In anticipation of an economic rebound, prices of outbound group tours are likely to rise by as much as 40 percent during the winter vacation late next month and the Lunar New Year holidays in mid-February, the Quality Assurance Association (旅行業品質保障協會) said yesterday.
Canada-bound group tours are expected to show the biggest year-on-year increases of between NT$20,000 and NT$40,000, resulting in a price tag of between NT$44,900 and NT$105,900 for a 10-day stay in Vancouver. The city is expected to be crowded with visitors to the Winter Olympic Games in mid-February and the Paralympics in mid-March, the association’s travel dispute committee chairman, Jones Chen (陳屬庄), told a media briefing.
During the upcoming vacation season until March, Chen said travelers could see price hikes of between 10 percent and 15 percent from the previous year. Group tours to Southeast Asian locations such as Thailand, Bali and Singapore are expected to rise by between NT$1,000 and NT$3,000 to between NT$10,500 and NT$52,800 for a four to six-day stay, according to the association’s calculations.
The price of a trip to Japan is expected remain more or less unchanged. The association predicts the price of a five-day stay in Tokyo, Osaka, Fukuoka or cities on Honshu would rise by up to NT$1,000 to between NT$33,800 and NT$49,800.
Because the yen had appreciated by 20 percent in the past year, the actual cost of trips to Japan jumped by between NT$3,000 and NT$4,000, although travel operators have absorbed most of the difference to encourage sales as business volume dwindles, the association said.
Trips to South Korea during the Lunar New Year are expected to rise by between NT$1,000 and NT$2,000 if at all, the association said.
Trips to Europe, the Middle East and South Africa are expected to increase by between NT$2,000 and NT$5,000 per trip compared with one year earlier, while trips to Australia and New Zealand will likely jump by NT$5,000 and NT$3,000 respectively.
Tours to China and the US will see no year-on-year hike next quarter, although fares are expected to go up by NT$9,000 and NT$20,000 respectively on a quarter-on-quarter basis, the association said.
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