Tourism in Kenting fell to a historic low for the second consecutive year last year, impacting hotels and other local businesses that rely on a steady stream of domestic tourists, the latest data showed.
A total of 2.139 million tourists visited Kenting last year, down slightly from 2.14 million in 2024, the data showed.
The number of tourists who visited the national park on the Hengchun Peninsula peaked in 2015 at 8.37 million people.
Photo: Tsai Tsung-hsien, Taipei Times
That number has been below 2.2 million for two years, although there was a spike in October last year due to multiple long weekends.
The occupancy rate for hotels on the Hengchun Peninsula (恆春半島) has been dismal, with only one hotel maintaining an average occupancy rate above 60 percent last year.
Uni-Resort Kenting has closed, while Fullon Hotel Kenting, one of the largest hotels in the area, has temporarily closed for large-scale renovations.
Kenting’s prolonged tourism slump has sparked speculation that Fullon Hotel’s renovations are more of a damage-control measure.
Criticism online and overseas travel might have affected the industry, with some locals saying social media hurt Kenting’s image and drove young people to choose foreign destinations such as Japan and Thailand instead.
Kenting National Park Headquarters Deputy Director Tseng Tien-ting (曾添丁) said they released a plan to develop tourism this year.
Kenting must transform its brand to make people feel it is worth visiting, he said.
The strategy would focus on optimizing facilities, low-carbon tourism along the west coast, and improving parking and service counters, Tseng said.
The aim is to shift from traditional “check-in-style” tourism toward deeper, experience-based travel, he said.
Kenting is a natural wonder that should not be diminished by short-term data, Pingtung County’s Transportation and Tourism Division said.
The strategy would focus on Kenting’s overall branding, improving multilingual services and deploying smart tourism guides to attract more international visitors, and make visiting the area a better experience, the county government said.
In related news, Taipei and Orchid Island (Lanyu, 蘭嶼) were featured in EverdayGlow’s list of best tourist destinations for this year.
Taipei was listed alongside Seoul and Kyoto, Japan, as an Asian city rich with culture, history and modern adventures.
It is a top travel destination not only because it is friendly and democratic, but also due to its famous street foods, excellent hiking trails and thriving independent music scene, the article said.
As for islands and beaches in Asia, the article recommended Orchid Island, Maldives and the Philippines’ Palawan.
Orchid Island, home to the Tao, or Yami, indigenous people, is renowned for their exquisite wooden canoes, is an ideal place to explore Taiwan’s rich indigenous culture and breathtaking natural scenery, EverdayGlow said.
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