The average hotel occupancy rate during the first three days of the upcoming Tomb Sweeping and Children’s Day holiday is estimated to reach 52.52 percent, the Tourism Administration said yesterday.
The holiday this year begins on Friday and ends on Monday next week. Taipei surpassed other cities and counties with an average hotel occupancy rate of 68.19 percent, followed by 61.33 percent in Lienchiang County (Matsu) and 57.53 percent in Tainan.
Yunlin County’s average hotel occupancy on Saturday — Children’s Day— was 78.46 percent, the highest in the nation. This shows that family travel and themed activities help propel travel momentum during one of the nation’s major holidays.
Photo: Tsai Yun-jung, Taipei Times
More people are opting for frequent, short domestic trips that can be flexibly scheduled, the agency said.
Taiwanese made domestic trips 10.46 times on average in 2024, with aggregate expenditure of NT$515.8 billion (US$16.12 billion), up from NT$392.7 billion in 2019, agency data showed.
Last year, 6.76 million passengers boarded the Taiwan Tourist Shuttle, up 19.79 percent compared with 2024, data showed.
“This shows that public transport systems have facilitated domestic tours by connecting different scenic spots and boosted regional development,” the agency said.
Meanwhile, the nation welcomed 8,575,547 inbound tourists last year, up 9.12 percent compared with 2024, data from the Ministry of the Interior showed.
Inbound tourists mainly came from: Japan (17.3 percent), Hong Kong and Macau (15.3 percent), South Korea (11.9 percent), the US (8.3 percent), China (7.4 percent) and the Philippines (7.3 percent), the ministry said.
The largest increase came from China, up 45.4 percent from 2024, followed by Japan, up 12.4 percent, and the Philippines, up 34.3 percent, ministry records showed.
Visitors from Malaysia showed the largest decline, dropping 10.2 percent from 2024. They were followed by tourists from Singapore and Hong Kong and Macau, edging down 0.3 percent and 0.1 percent respectively.
Long-haul travel markets are gaining share and are characterized by longer stays and higher spending, serving as a key driver of tourism value, the Tourism Administration said.
In 2024, US tourists spent an average of 10.19 nights in Taiwan. Their daily expenditure averaged US$238.86, the highest among international tourists, it said.
In contrast, European travelers spent an average of 12.67 nights, with daily expenditure averaging US$199.51, the agency said.
“Long-haul travelers drive higher revenue through extended stays and spending, whereas short-haul travelers provide consistent volume with frequent visits. Both markets play vital yet different roles — value versus scale — in sustaining the growth of Taiwan’s tourism,” the agency said.
Taiwan has succeeded in diversifying its sources of inbound tourism, reducing its reliance on any single market and reinforcing the resilience of the tourism industry, it said.
“We have shifted from ‘volume growth’ to ‘value growth,’ aiming to build a competitive and sustainable tourism industry by attracting more travelers to have longer stays and repeat visits with enhanced travel quality,” it added.
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