A proposal to charge for entry to designated national scenic areas to raise conservation funds drew mixed reactions among tourism operators, some of whom supported the draft policy, while others said it would raise operating costs.
The Ministry of Transportation and Communications for two months solicited views from the public on a draft of the new regulations and is to publish a finalized version soon, it said.
The regulations, which would apply to travelers to designated scenic areas and other natural, cultural or ecological scenic areas, would create a legal basis for tourist conservation fees, which could vary from NT$30 to NT$200 depending on the season and tourists’ nationalities.
Revenue from the collection of such fees is to be used only toward conserving the natural and cultural assets in the stated areas, according to the regulations.
After the rules are published, the government would need to list the affected areas and advertise the rates for six months before it starts implementing the charge, ministry officials said.
Travelers would have to pay more for tours because of the fees, Taiwan Tour Bus director-general William Lu (呂威德) said, adding that this year’s tour prices for international travelers were set last year and it would be impossible to change them now, so that tour operators would have to absorb the higher costs by themselves at first.
Lu would meet with the Executive Yuan’s minister without portfolio overseeing tourism and tell him that now is not the time to introduce conservation fees, he said.
“The tourism market is not as booming as it used to be,” Lu said. “Nowadays, tour operators have to work twice as hard to attract customers and now they are also seeing their costs rise.”
The purpose of having the national parks is to teach people the importance of conserving nature, Lu said, adding that people should not be asked to pay for this lesson.
Most tourists do not have to pay or must pay extremely low fees when to enter scenic areas, Travel Quality Assurance Association director Lilien Lian (連郁卿) said, adding that they should be charged admission fees.
“It is not a problem if tourists need to pay a little bit more than before to enjoy higher quality travel,” she said. “The problem is that many well-designed tourism facilities do not attract a lot of people.”
Collecting fees is necessary to maintain the cleanness and tidiness of the environment, Taiwan Watch Institute director-general Hsieh Ho-lin (謝和霖) said.
However, “the government needs to tell people how the revenue is to be used,” he said. “Collecting charges should help the government raise tour quality and conserve the natural environment.”
The fees should also help control the inflow of tourists to scenic areas, Hsieh said.
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