::::
Before the pandemic, Chinese tourists made up the largest proportion of Taiwan’s international visitors, but they have been unable to enter the country for more than three years. Many wondered if the travel relationship between the two countries would resume in the near future.
Video script:
It has been a long time since Chinese tourists crowded the concourses of Taiwan’s airports. Flights between the two countries are usually half empty. Most passengers were either returning home or traveling on business.
While passenger numbers are low, several airlines hope to increase the number of weekly flights between Taiwan and mainland China starting in mid-June. Because of the pandemic, Beijing banned individual Chinese tourists from traveling to Taiwan in August 2019, and Taiwan banned Chinese group travel in 2020.
The Taiwan Association of Travel Agents recently sent representatives to Beijing, so plans to reopen travel between the two countries may be in the works. But Lim Yi Soon, the association’s representative, said he had not received any notice of the restrictions being lifted.
Lim also said the government has been promoting many initiatives to encourage international tourism, including cash incentives. But he added that the government had made no effort to attract Chinese tourists.
Even as the two countries reopen to tourism, more problems could arise. Ninety percent of Chinese use mobile payment methods, but Taiwanese may face some hurdles when applying for Chinese e-payment accounts. Staff in Taiwan’s tourism industry said they would try their best to arrange travel in China and avoid places that don’t accept cash payments.
Taiwan’s tourism industry has begun to rebuild after the epidemic, but cross-strait tourism may not be so easy.
Comment
latest newsmore
