The Taiwanese government is upbeat about increasing the number of Filipino tourist arrivas in Taiwan by 10 percent this year despite the novel corona virus.
“We will try very hard. We are still targeting a 10 percent increase, but it’s very challenging. I do believe that the corona virus affects the tourism industry around the world not only between the Philippines and Taiwan,” Ambassador Peiyung Hsu, Taipei Economic and Cultural Office in the Philippines, told reporters Friday during the launch of the island’s new tourism ambassador.
“We have taken all the necessary measures [to ensure that tourists in Taiwan are safe]. We also banned people traveling from China, Hong Kong and Macau. We are trying our best to have a very good quarantine measures to monitor the situation,” Hsu said.
The Philippines in recent years has become a key market for Taiwan’s new southbound tourists.
The number of tourists from the Philippines visiting Taiwan in 2019 increased 20 percent and exceeded 450,000 visitors.
A significant percentage of those arrival figures are 20 to 39 years old, according to the Tourism Bureau’s visitor trends survey.