By Tsai Yun-jung and Sam Garcia / Staff reporter, with staff writer and CNA
Taiwanese travelers are favoring shorter, more frequent trips that emphasize personally meaningful experiences, the Sunday Tours travel agency said yesterday.
People in Taiwan traveled abroad 17,380,239 times from January to November last year, Tourism Administration data showed.
That number is expected to exceed 19 million for all of last year, surpassing 2019 levels and averages before the COVID-19 pandemic, Sunday Tours chairman Chen Yi-fu (陳依福) said.
Photo courtesy of the Tourism Administration
Total travel spending for last year is expected to surpass NT$1 trillion (US$31.6 billion), Chen said.
The number of trips abroad would continue to grow, as shorter, more frequent trips become more common, averaging about two-and-a-half trips per person annually, he said.
Sunday Tours has already reached 70 percent of its sales goal for this year, with short trips being particularly popular, Chen said.
Trips that offer deeper personal meaning, such as pilgrimages, are also becoming a popular choice, he said, adding that pilgrimage trips for this year are already almost sold out.
Since the pandemic, travelers have placed greater emphasis on reputation, paying more attention to awards such as the International Golden Travel Award, Chen said.
Greater awareness of life’s uncertainty has driven travelers toward once-in-a-lifetime destinations, such as the polar regions and Machu Picchu, as well as sports and wellness-themed trips, he added.
While only about 8 percent of trips last year were to Europe, they accounted for more than 20 percent of travel spending, making it the most valuable market segment, Chen said.
Japan continues to be a popular travel destination among Taiwanese tourists, he added.
Prices for group tours to Japan are expected to drop by about 5 percent in the first half of this year due to a more favorable exchange rate and competition among travel agencies, Sunday Tours general manager Huang Ching-liang (黃清涼) said.