The Taiwan Tourism Bureau (TTB) executed a comprehensive global marketing strategy in 2019, focusing on diversified market development, international cooperation, and the promotion of Taiwan as a travel destination. The bureau's efforts were structured around the Tourism 2020—Taiwan Sustainable Tourism Development Plan, which emphasised the development of diversified markets, promotion of domestic travel, guidance for industrial transition, development of smart tourism, and expansion of experiential tourism. These initiatives were designed to address trends in globalisation, digitalisation, and localisation, as well as challenges such as intense regional tourism competition and changes in visitor source markets. In 2019, Taiwan recorded over 11.86 million visitors, marking a 7% increase from 2018 and the fifth consecutive year with over 10 million visitors. Non-mainland Chinese tourists totalled 9.15 million, an increase of 9% from 2018, with arrivals from the 18 countries in the New Southbound Policy region rising by 6%.
The TTB's global marketing campaign was diversified, targeting both established and emerging markets. Major existing visitor source markets included Japan, Korea, Hong Kong, Singapore, Malaysia, mainland China, Europe, and the United States. Additionally, the bureau actively sought to attract visitors from ASEAN countries, India, the Middle East, and other emerging markets. For the Japan market, the TTB continued annual promotion themes aligned with six tourism focuses: cuisine, romance, LOHAS, shopping, ecology, and culture. A point-line-area publicity and promotion strategy was employed, mixing new and old media. Cross-industry alliances such as Taiwan Day, Hanshin Taiwan Week, and Taiwan Festival were expanded, and a "Youth Travel" promotion highlighted 32 railway stations in Taiwan that have same-name counterparts in Japan. The target groups for the Japan market included women aged 20-40, repeat visitors from urban centres, first-time visitors from regional areas, study tours, and incentive travel. The strategy shifted from a traditional single-medium, single-demographic focus to a comprehensive multi-faceted, multi-point communication approach.
In the mainland China market, the TTB's efforts in the second half of 2019 focused on stabilising group travel and conveying a positive image of Taiwan tourism. Activities were arranged to promote travel to Taiwan and directly contact the public to convey a friendly welcome. The bureau strengthened cooperation and exchanges with key group tour operators and national airlines in various provinces and cities to promote tours to Taiwan. The target groups included high-end travelers, group travelers, and free and independent travels (FIT). Multiple channels were used for promotions in conjunction with Mainland tour operators, companies, and media (self-media), including internet, social media, film, and TV channels. The TTB held promotional conferences and forums, invited travel bloggers, online influencers, travel agents, and media to visit Taiwan, and participated in international travel shows. A large-scale Taiwan-Jiangsu Lantern Festival cultural exchange activity was organised. Specific tourism products and markets highlighted included Taiwan towns, cuisine, family travel, indigenous culture, bicycle tours, bay tourism, and cultural tourism. Visitor numbers from mainland China in 2019 were 2,714,065, representing a 0.68% increase, while tourism visitors (excluding mainland China) were 2,052,401, a 0.33% increase.
The TTB also focused on developing the cruise and international travel markets. The Taiwan International Cruise Forum was held in Kaohsiung in 2018 to maintain Taiwan's competitiveness in the rapidly growing Asian cruise market. Directions for the Tourism Bureau, MOTC's Incentives for the Promotion of Visits to Taiwan by Overseas Cruise Ships and Directions for Fly-Cruise Incentives from the Taiwan Tourism Bureau were amended to encourage cruise companies to add Taiwan stops on their Asian routes. In 2019, the number of foreign cruise passenger arrivals reached 158,843, a 10% increase from 2018. During the same period, the number of fly-cruise visitors rose 25% to 17,440.
Market expansion and diversification efforts included precision marketing targeting ten key countries. The TTB continued to communicate with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs on relaxing visa requirements and the Project for Simplifying Visa Regulations for High-end Group Tourists. The bureau expanded its service scope with the opening of service offices in London (UK), Mumbai (India), Moscow (Russia), Jakarta (Indonesia), Auckland (New Zealand), Sydney (Australia), and Vancouver (Canada). To develop Muslim markets and promote a Muslim-friendly travel service environment, Muslim-Oriented Seminars were held in Taipei, Miaoli, and Chiayi. As of the end of 2019, a total of 252 restaurants and hotels had obtained Halal certification.
International cooperation was a key component of the 2019 strategy. The TTB held the 12th Taiwan-Japan Tourism Summit Forum, 34th Taiwan-Korea Tourism Exchange Conference, Eighth Taiwan-Vietnam Tourism Cooperation Conference, and Taiwan-Paraguay Tourism Exchange and Cooperation Conference. The bureau also signed the Taiwan-Belize Tourism Exchange Letter of Intent and Memorandum on Taiwan-Japan Railway Tourism Cooperation to expand international tourism cooperation and partnerships.
Domestic travel was also a focus, with the National Travel Card system extended by approval of the Executive Yuan. Tourism-related consumption under the system totalled NT$4.43 billion. Advantageous local resources were integrated with the 101 international and national tourism activities selected from the 2020-2021 Taiwan Tourism Biannual Calendar. The TTB planned a big data platform and established related systems for tourism to enable analysis of tourism data for policy planning, industrial transformation, precision marketing, and improvement of tourism services. The bureau improved the Taiwan Tourist Shuttle and Taiwan Tour Bus service quality, established information stations, and promoted mobile tourist information. It continued to expand service points and increase the density and depth of the i-center tourism service system, with 601 Information Stations as of 2019. Cross-platform integration of Fun Pass e-tickets was continued in Kaohsiung City, Pingtung County, Penghu County, Yilan, central Taiwan, Taitung, Tainan, and Taipei. Fun Pass transactions numbered 170,181 in 2019.
To guide the industry's transformation and build high-quality industry brands, the Directions Governing Awards and Subsidies of Tourism Bureau, MOTC for Guiding Travel Agencies to Establish Specialty Product Brands were amended and promulgated. The TTB held the 12th Taiwan-Japan Tourism Summit Forum, 34th Taiwan-Korea Tourism Exchange Conference, Eighth Taiwan-Vietnam Tourism Cooperation Conference, and Taiwan-Paraguay Tourism Exchange and Cooperation Conference to promote international cooperation. It also signed the Taiwan-Belize Tourism Exchange Letter of Intent and Memorandum on Taiwan-Japan Railway Tourism Cooperation to expand international tourism cooperation and partnerships.
The TTB also focused on strengthening training for mid-level managers in the hotel industry to improve service quality and competitiveness. Eight training courses were held for 422 people in northern, central, southern, and eastern Taiwan. As of 2019, the TTB had assisted the tourism industry in securing 252 preferential loans totaling NT$10,884,360,000 and 12 interest subsidies totaling NT$306.73 million.
For amusement parks, the TTB supported the tourism and recreation industry in all-age friendly development, smart park and cross-domain integrated development, development of diversified markets, improvement of barrier-free facilities, gendered facilities, and tourism environments for special groups and seniors. It also encouraged customised services through smartphones and apps, as well as cooperation with peripheral industries and cross-industry integration to increase the length of stay, secondary consumption, and rate of repeat visits.
The TTB also strengthened travel safety management to protect visitor rights. The bureau commissioned the Travel Agent Association of R.O.C., Taiwan to carry out a One-day Domestic Tour On-site Inspection and Recording.
Awareness of hotel brands among internet users was heightened with the Star Hotel Heart Travel and Taiwan Hosts 1000+ activities. The 2019 event attracted 140 entries from 12 countries. The competition highlighted the innovation and creativity of Taiwan's technology and tourism, helping Taiwan to diversify tourism services and create more travel and tourism opportunities.
Conclusion
The Taiwan Tourism Bureau's 2019 activities were characterised by a strategic, multi-pronged approach to global marketing, market diversification, and industry development. The bureau successfully increased visitor numbers to over 11.86 million, with significant growth in non-mainland Chinese tourists and visitors from New Southbound Policy countries. Key initiatives included targeted marketing in established and emerging markets, the development of Muslim-friendly tourism infrastructure, expansion of international cooperation through forums and memoranda, and the promotion of domestic travel through systems like the National Travel Card. The TTB also invested in smart tourism infrastructure, including a big data platform and improved service systems, while supporting industry transformation through training, subsidies, and brand development programmes. These efforts collectively aimed to position Taiwan as a competitive and sustainable tourism destination.