Taiwanese lawmakers yesterday visited the Beijing office of the Taiwan Strait Tourism Association, promising support for the office’s efforts in China to develop interest in travel to Taiwan.
Accompanied by Tourism Bureau Director-General Janice Lai (賴瑟珍), who is also chairwoman of the association, several members of the Legislative Yuan’s Transportation Committee made a tour of the office’s 24-hour service center before being briefed on the office’s operations.
Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Legislator Chen Ken-te (陳根德) suggested that to attract more Chinese tourists to Taiwan, the Tourism Bureau should more appropriately allocate its resources and establish offices not only in Beijing but in the eastern, southern and central parts of China, and also chart a comprehensive development plan.
KMT Legislator Chu Fong-chi (朱鳳芝) said the trip was aimed at allowing the legislators to gain an understanding of the Beijing office’s operations.
Although the office has been only open for a month, Chu said it has achieved its potential on a limited budget by boosting Taiwan’s profile as a tourist destination for Chinese travelers.
But Chu also felt the Tourism Bureau should consider shifting more resources to China. She said that some of the Tourism Bureau’s 11 overseas offices are located in areas with small populations but manned with large staffs.
In contrast, given China’s large land area and big population, the manpower in the Beijing office is obviously insufficient, Chu said, and suggested that the Tourism Bureau expand its staff there.
Meanwhile, Lai said the tourism association is considering opening an office in Shanghai.
Taiwan is to receive the first batch of Lockheed Martin F-16 Block 70 jets from the US late this month, a defense official said yesterday, after a year-long delay due to a logjam in US arms deliveries. Completing the NT$247.2 billion (US$7.69 billion) arms deal for 66 jets would make Taiwan the third nation in the world to receive factory-fresh advanced fighter jets of the same make and model, following Bahrain and Slovakia, the official said on condition of anonymity. F-16 Block 70/72 are newly manufactured F-16 jets built by Lockheed Martin to the standards of the F-16V upgrade package. Republic of China
Taiwan-Japan Travel Passes are available for use on public transit networks in the two countries, Taoyuan Metro Corp said yesterday, adding that discounts of up to 7 percent are available. Taoyuan Metro, the Taipei MRT and Japan’s Keisei Electric Railway teamed up to develop the pass. Taoyuan Metro operates the Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport MRT Line, while Keisei Electric Railway offers express services between Tokyo’s Narita Airport, and the Keisei Ueno and Nippori stations in the Japanese capital, as well as between Narita and Haneda airports. The basic package comprises one one-way ticket on the Taoyuan MRT Line and one Skyliner ticket on
Starlux Airlines, Taiwan’s newest international carrier, has announced it would apply to join the Oneworld global airline alliance before the end of next year. In an investor conference on Monday, Starlux Airlines chief executive officer Glenn Chai (翟健華) said joining the alliance would help it access Taiwan. Chai said that if accepted, Starlux would work with other airlines in the alliance on flight schedules, passenger transits and frequent flyer programs. The Oneworld alliance has 13 members, including American Airlines, British Airways, Cathay Pacific and Qantas, and serves more than 900 destinations in 170 territories. Joining Oneworld would also help boost
A new tropical storm formed late yesterday near Guam and is to approach closest to Taiwan on Thursday, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said. Tropical Storm Pulasan became the 14th named storm of the year at 9:25pm yesterday, the agency said. As of 8am today, it was near Guam traveling northwest at 21kph, it said. The storm’s structure is relatively loose and conditions for strengthening are limited, WeatherRisk analyst Wu Sheng-yu (吳聖宇) said on Facebook. Its path is likely to be similar to Typhoon Bebinca, which passed north of Taiwan over Japan’s Ryukyu Islands and made landfall in Shanghai this morning, he said. However, it