The Tourism Bureau yesterday encouraged tourists to write postcards to their friends and families while traveling.
The bureau’s “Post Taiwan to the World, Share the Spirit” campaign, co-sponsored by the Chinese-language Commonwealth Magazine, will provide tourists with free postcards at train stations, hotels, post offices and some of the nation’s best-known tourist attractions.
One million sets will be available, with each containing 25 postcards showing various aspects of life in Taiwan, including Hakka umbrellas in Kaohsiung County’s Meinung Township (美濃), Hsinchu High Speed Rail Station, rice paddies in Nantou County’s Yuchih Township (魚池) and cyclists at Taipei’s Dajia Riverside Park.
The Tourism Bureau said the number of tourists last year rose 3.74 percent compared with 2007.
The bureau aims to receive 5.5 million foreign visits by 2012.
In related news, a report by the Ministry of Economic Affairs showed that 32 “tourist factories” around the country drew more than 1.1 million visitors in the first six months of the year, generating approximately NT$200 million (US$6.1 million) in tourism revenue.
In recent years, the ministry’s Industrial Development Bureau has promoted the transformation of traditional factories into tourist attractions.
Most such “tourist factories” were not affected by the recession that hit the manufacturing sector during the global financial crisis, the report said.
This year, 33 factories have applied with the ministry for assistance in turning themselves into “tourist factories,” the report said.
One factory finding success with the model is Lien Cheng Saxophone Co — the manufacturer of the country’s first locally developed saxophone — in Houli Township (后里), Taichung County.
A saxophone made 160 years ago by the instrument’s inventor, Adolphe Sax, is on display at the facility, where guided tours and saxophone lessons are provided.
Another applicant is Puhu Footwear Co factory in Kaohsiung City, run by one of the few domestic footwear makers that have their own brands, the bureau’s report said.
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