The Tourism Bureau will collaborate with several national scenic area administrations to hold a series of activities on the theme of weddings as part of its plan to promote Taiwan’s wedding industry and tourism.
On Wednesday, 99 couples from Asia had their wedding photos taken against the backdrop of the spectacular scenery on Hohuanshan (合歡山). The event was part of a collaborative effort by the bureau and travel agencies in Southeast Asia to promote Taiwan’s wedding industry and tourism, a bureau official said.
With the number of couples participating in the activity limited to 99 — a phonetic symbol of long years of marital bliss and harmony — 16 couples from Singapore, 37 from Malaysia, 31 from Hong Kong, and 15 from Japan, South Korea and other countries joined, the official said.
Among the couples, some were betrothed and wanted to experience the romantic wedding atmosphere, some had been married for many years and wished to recall the sweet memories of their weddings and others took along their children to have family photos taken.
A 58-year-old man and his 55-year-old wife, both from Malaysia, were the most senior couple in the group.
As part of the event, the bureau organized a traditional Aboriginal ceremony to pray for blessings for the couples. The ritual was presided over by an Atayal tribe chief and witnessed by Taiwanese film director Wu Nien-jen (吳念真), who is serving as a Taiwan tourism ambassador for Southeast Asia.
Tourism Bureau Director-General Janice Lai (賴瑟珍) said that the bureau is attaching great importance to the country’s wedding industry by making it the focus of the Tour Taiwan Years 2008-2009 Festival, as it has become one of Taiwan’s prominent attractions.
“Taiwan’s booming wedding industry is famous in Asia — approximately 250 Hong Kong couples have their wedding photos taken in Taiwan each month,” Lai said.
In view of this trend, the bureau would continue to expand its efforts to promote the country’s wedding industry overseas, she said.
Other activities would include a mass wedding ceremony, a festival featuring wedding dresses and honeymoons and two group weddings at Alishan National Scenic Area and Maolin National Scenic Area, Lai said.
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