TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — Having lifted its COVID entry restrictions for tourists last fall, Taiwan has become the seventh most popular travel destination for Asia Pacific travelers, according to Mastercard.
On Tuesday, the Mastercard Economics Institute released its Travel Industry Trends 2023 report showing Taiwan was the most favored destination for Asia Pacific tourists. In first place was Australia, followed by the U.S., Hong Kong, Singapore, and Japan, rounding out the top five.
Eva Chen (陳懿文), general manager of Mastercard Taiwan, was cited by CNA as saying that there are three major trends in the tourism industry this year. First, China's reopening is a boost for the tourism industry. Second, as companies resume in-office work schedules, the demand for physical meetings is driving a recovery in business travel.
Third, tourists are continuing to pursue unique travel experiences rather than purchasing items such as durable goods.
Tu I-huan (杜易寰), marketing manager for Mastercard Data and Services, told the news agency that tourists are generally favoring destinations within their own regions. For example, Mexico is the favored destination for North American tourists, while the U.S. is the popular choice for Latin American tourists.
As for Asia Pacific travelers, as of March of this year, the top six most popular tourist destinations for tourists are Australia, the U.S., Hong Kong, Singapore, Japan and the U.K., followed by Taiwan in seventh place. Trailing Taiwan was Canada, Indonesia, and Thailand, rounding out the top 10. According to Tu, Taiwan first entered the top 10 this year in February with a seventh-place ranking and continued to hold that position in March.
From May 16 to May 30 this year, MasterCard conducted a "Taiwan Tourism Survey" to study changes in travel behavior of 1,000 Taiwanese consumers aged 20 to 65 who travel frequently since the country opened up. The scope of the survey covered the northern, central and southern regions of Taiwan.
The survey showed that since Taiwan opened its borders, 43.4% of the respondents have traveled abroad, 93.1% of respondents have plans to go abroad in the next year. Meanwhile, 42.5% of the people questioned not only want to increase the number of trips abroad in the future, but also want to increase the number of days per trip.
However, in the wake of global inflation, 64% of the respondents said that their travel expenses have increased significantly. Also, 35.3% said their travel expenses have increased by more than NT$10,000 compared with before the pandemic.
In response to the increase in the cost of traveling abroad, MasterCard observed that people tend to book their tickets first and later arrange their itineraries. Of those surveyed, 75.8% are more focused on discounted airfares, and they will buy plane tickets first before planning their journey.
In addition, 28.6% of the respondents save travel expenses by adjusting travel itineraries, such as choosing to avoid peak seasons, reducing accommodation, airline class or shopping expenses. However, they are still relatively unwilling to reduce food expenses, demonstrating the continued appeal of savoring exotic dishes.
