The Executive Yuan supports a plan by the Ministry of Transportation and Communications to extend the subsidies for domestic travelers until the end of next month, the Tourism Bureau said on Monday night.
To promote the second phase of the nation’s “disease prevention tours,” which were launched in July, the bureau has been offering NT$1,000 (US$34.30) subsidies per hotel room.
The NT$3.9 billion in subsidies, which were warmly received by the public, were expected to run out by the end of last month, but the ministry managed to adjust funding priorities and produce an additional NT$1.6 billion budget.
Photo: Hsiao Yu-hsin, Taipei Times
Because the additional funding is expected to run out by the end of this month, the ministry has requested that the Executive Yuan increase the budget to close the funding gap that would result from extending the program, which is about NT$1.92 billion.
After a briefing from Minister of Transportation and Communications Lin Chia-lung (林佳龍) on how the subsidies had increased local tourism, Premier Su Tseng-chang (蘇貞昌) expressed his support for extending their availability until the end of next month, the bureau said.
The additional funding would be provided by the ministry through an adjustment of its budget priorities, then reimbursed from a third special relief package once it has been approved by the Legislative Yuan, it said.
The second phase of “disease prevention tours,” the Triple Stimulus Vouchers and incentives offered by other government agencies have boosted consumer confidence and maintained positive momentum for domestic tourism, the bureau said.
The measures have generated NT$63.5 billion for local businesses, and mitigated the damage and layoffs that could have hit the tourism industry due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
The program has helped 8.91 million independent tourists traveling nation, while more than 9,500 hotels have participated, bureau data showed.
About 1.85 million people aged 19 or younger have also visited amusement parks for free through the program, the bureau said.
“The second phase of ‘disease prevention tours’ has succeeded in keeping some outbound tourists, who would have traveled to other countries if it were not for the pandemic, in the domestic tourism market,” the bureau said. “It has influenced some travel agencies that previously organized outbound tours to invest resources and personnel in developing domestic tour packages.”
Eight Chinese naval vessels and 24 military aircraft were detected crossing the median line of the Taiwan Strait between 6am yesterday and 6am today, the Ministry of National Defense said this morning. The aircraft entered Taiwan’s northern, central, southwestern and eastern air defense identification zones, the ministry said. The armed forces responded with mission aircraft, naval vessels and shore-based missile systems to closely monitor the situation, it added. Eight naval vessels, one official ship and 36 aircraft sorties were spotted in total, the ministry said.
INCREASED CAPACITY: The flights on Mondays, Wednesdays, Fridays and Sundays would leave Singapore in the morning and Taipei in the afternoon Singapore Airlines is adding four supplementary flights to Taipei per week until May to meet increased tourist and business travel demand, the carrier said on Friday. The addition would raise the number of weekly flights it operates to Taipei to 18, Singapore Airlines Taiwan general manager Timothy Ouyang (歐陽漢源) said. The airline has recorded a steady rise in tourist and business travel to and from Taipei, and aims to provide more flexible travel arrangements for passengers, said Ouyang, who assumed the post in July last year. From now until Saturday next week, four additional flights would depart from Singapore on Monday, Wednesday, Friday
The Ministry of National Defense yesterday reported the return of large-scale Chinese air force activities after their unexplained absence for more than two weeks, which had prompted speculation regarding Beijing’s motives. China usually sends fighter jets, drones and other military aircraft around the nation on a daily basis. Interruptions to such routine are generally caused by bad weather. The Ministry of National Defense said it had detected 26 Chinese military aircraft in the Taiwan Strait over the previous 24 hours. It last reported that many aircraft on Feb. 25, when it spotted 30 aircraft, saying Beijing was carrying out another “joint combat
Taiwan successfully defended its women’s 540 kilogram title and won its first-ever men’s 640 kg title at the 2026 World Indoor Tug of War Championships in Taipei yesterday. In the women’s event, Taiwan’s eight-person squad reached the final following a round-robin preliminary round and semifinals featuring teams from Ukraine, Japan, Thailand, Vietnam, the Basque Country and South Korea. In the finals, they swept the Basque team 2-0, giving the team composed mainly of National Taiwan Normal University students and graduates its second championship in a row, and its fourth in five years. Team captain
RSS