Taiwan’s Tourism Bureau launched an incentive April 28 offering transit or transfer passengers at Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport a free half-day tour in the country as part of a government program to attract more visitors from abroad.
Starting May 1, passengers with 7- to 24-hour layovers before their next connecting flight who have valid ROC (Taiwan) visas or come from countries eligible for visa-exempt entry qualify for the scheme. Also eligible are citizens from Cambodia, India, Indonesia, Laos, Myanmar and Vietnam who have applied online for a Taiwan travel authorization certificate.
According to the TB, passengers can choose guided or self-guided tours. The former option offers three itineraries and transit passengers can join one tour during each stopover, it added.
The guided itineraries are “Discover Taipei’s 100 Years of Glory,” which takes visitors to historic sites like Lungshan Temple and National Chiang Kai-shek Memorial Hall in Taipei; “The Beauty of Taiwanese Traditional Arts and Nature,” which explores the architecture of Daxi Old Street and the biodiversity of Bade Pond Ecology Park in Taoyuan City; and “Gourmet Guided Tour with Night Market,” which brings passengers to the Nanya Night Market and the New Taipei City Hall to enjoy a night excursion.
For self-guided tours, the bureau has recommended food, shopping and family fun attractions, adding that a one-way Taoyuan Airport MRT voucher is also included.
The TB also started another incentive “Taiwan the Lucky Land.” Foreign independent travelers who hold non-Taiwan passports and plan stays of 3-90 days, are not members of tour groups and are not applying for any group-related Taiwan travel incentives, can win NT$5,000 (US$162.5) prizes either in the form of a pre-paid card or accommodation vouchers on arrival.
According to the TB, the bureau will continue working with ministries and agencies to encourage foreign tourists to choose Taiwan as their travel destination and achieve its goal of six million visitors to Taiwan this year. (YCH-E)
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