More than 1 million passengers passed through the Port of Keelung lat year thanks to an increase in ferry services and international cruise ship arrivals, Taiwan International Port Corp said yesterday.
Statistics from the state-run company showed that 1.09 million people used the port, including about 946,000 cruise ship passengers, up from the 941,000 cruise ship passengers in 2018.
The port hit the 1 million milestone in 2018, with 1.064 million travelers using the port, the company said.
A total of 110,000 people last year took the ferries between Keelung and Lienchiang County (Matsu), the first increase in ferry traffic since 2016 and beating a record of 104,000 passengers set in 2012, it said.
The port provides cross-strait ferry services to Xiamen and Taizhou in China, and handles cruise ships going to Japan, specifically Naha, Okinawa, and Ishigaki and Yonaguni in the Yaeyama Islands.
The company has attributed the increase in passengers to an upgrading of the port’s infrastructure, including the installation of an electronic passport inspection system and the expansion of the port’s passenger terminals.
To help promote the port as a cruise ship destination, the company has signed a memorandum of understanding with the Port of Incheon in South Korea, and is working with the Port of Hakata in Japan in organizing joint marketing events.
Hong Kong-based Genting Cruise Lines has also announced that it would increase the service runs of its World Dreams liner and launch a new ship service under its Crystal Cruises brand this year, the Port of Keelung said.
Genting on Tuesday activated 12 self-help check-in kiosks at the Port of Keelung, the company said.
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