Travel agents are barred from organizing tours to Hong Kong and Macau until April 30, given the COVID-19 outbreak in the two territories and because airlines have reduced flights to both, the Tourism Bureau said yesterday.
The ban also applies to tours to a third country if it involves transiting in either territory, the bureau said.
The bureau on Feb. 6 announced that all tours to Hong Kong and Macau would be banned until this Saturday, except for tour groups transiting in the territories.
The Central Epidemic Command Center on Monday last week raised Hong Kong and Macau in the nation’s travel advisory system from a Level 2 alert to a Level 3, the highest level, after Hong Kong declared community outbreaks and cluster infections of COVID-19.
Following that announcement, the bureau extended the ban on group tours to the two territories until March 31 and included those transiting through the territories.
Given the continuing outbreak, if travelers want to cancel planned trips, the terms of the Fixed Contracts for Overseas Tours state that either the travel agent or travelers might cancel tours to Level-3 areas without being subject to liability for compensation, as the contract cannot be completely fulfilled due to force majeure, or causes not attributable to either party, the bureau said yesterday.
“Travel agents who had arranged for travelers to transit through Hong Kong or Macau before reaching their final destinations could switch to other transit airports after securing the consent of travelers. If the travelers do not agree to the agreement, they could still be refunded under the terms of the Fixed Contracts for Overseas Tours,” the bureau said.
More than 70 percent of flights across the Taiwan Strait and on the Taiwan-Hong Kong routes and Taiwan-Macau routes were canceled between Monday last week and Sunday, the Civil Aeronautics Administration said.
Passenger traffic during that period dropped by more than 80 percent from the weekly average for December last year due to flight cancelations, the agency said.
Additional reporting by staff writer and CNA
RETHINK? The defense ministry and Navy Command Headquarters could take over the indigenous submarine project and change its production timeline, a source said Admiral Huang Shu-kuang’s (黃曙光) resignation as head of the Indigenous Submarine Program and as a member of the National Security Council could affect the production of submarines, a source said yesterday. Huang in a statement last night said he had decided to resign due to national security concerns while expressing the hope that it would put a stop to political wrangling that only undermines the advancement of the nation’s defense capabilities. Taiwan People’s Party Legislator Vivian Huang (黃珊珊) yesterday said that the admiral, her older brother, felt it was time for him to step down and that he had completed what he
Taiwan has experienced its most significant improvement in the QS World University Rankings by Subject, data provided on Sunday by international higher education analyst Quacquarelli Symonds (QS) showed. Compared with last year’s edition of the rankings, which measure academic excellence and influence, Taiwanese universities made great improvements in the H Index metric, which evaluates research productivity and its impact, with a notable 30 percent increase overall, QS said. Taiwanese universities also made notable progress in the Citations per Paper metric, which measures the impact of research, achieving a 13 percent increase. Taiwanese universities gained 10 percent in Academic Reputation, but declined 18 percent
CHINA REACTS: The patrol and reconnaissance plane ‘transited the Taiwan Strait in international airspace,’ the 7th Fleet said, while Taipei said it saw nothing unusual The US 7th Fleet yesterday said that a US Navy P-8A Poseidon flew through the Taiwan Strait, a day after US and Chinese defense heads held their first talks since November 2022 in an effort to reduce regional tensions. The patrol and reconnaissance plane “transited the Taiwan Strait in international airspace,” the 7th Fleet said in a news release. “By operating within the Taiwan Strait in accordance with international law, the United States upholds the navigational rights and freedoms of all nations.” In a separate statement, the Ministry of National Defense said that it monitored nearby waters and airspace as the aircraft
UNDER DISCUSSION: The combatant command would integrate fast attack boat and anti-ship missile groups to defend waters closest to the coastline, a source said The military could establish a new combatant command as early as 2026, which would be tasked with defending Taiwan’s territorial waters 24 nautical miles (44.4km) from the nation’s coastline, a source familiar with the matter said yesterday. The new command, which would fall under the Naval Command Headquarters, would be led by a vice admiral and integrate existing fast attack boat and anti-ship missile groups, along with the Naval Maritime Surveillance and Reconnaissance Command, said the source, who asked to remain anonymous. It could be launched by 2026, but details are being discussed and no final timetable has been announced, the source