The International Youth Hostel Federation (IYHF) has accepted the Chinese Taipei Youth Hostel Association of Taiwan as a member, a spokesman for the local association said yesterday.
The federation's members agreed unanimously to Taiwan's entry into the federation at its 46th annual global conference held in the Swiss town of Davos on Sunday, the spokesman said.
Noting that the local hostel association was the first organization to promote backpacking in Taiwan, the spokesman said that with formal IYHF membership, Taiwan will be able to engage in formal dialogue with the international community and offer Taiwan's members more travel information and discounts.
In addition to accepting Taiwan as a member, the federation accepted membership applications from five other countries, increasing the total number of member countries from 63 to 69 and the travel destinations on offer.
The spokesman added that participants at the conference also outlined three key areas for improvement -- upgrading the quality but not the cost of accommodation, raising the image of the federation through effective marketing and offering more language options in its Web sites to make online reservations more efficient and international.
The IYHF was established in 1909 with the goal of promoting cultural exchange and cultivating a global view among youths through international travel.
In order to allow youths to backpack around the world on a budget, the federation charges per bed instead of by room, saving backpackers 40 percent to 60 percent on lodging.
The federation currently manages over 3.4 million beds in 4,000 youth hostels in 85 countries, which attract some 340 million people annually.
AGING: While Japan has 22 submarines, Taiwan only operates four, two of which were commissioned by the US in 1945 and 1946, and transferred to Taiwan in 1973 Taiwan would need at least 12 submarines to reach modern fleet capabilities, CSBC Corp, Taiwan chairman Chen Cheng-hung (陳政宏) said in an interview broadcast on Friday, citing a US assessment. CSBC is testing the nation’s first indigenous defense submarine, the Hai Kun (海鯤, Narwhal), which is scheduled to be delivered to the navy next month or in July. The Hai Kun has completed torpedo-firing tests and is scheduled to undergo overnight sea trials, Chen said on an SET TV military affairs program. Taiwan would require at least 12 submarines to establish a modern submarine force after assessing the nation’s operational environment and defense
A white king snake that frightened passengers and caused a stir on a Taipei MRT train on Friday evening has been claimed by its owner, who would be fined, Taipei Rapid Transit Corp (TRTC) said yesterday. A person on Threads posted that he thought he was lucky to find an empty row of seats on Friday after boarding a train on the Bannan (Blue) Line, only to spot a white snake with black stripes after sitting down. Startled, he jumped up, he wrote, describing the encounter as “terrifying.” “Taipei’s rat control plan: Release snakes on the metro,” one person wrote in reply, referring
The coast guard today said that it had disrupted "illegal" operations by a Chinese research ship in waters close to the nation and driven it away, part of what Taipei sees a provocative pattern of China's stepped up maritime activities. The coast guard said that it on Thursday last week detected the Chinese ship Tongji (同濟號), which was commissioned only last year, 29 nautical miles (54km) southeast of the southern tip of Taiwan, although just outside restricted waters. The ship was observed lowering ropes into the water, suspected to be the deployment of scientific instruments for "illegal" survey operations, and the coast
An inauguration ceremony was held yesterday for the Danjiang Bridge, the world’s longest single-mast asymmetric cable-stayed bridge, ahead of its official opening to traffic on Tuesday, marking a major milestone after nearly three decades of planning and construction. At the ceremony in New Taipei City attended by President William Lai (賴清德), Premier Cho Jung-tai (卓榮泰), Minister of Transportation and Communications Chen Shih-kai (陳世凱) and New Taipei City Mayor Hou Yu-ih (侯友宜), the bridge was hailed as both an engineering landmark and a long-awaited regional transport link connecting Tamsui (淡水) and Bali (八里)
RSS