Trial for individual tours to Taiwan
By Lu Feiran |
00:43 UTC+8 March 8, 2011
|
Print Edition
Print Edition
Tourists from Chinese 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.
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.
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