Senior managers from China Travel Service's Guangdong branch are visiting Taiwan for the first time to explore potential points of interest for tourists from China.
"A number of our departments have shut down, including the reservations booking department for European and American flights and hotels, since the Sept. 11 attacks on the US. As a result, we are looking for new tourist spots for Chinese travelers," said Wo Hsin-kang, general manager of the company's Guangdong branch.
The managers' visit is the first of its kind, as groups from China's tourism sector have not previously been allowed to travel to Taiwan.
China's four state-run travel agencies -- China Travel Service, China International Travel Service, China Youth Travel Service and Strait Travel Service -- are eager to arrange tour groups to Taiwan.
Many local travel agencies also believe that arranging tours for Chinese travelers may be their only chance for survival.
Tseng Sheng-hai (曾盛海), chairman of the Taipei Association of Travel Agents, estimated that 25 million tourists from China are wealthy enough to visit Taiwan and would contribute between US$4 billion to US$6 billion annually to the nation's economy.
Tseng, during a meeting with China Travel Service's managers, said that Taiwan should aggressively promote tourism as many Chinese tourists are hesitant to go to Europe and the US in the wake of the Sept. 11 attacks.
Tourists from China are currently banned by the Taiwanese government from traveling to Taiwan for national security reasons. Taiwan's government had previously voiced concerns over lifting the ban.
However, the government has changed its stance after the Economic Development Advisory Conference, establishing "actively promoting cross-strait consultation and tourism from China" as one of its four principles.
The Tourism Bureau under the Ministry of Transportation and Communications has already established rules that would help regulate Taiwanese travel agencies handling Chinese tourists.
Also, the Mainland Affairs Council has established an experimental policy that would allow 1,000 tourists a day from China to visit Taiwan.
Tseng predicted that the council's policy would be implemented next month.
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