A “reasonable” price for a one-day tour on a weekday is NT$1,500, while a tour on a weekend or a national holiday should cost NT$1,800, a quarterly report from the Travel Quality Assurance Association said.
The price for one-day tours has been under scrutiny since a tour bus crashed on the Chiang Wei-shui Memorial Freeway (Freeway No. 5) last month killing 33 people on board.
The Tourism Bureau has since monitored one-day tours — that often require drivers to spend long hours on the road and charge tourists very low prices — saying that such tours compromise on quality, exposing drivers and tourists to a high level of risk.
Based on the association’s report on tours taking place from April to June, a one-day tour should cost at least NT$1,500 per person if the tour is offered on weekdays and departs from locations near travel destinations. The price should rise to NT$1,800 on weekends and national holidays.
Two-day or three-day tours to Yilan that depart from Taipei should cost NT$3,000 to NT$7,500 on weekdays and from NT$4,500 to NT$14,000 on holidays, the report showed.
As for tours from Taipei to destinations in central or southern Taiwan, the east coast or outlying islands, the report showed that a reasonable cost for a two-day or a three-day tour is between NT$3,500 and NT$13,900 per person on weekdays and NT$13,900 and NT$19,900 per person on holidays, including flight or train tickets.
Most April tours are focused on viewing cherry tree blossoms, so hotel rooms that month are in high demand and prices tend to be higher, especially on weekends, the report said.
During the National Tomb-Sweeping Day holiday — from April 1 to April 4 — and the Dragon Boat Festival holiday — from May 27 to May 30 — most hotel rooms at popular travel destinations have already been booked, the report said.
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