Taiwan receives record tourist numbers in September

September 2011 saw record numbers of tourist arrivals in Taiwan, according to Taiwan Tourism Bureau.

The island received over 470,000 tourist arrivals in the month of September alone, a number which represents the highest monthly figure on record and an increase of 9.92% year-on-year.

Throughout the year, 2011 has seen a steady increase in tourist numbers as arrivals reached 4.3 million so far, a year-on-year increase of 6.65%. The majority of inbound tourists have come from Japan, Singapore and Mainland China.

According to statistics from the Taiwan Tourism Bureau, the group that has seen the biggest increase in visitor numbers is tourists from Japan, which increased 17.98% since the previous year with a total of 920,000 Japanese visiting Taiwan in the first nine months of 2011.

The increase in tourist numbers can be attributed to government actions to stimulate Taiwan’s economy throughout 2011. The Taiwan Tourism Bureau has been busy promoting the island’s image to the world to boost tourism to the island.

Thematic travel itineraries have been promoted, particularly to neighboring Asian countries such as Japan, China and Southeast Asian countries who make up the bulk of inbound tourists to the island.

Travel to Taiwan will be particularly promoted in China, the largest group to travel to the island with 1.23 million visitors from Mainland China in the first nine months of 2011 compared with 1.19 last year.

The record numbers of visitors from Mainland China in September reflect changes in policy as of June 2011 which allow individual Chinese tourists to visit Taiwan for the first time in decades.

The metropolitan areas such as Beijing, Shanghai and Xiamen will be particularly targeted, as visitors from these cities are allowed to make independent travel to Taiwan.

The surge in travel between Mainland China and Taiwan has boosted passenger air traffic between the two resulting in an increase in the number of direct flights.

According to the Civil Aeronautics Administration (CAA), passenger volume on cross-Taiwan Strait direct flights reached 5.2 million during the first nine months of 2011, a year-on-year increase of 23%.

‘We have benefited from the launch of the free independent traveller program for Chinese tourists, which is expected to further boost passenger traffic in the long term,’ said CAA Deputy Director General Lee Wan-Li.