Despite China’s aggressive attempts to isolate it internationally and poach its diplomatic allies by offering them economic sops, Taiwan is already conspicuous on the world map — not only as a key economic player with vast global trading interests, but also as an interesting tourist destination that offers “something for everyone,” as one US tour operator said at the recent New York Times Travel Show.
President Tsai Ing-wen’s (蔡英文) Jan. 11 election victory has generated considerable interest in the nation, not only in the West, but also in the Indo-Pacific region. This widespread engagement needs to be converted into an opportunity to attract tourists from around the world.
Although Taiwan’s participation at the travel show was well received, with crowds turning to watch the colorful aboriginal dances at the Taiwan pavilion, the China pavilion was marked by low visitor attendance. This might have been due to the fear generated by the ongoing COVID-19 crisis in China, which has alarmed countries far and near.
The number of Chinese tourists, once a welcome sight for many iconic stores, has also dropped sharply. Some of the landmark designer stores on New York City’s Fifth Avenue, which had placed huge signboards extending Lunar New Year’s greetings to welcome shoppers from China, looked almost deserted.
Taiwan’s diplomacy, which is geared to raise the nation’s profile, also made a strong presence at the travel show. Taiwan’s highly respected New York-based representative, Taipei Economic and Cultural Office in New York Director-General Lily Hsu (徐儷文), made a strong pitch for the nation’s tourism sector.
Hsu, who has been reaching out to the Taiwanese community and Americans, said that the relationship between Taiwan and the US, which has been greatly strengthened in recent years, was further bolstered by the introduction of reciprocal visa-waiver systems. This, she added, would boost tourism in both directions.
She listed a number of impressive achievements for Taiwan:
“Taiwan has also received a lot of international recognition from the media: InterNations’ Expat City Ranking 2019 identified Taipei as the No. 1 city for expats to live in; Travel + Leisure also listed Taiwan as one of its Best Places to Travel to in 2020.”
Tourism plays a vital role in a country’s relationship with other nations, and complements political, economic and sociocultural ties. By attracting US tourists to Taiwan, for example, the two sides would forge mutual understanding.
Tourism also helps correct misconceptions and knowledge deficits among US tourists — or, for that matter, any other visitors. Besides being an important source of revenue, tourism can generate goodwill and also serve as a cultural bridge builder for Taiwan. Tourism strategists’ argument that each satisfied foreign visitor becomes the receiving nation’s ambassador upon their return is not without merit.
Taiwan Tourism Bureau in New York Director Claire Wen (溫佳思) said that direct travel to Taiwan was available from China Airlines and EVA Air, in addition to a “number of easy flight connections available on non-Taiwanese airlines with a brief layover in their home countries.”
In an interview at the New York Times Travel Show, Wen said: “Taiwan has a unique natural environment, with 268 mountains that exceed 3,000m in height. With vast changes in altitude within short distances, Taiwan makes it easy to witness different flora and fauna, making it an island of natural wonder. Taiwan’s mountains are highly accessible by public transport, and hiking routes are well planned, with each route offering opportunities to experience different local cultures and cuisine. We welcome all international tourists to come and enjoy the beauty of Taiwan.”
Wen’s focus on Taiwan’s mountains was in line with the theme of Taiwan’s participation at the show, which was “2020 — the Year of Mountain Tourism.” The Taiwan Tourism Bureau’s presentation was supported by China Airlines and EVA Air presented at the show.
Taiwan’s natural evolution has fascinated both geologists and climatologists. Background information provided by the bureau said that about 6 million years ago the northern Luzon Volcanic Arc located to the west of the Philippine Sea Plate, started to hit the Eurasia continent near present-day Taiwan.
The sedimentary rock and the volcanic arc on the continental shelf near Taiwan were pushed toward each other. The upheaval caused them to emerge from the sea. This was the origins of these so-called folded mountains.
Nearly 3 million years ago, the Central Mountain Range, the low and gentle hills and plains in the west, and the volcanic arc that is the core of coastal mountains in the east combined. Taiwan was then formally created, and this is why it is a narrow and long island with high mountains stretching down the middle from north to south.
Taiwan attracted about 11.84 million tourists from around the world last year. While this might be an impressive figure, there is still a great deal of untapped potential.
In addition to leisure tourists who appreciate Taiwan’s cuisine, arts and culture, the number of high-spending business travelers is also rising. Many businesspeople and corporate representatives also attend Taiwan’s trade shows, particularly industry-specific exhibitions with the latest technology.
The US-China trade dispute has raised the number of business travelers visiting Taiwan with a view toward identifying ways to diversify their investments and businesses, and not put all their eggs in the China basket.
Besides being an important economic factor, tourism promotes understanding between nations. There might be attempts in some quarters to isolate Taiwan, but the nation has not only withstood and survived these pressures, but has also become a coveted partner in areas such as science, technology, industrial innovations and more.
The New York Times Travel Show showed that Taiwan does have an identity of its own, as the long lines of visitors at the Taiwan booth indicated.
Tourism’s soft power should not be underestimated. It needs to be further promoted and strengthened. It is the key that can unlock the world’s doors for Taiwan.
Manik Mehta is a New York-based journalist with writing experience on foreign affairs, diplomacy, global economics and international trade.
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