Strait Travel Fair opened here Friday, with tourist operators from Taiwan and the mainland eagerly participating, while officials said that the fair would help promote healthy and orderly tourism development across the Taiwan Strait.

The fair, the sixth of its kind, has attracted about 800 tourist operators and officials from 31 provinces, municipalities and autonomous regions of the Chinese mainland. More than 200 booths are set up for the mainland's tourism operators, while Taiwan counterparts command 120 booths.

Zhu Shanzhong, honorary deputy head of the mainland-based Cross-Strait Tourism Exchange Association (CTEA), said at the opening ceremony that "the Taipei Cross-Strait Travel Fair has become an important window for showing the mainland's tourism resources, an important composition for cross-Strait tourism exchanges, and a fine channel for Taiwan compatriots to better learn and understand the Chinese mainland."

Yinama Naisierding, president of the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region Tourism Association told Xinhua that "we not only bring tourism products to the fair but art performances. We hope that our Taiwan compatriots can gain a deeper understanding of Xinjiang through our introduction and art performances, so that more Taiwan tourists come to Xinjiang."

The Chinese mainland Thursday eased restrictions on package tours to Taiwan by making it easier for residents living in different parts of the mainland to travel together with family to the island. Under old rules, a mainland resident could only join a package tour to Taiwan in the place where he or she held a residence permit, or hukou in Chinese.

Now, a mainland resident can also join a package tour in places where his or her lineal relatives hold residence permits, said a statement from the National Tourism Administration (NTA).

In addition, the NTA's new policy also allows travel agencies to organize tours for a group of people holding different residence permits if they work for the same corporation or organization.

Lai Se-chun, head of the Taiwan Strait Tourism Association Friday expressed appreciation for the new policies at the opening ceremony of the travel fair, saying that she believed cross-Strait tourism exchanges could reach new highs through mutual efforts from both sides.

Statistics from the CTEA show that the number of Taiwan tourists who traveled to the Chinese mainland in 2010 reached 5.14 million, up 14.64 percent from the previous year. And they spent 5.74 billion U.S. dollars during their Chinese mainland trips.

From January to August of 2011, the number of Taiwan tourists visiting the Chinese mainland reached 3.54 million, up 2.46 percent from the same period of last year.

Meanwhile, the number of Chinese mainland tourists traveling to Taiwan in groups has reached 2.82 million since mid 2008, when the authorities in Taiwan lifted a ban on mainlanders' traveling to Taiwan. Moreover, since June 28, 2011, mainlanders have been allowed to travel in Taiwan as individual tourists.

Chuang Yu-Meng, a senior official with the Taichung tourism bureau told Xinhua at the fair that he expected an increasing number of mainland tourists to travel as individuals to Taichung after the more recent law change, as Taichung city is not only a good tourism destination in itself, but an important transport hub. From there, it is easy to reach other famous destinations, such as Ali mountain and the Sun Moon Lake.

Chuang and his colleagues brought tourism brochures and distinctive Taichung food such as pineapple cakes to the travel fair as promotion.

Sat, Nov 26, 2011
Taipei Times
Port of Keelung could top 460,000 passengers: bureau

The number of passenger arrivals at the Port of Keelung could top 460,000 this year because of an increase in travelers arriving by international and cross-strait cruise ships, a Keelung Harbor Bureau official said yesterday.

As of yesterday, the number of international cruise ship passengers had already reached 302,025 this year, up from 300,925 last year.

The number of passengers arriving via scheduled international cruise ships reached about 241,000 as of yesterday, up from 206,917 last year.

Those coming through nonscheduled international cruise ships reached 60,190, compared with 94,008 last year.

Chinese tourists arriving by regular and irregular cross-strait cruise services hit 53,958 by yesterday, up from 44,700 last year.

The number of regular international cruise ship passengers increased because Star Cruises, the main scheduled international cruiseliner, had upgraded from 42,000 gross tonnage (GT) ship SuperStar Libra to the 51,000GT SuperStar Aquarius, bureau deputy director-general Liou Shy-tzong (劉詩宗) said.

He added that 35 currently nonscheduled cruiseliners had informed the Port of Keelung about their scheduled arrivals next year.

As of yesterday, 34 nonscheduled international cruise ships had arrived in the country this year.

“Based on past experience, the actual number could exceed 35 because there might be more cruise ships coming throughout the year,” he said.

Liou said the same growth potential could also be seen in cross-strait cruise services. Currently, the main cross-strait cruise service on COSCO Star brings Chinese travelers from Taizhou, Zhejiang Province, and Xiamen, Fujian Province.

The Port of Keelung estimates the number of Chinese travelers could top 63,500 next year after the renovation project at Taizhou’s port is completed, growing 6.8 percent from this year.

Because of the increase in passengers, the Port of Keelung plans to establish a ferry service center on its western end and a cruise service center on its eastern side.

Liou said an estimated NT$6.4 billion (US$210.6 million) would be invested to construct the cruise service center. The project is subject to approval by the Council for Economic Planning and Development.

The Port of Keelung earlier this month joined the Asia Cruise Terminal Association as one of the organization’s founding members, which would help market Taiwan as a tourist destination.

Mainland tourists to Taiwan to increase
Updated: 2011-10-12 14:06
Xinhua

BEIJING -The Chinese mainland's Association for Tourism Exchange Across the Taiwan Strait and Taiwan's Taiwan Strait Tourism Association will meet in Beijing on Thursday to discuss issues on allowing more mainland cities' residents to visit the island as individual tourists, a mainland spokesman said Wednesday.

The mainland feels positive about expanding the number of mainland cities that Taiwan allows to take individual trips through a trial program, said Yang Yi, spokesman of the State Council Taiwan Affairs Office, at a press conference.

During China's 7-day National Day holiday, more than 21,600 mainland tourists visited Taiwan, including 19,225 who visited in groups and 2,386 as individual tourists, Yang said.

As of October 7, 868,000 tourists, including 11,000 solo tourists, visited Taiwan this year, and a hike in the number is expected after the tourist rush season of October and November, Yang added.

"More mainland tourists visiting Taiwan will help promote understanding between compatriots across the Strait, and we will continue to firmly ensure the sound development of the program," Yang said.

Taiwan began accepting organized tour groups from the mainland in 2008 after years of a policy that banned visits.

Since June 28, Taiwan has opened the door to residents of the mainland cities of Beijing, Shanghai and Xiamen. They can make individual trips to the island through a trial program that is expected to boost cross-Strait travel.

About 290 individual tourists from the mainland arrived in Taiwan on the first day the ban was lifted.

Fri, Dec 09, 2011
Wu targets tourist ceiling
Taipei Times

Premier Wu Den-yih yesterday pledged to raise the daily ceiling on Chinese tourists from 4,000 to 5,000 and relax visa requirements for Chinese business travelers to boost cross-strait tourism and Taiwan’s economy.

Wu, also the Chinese Nationalist Party’s (KMT) vice-presidential candidate, made the promise after meeting representatives from small and medium-sized firms to line up support.

“The government is well aware of the global economic slowdown and is taking steps to minimize its impact,” Wu said. “We believe there is still room to strengthen tourism, among other areas of improvement.”

The KMT administration plans to elevate the daily ceiling on Chinese tourists allowed to enter Taiwan to 5,000 from the current 4,000, Wu said.

In addition, Wu said he would ask immigration authorities to review the possibility of granting Chinese business travelers -multiple-entry visas as trade ties between Taiwan and China deepen.

The convenience will attract more visitors and speed up exchanges, he said.

Tourist visits to Taiwan could set a new record of 6 million this year after reaching 5.42 million in the first 11 months, Wu said.

Many Chinese would like to observe Taiwan’s elections first-hand because the democratic process through which government leaders are chosen is not allowed in China, Wu said.

“It would be a different, but positive way to experience Taiwan,” the premier said.

Meanwhile, the US might grant Taiwanese tourists visa-free status next year, as 124 other nations have done, if Taiwan meets its requirements, Wu said.

That number of countries giving Taiwan visa-free status would have been unimaginable under the Democratic Progressive Party, when the number of countries giving Taiwan visa-free status stayed unchanged for eight years at 54, Wu said.

The business community has voiced its wish that Taiwan preserve friendly ties with China no matter which party wins the -presidential election on Jan. 14.

In other news, Godwin Chang, head of Societe Generale’s Taipei Branch, said chances were high that the French bank would withdraw from Taiwan if the next administration moved drastically from the cross-strait “status quo.”

“Cross-strait stability ranks high in our assessment of country and market risks,” Chang said at a gathering of the European Chamber of Commerce Taipei (ECCT).

Mike Hsieh, executive director of Taikoo Motors Ltd, the exclusive distributor of Volkswagen cars in Taiwan, said he wanted to see policy continuity after the presidential election.

“Consumer sentiment has tremendous bearing on sales of durable goods, including cars,” Hsieh said. “Policy discontinuity will weaken consumer confidence and hurt car sales.”

Hans Fortuin, the representative of the Netherlands Trade and Investment Office, said the elections would not affect Dutch investments because the contending parties share a lot of common ground in terms of economic policy.

More than 1.6 million Chinese mainland tourists visit Taiwan in past 11 months

TAIPEI, Dec. 13 (Xinhua) -- About 213,100 Chinese mainland tourists visited Taiwan last month, up 29.13 percent year on year and a record monthly high, the island's tourism department said Tuesday.

The department said more than 1.6 million mainland tourists visited Taiwan from January to November, up 6.23 percent year on year. The mainland is currently the largest source of tourists for the island.

The number of Japanese tourists, the island's second-largest tourist group, reached a record high of more than 135,000 in November, up nearly 23.7 percent year on year, it said, adding that the number of tourists from the Republic of Korea and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations also saw obvious growth last month.

On the whole, Taiwan saw around 619,000 overseas tourists in November, a record monthly high that is expected to bring the island a step closer to its goal of attracting 6 million overseas tourists this year, the department said in a press release.

It said that nearly 5.44 million overseas tourists visited Taiwan in the past 11 months, a year-on-year increase of almost 8 percent.

The figures are encouraging for Taiwan's tourism and hospitality industry, and the local economy has also benefited from the boom, it said, adding that overseas visitors bought around 10.26 billion New Taiwan dollars (about 340 million U.S. dollars) -worth of goods between January and November.

Wed, Dec 14, 2011
Tourist numbers hit record high
Taipei Times

More than 600,000 international tourists visited Taiwan last month, setting the record for the highest number of entries in a single month, the Tourism Bureau said yesterday.

Statistics from the bureau showed the number of international visitors topped 619,000 last month. About 210,000 tourists were from China, representing year-on-year growth of 29.13 percent. The number of Japanese tourists rose by 23.69 percent to about 135,000.

Double-digit growth was also seen in the number of tourists visiting from Southeast Asia. The number of tourists from Hong Kong and Macau increased by about 10 percent, whereas those from Malaysia rose by 11.5 percent. The strongest growth was seen in the number of Singaporean tourists, which grew by 27.8 percent compared with the same period last year.

Visitors from South Korea grew by 6.89 percent, based on the bureau’s analysis, and although the US and Europe are suffering from weak economies, the number of tourists from the two regions grew by 9.77 percent and 14.94 percent respectively.

Last month’s figures have boosted confidence at the bureau, which set a goal of seeing 6 million international visitors this year.

The accumulated number of international tourists between January and last month was 5,438,890.

Commenting on the impressive figures, the bureau said that it had succeeded in drawing tourists from Hong Kong, China, North America and Europe to some of its attractions on the east coast, including bicycle tours and tours that enable tourists to experience the lives of Aborigines.

It further credited the success to media coverage of Taiwan. Travel guide publisher Lonely Planet, for example, has placed Taiwan on its Best in Travel top 10 countries list for next year.

The bureau said the increase in the number of tourists had helped revive the Alishan area, which was severely damaged by Typhoon Marakot in 2009.

The number of tourists visiting Alishan between January and last month topped 1.3 million, also a record, it said.

Tue, Jan 03, 2012
First PRC medical tourist group to arrive on Feb. 13
Taipei Times Staff Writer, with CNA

The first application for Chinese seeking medical treatment in Taiwan was submitted to immigration officials yesterday, one day after the new initiative took effect.

The application was filed by Taipei-based Shin Kong Wu Ho-Su Memorial Hospital, which is expecting to receive a 26-member group from Liaoning Province, the National Immigration Agency said.

Under a new measure announced by the government on Friday, Chinese nationals can now visit Taiwan for health checkups or cosmetic surgery and medical facilities qualified to provide such services can apply for visas for the Chinese patients.

It would take five days to review and approve applications, agency Director-General Hsieh Li-kung (謝立功) said.

Under the program, visitors can stay in Taiwan for up to 15 days, including three non-medical care days for shopping and tourism, he said.

The first group of medical-visa visitors will be headed by the president of a Liaoning-based hospital, the agency said.

Scheduled to arrive on Feb. 13, the group will undergo advanced health screening programs, such as positron emission tomography, and learn more about Taiwan’s techniques in health checkups and cosmetic surgery.

The group is also scheduled to visit Taroko Gorge, Alishan National Scenic Area and other scenic spots during their six-day trip.

Before the new initiative came into force, Chinese seeking health checkups or plastic surgery could only apply for such services after arriving in Taiwan.

The new program would provide more business opportunities in the areas of health checkups and cosmetic surgery, officials said.

Compared with China, Taiwan provides quality services at more modest prices, the agency said.

this is nice news, opening up benefits almost everybody....:cheers:

Express passenger liner facilitates cross-Strait homecomings

FUZHOU, Jan. 20 (Xinhua) -- More and more passengers either from Chinese mainland or Taiwan are heading home for the Spring Festival, boarding the Haixia, a high-speed passenger ferry linking the city of Taichung in Taiwan and Pingtan county in the mainland's Fujian province.

"During the Spring Festival travel rush, it is more than difficult to get a ticket for a flight or other cross-Strait sea routes," said a Taiwan resident surnamed Chow who has worked in the mainland for more than 10 years and only occasionally returns to Taiwan for a New Year's family reunion.

On Thursday, the Haixia, literally meaning "Strait," ferried some 500 passengers on its last voyage ahead of the Spring Festival, marking the most passengers it has carried since its maiden voyage on Nov. 30 last year, according to Ye Huatao, general manager of Haixia's operator Fujian Cross Strait Ferry Corporation.

"Most of the passengers are heading back home either from Taiwan to the mainland or vice versa," Ye said. "Tickets for cross-Strait flights or other sea routes have all been in short supply."

Lin Shaoning and his family chose the Haixia for a different reason. He got a refund on his flight from Taipei to Xiamen, Fujian province, because the Taichung-Pingtan route would markedly shorten their journey back home.

"It is only a 10-plus-minute drive from the port of Pingtan to my parents' home, but a two-hour drive from Xiamen," said Lin.

Chien Heng-chui, Lin's wife and a native of Taiwan, has travelled to Fujian for the Spring Festival in recent years, and she found this year's trip to be "the most convenient ever."

The Haixia sails at a speed of 83 kilometers per hour and can cross the Taiwan Strait in 2.5-3 hours, depending on weather and the size of waves, according to Ye.

Services provided on the vessel are also very good, Chien said, adding that she is planning a return trip on the Haixia in about 20 days.

Since last November, the Haixia has carried an estimated 1,500 people across the Taiwan Strait, according to Ye.

The Taichung-Pingtan route is not the quickest for Mr. Chou, a businessman from Keelung, Taiwan, but he would like his two daughters to "feel what it is like on the Haixia."

Moreover, a single ticket costs 400 yuan (about 63.36 U.S. dollars), a price Chou considers "very desirable."

"I hope the journey home that the Haixia provides will be as fast and smooth as promised," Chou said.

The Haixia has also attracted travel agents from Taiwan who are interested in reaching out to more and more mainland tourists.

Sunny Tsai, the director of a travel agency in Taichung, took the Haixia on an inspection tour to Fujian in mid-January. After two days, he decided to lay out a tour route spanning the entire island of Taiwan and scenic spots in Fujian like Wuyi Mountain and Meizhou Island.

"A round-trip journey via the Haixia will be a highlight of the route," Tsai said.

Tsai was accompanied by over 150 others working in the Taiwan tourism industry, and they were all looking for investment opportunities in Pingtan.

"Pingtan will serve as a starting point, from which our tour packages will be extended to cover the entire mainland," said Chang Jing-yun, head of the inspection group and secretary general of the Taiwan Travel Association.

The Haixia can carry 760 passengers and 260 cars, making it very competitive in organizing large tour groups with more than 500 members, Ye Huatao said.

According to Ye, the Haixia has mostly been operating as a charter vessel since its maiden voyage, with eight return trips conducted in December and 12 planned for January and February, respectively.

As of March this year, the ferry will set sail on a regular basis, departing from Pingtan at 9:00 a.m. and returning from Taiwan at 2:00 p.m. every Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday, Ye said.

"The Haixia, once operating regularly, will better facilitate cross-Strait trips," he said.

The corporation is also expected to purchase another vessel this year, promising to open a new route between Pingtan and Taipei, according to Ye.

"Expanded routes across the Strait will bring along expanded exchanges between people on both sides," Ye said.

Taiwan's sightseeing sector reaps 5 bln USD in profits from mainland tourists

TAIPEI, Jan. 28 (Xinhua) -- Tourists from the Chinese mainland brought more than 5 billion U.S. dollars in profits to Taiwan's sightseeing sector in about three-and-a-half years, the island's mainland affairs department estimated on Saturday.

By the end of last year, more than 3.05 million mainland tourists visited Taiwan since the island allowed mainland tourists to visit in tour groups in July 2008, the department said.

It estimated that each mainland tourist spent 263.09 U.S. dollars each day in the island and stayed for 6.5 nights on average, resulting in billions of dollars in profits for the island's tourism sector.

Taiwan also increased the daily quota of visiting mainland tourists from 3,000 to 4,000 on Jan. 1, 2011.

Since the island opened to independent visits by mainlanders last June, a total of 38,549 mainlanders were approved to visit the island, with 29,187 touring Taiwan within the 15-day limit, the department said, stressing that none of these visitors illegally prolonged their stay in the island.

Fri, Feb 10, 2012
Taiwan to allow individual tourists from more cities
Taipei Times with CNA

Taiwan will open its doors to individual tourists from eight more Chinese cities, but the daily quota is not likely to increase, the Tourism Bureau said yesterday.

After a two-day meeting between the Taipei-based Taiwan Strait Tourism Association and the Beijing-headquartered Cross-Strait Tourism Association that started on Wednesday in Hong Kong, the bureau said new measures for the Free Independent Traveler (FIT) program remain under discussion.

The program, which was launched in June last year, allows up to 500 independent travelers per day from Beijing, Shanghai and Xiamen to visit Taiwan.

According to bureau statistics, an average of 184 Chinese nationals per day have taken advantage of the program since the agreement took effect.

Despite declining to reveal the names of the eight cities, Tourism Bureau Deputy Director-General David Hsieh (謝勤益) said those with more developed economies and established travel industries were more likely to get picked to be included in the program.

Mainland Affairs Council spokesman Liu Te-shun (劉德勳) said after the meeting that differences remained over which cities to include, so more discussions were needed.