Muslim prayer rooms at a freeway service area on the Formosa Freeway (National Freeway No. 3) in Taichung’s Cingshuei District (清水) opened for use yesterday.
They are the nation’s first Muslim prayer rooms at a freeway service area.
Similar facilities already exist at Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport, the Taipei Railway Station and the Taichung High-speed Rail Station.
National Freeway Bureau Deputy Director-General Wu Mu-fu (吳木富) said the facilities mark the latest efforts by the government to attract more Muslim tourists from around the world.
“The nation has 14 freeway service areas, but the one in Cingshuei is the largest and the busiest. As such, we decided to build the first Muslim prayer rooms at a freeway service area constructed in Cingshuei,” Wu said.
Clear signposts showing the direction to the prayer rooms can be seen in the lobby of the main building in the service area, Wu said.
“We hope that more Muslim tourists visit Taiwan now that the prayer rooms are available for use,” he added. “In return, Muslim tourists from all over the world can bring to Taiwan the diversity of the Islamic culture, so people can gain a better understanding of it.”
The bureau said that before constructing the prayer rooms, it consulted the Chinese Muslims Association Taipei, the Taichung Mosque and the Tourism Bureau.
The two prayer rooms — one for men and one for women — are far enough from the shopping area to enable Muslim travelers to pray in an undisturbed environment, the bureau said.
Fitted with air conditioners, each prayer room has a sign pointing toward the direction of Mecca and prayer mats, the bureau said, adding that the rooms also have a waiting area and facilities to wash and dry oneself.
The restrooms near the prayer rooms are equipped with bidet toilets and telephones on the side of the doors to the prayer rooms can be used to call for assistance, the bureau added.
A recent survey by MasterCard ranked Taiwan a top-10 travel destination among nations that are not members of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) both last year and this year.
Taiwan was also rated No. 1 and No. 3 in terms of safe travel environment and airport facilities respectively among non-OIC nations.
Three Taiwanese airlines have prohibited passengers from packing Bluetooth earbuds and their charger cases in checked luggage. EVA Air and Uni Air said that Bluetooth earbuds and charger cases are categorized as portable electronic devices, which should be switched off if they are placed in checked luggage based on international aviation safety regulations. They must not be in standby or sleep mode. However, as charging would continue when earbuds are placed in the charger cases, which would contravene international aviation regulations, their cases must be carried as hand luggage, they said. Tigerair Taiwan said that earbud charger cases are equipped
Foreign travelers entering Taiwan on a short layover via Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport are receiving NT$600 gift vouchers from yesterday, the Tourism Administration said, adding that it hopes the incentive would boost tourism consumption at the airport. The program, which allows travelers holding non-Taiwan passports who enter the country during a layover of up to 24 hours to claim a voucher, aims to promote attractions at the airport, the agency said in a statement on Friday. To participate, travelers must sign up on the campaign Web site, the agency said. They can then present their passport and boarding pass for their connecting international
UNILATERAL MOVES: Officials have raised concerns that Beijing could try to exert economic control over Kinmen in a key development plan next year The Civil Aviation Administration (CAA) yesterday said that China has so far failed to provide any information about a new airport expected to open next year that is less than 10km from a Taiwanese airport, raising flight safety concerns. Xiamen Xiangan International Airport is only about 3km at its closest point from the islands in Kinmen County — the scene of on-off fighting during the Cold War — and construction work can be seen and heard clearly from the Taiwan side. In a written statement sent to Reuters, the CAA said that airports close to each other need detailed advanced
UNKNOWN TRAJECTORY: The storm could move in four possible directions, with the fourth option considered the most threatening to Taiwan, meteorologist Lin De-en said A soon-to-be-formed tropical storm east of the Philippines could begin affecting Taiwan on Wednesday next week, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said yesterday. The storm, to be named Fung-wong (鳳凰), is forecast to approach Taiwan on Tuesday next week and could begin affecting the weather in Taiwan on Wednesday, CWA forecaster Huang En-hung (黃恩鴻) said, adding that its impact might be amplified by the combined effect with the northeast monsoon. As of 2pm yesterday, the system’s center was 2,800km southeast of Oluanbi (鵝鑾鼻). It was moving northwest at 18kph. Meteorologist Lin De-en (林得恩) on Facebook yesterday wrote that the would-be storm is surrounded by
RSS