The Grand Formosa Regent Taipei (晶華酒店), Grand Hyatt Taipei (台北君悅大飯店) and Grand Hotel (圓山大飯店) are couples’ top choices for wedding banquets in northern Taiwan, a survey by a local travel Web site showed yesterday.
Couples in central Taiwan favored the Evergreen Laurel Hotel (台中長榮桂冠酒店) in Taichung, while Howard Beach Resort Kenting (墾丁福華渡假飯店) was the top venue of choice in the south, the survey showed.
FACE MATTERS
“Because of the fear of losing face, brand-name hotels are still local consumers’ top choice for hosting their wedding banquet,” Max Huang (黃少風), a department head at travel.1111.com.tw (1111 全球旅遊網), said at a press conference in Taipei.
About half of the survey respondents said boutique hotels were their ideal wedding banquet location, while theme hotels were favored by 39 percent of respondents.
The Grand Formosa Regent Taipei said it had been able to win consumers’ hearts by including honeymoon suites, wedding cars and ballroom decorations in its wedding packages. Its packages cost, on average, between NT$17,000 (US$559) and NT$20,000 per table of 12 people, plus a 10 percent fee.
PAYING FOR EXTRAS
“In comparison, the market’s average is NT$14,000 per table of 10 people, which is not really as cheap as it seems, because there are many extra charges if couples want the ballroom to be decorated in the way they want,” Shirley Ding (丁秀卿), director of the function dining division at the Grand Formosa Regent Taipei, said yesterday.
NOT JUSTIFIED: The bank’s governor said there would only be a rate cut if inflation falls below 1.5% and economic conditions deteriorate, which have not been detected The central bank yesterday kept its key interest rates unchanged for a fifth consecutive quarter, aligning with market expectations, while slightly lowering its inflation outlook amid signs of cooling price pressures. The move came after the US Federal Reserve held rates steady overnight, despite pressure from US President Donald Trump to cut borrowing costs. Central bank board members unanimously voted to maintain the discount rate at 2 percent, the secured loan rate at 2.375 percent and the overnight lending rate at 4.25 percent. “We consider the policy decision appropriate, although it suggests tightening leaning after factoring in slackening inflation and stable GDP growth,”
DIVIDED VIEWS: Although the Fed agreed on holding rates steady, some officials see no rate cuts for this year, while 10 policymakers foresee two or more cuts There are a lot of unknowns about the outlook for the economy and interest rates, but US Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell signaled at least one thing seems certain: Higher prices are coming. Fed policymakers voted unanimously to hold interest rates steady at a range of 4.25 percent to 4.50 percent for a fourth straight meeting on Wednesday, as they await clarity on whether tariffs would leave a one-time or more lasting mark on inflation. Powell said it is still unclear how much of the bill would fall on the shoulders of consumers, but he expects to learn more about tariffs
Greek tourism student Katerina quit within a month of starting work at a five-star hotel in Halkidiki, one of the country’s top destinations, because she said conditions were so dire. Beyond the bad pay, the 22-year-old said that her working and living conditions were “miserable and unacceptable.” Millions holiday in Greece every year, but its vital tourism industry is finding it harder and harder to recruit Greeks to look after them. “I was asked to work in any department of the hotel where there was a need, from service to cleaning,” said Katerina, a tourism and marketing student, who would
i Gasoline and diesel prices at fuel stations are this week to rise NT$0.1 per liter, as tensions in the Middle East pushed crude oil prices higher last week, CPC Corp, Taiwan (台灣中油) and Formosa Petrochemical Corp (台塑石化) said yesterday. International crude oil prices last week rose for the third consecutive week due to an escalating conflict between Israel and Iran, as the market is concerned that the situation in the Middle East might affect crude oil supply, CPC and Formosa said in separate statements. Front-month Brent crude oil futures — the international oil benchmark — rose 3.75 percent to settle at US$77.01
RSS