TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — Southeast Asian tourists to Taiwan have now surpassed Chinese visitors in numbers, with significant increases in travelers from Malaysia, Thailand, the Philippines, and Singapore.
Following the pandemic, the Taiwanese government has actively promoted tourism. Despite declining Chinese tourists and reduced domestic travel enthusiasm, Bloomberg reported on Thursday (July 11) an increase in Southeast Asian visitors from countries like Malaysia, Thailand, the Philippines, and Singapore, indicating a promising shift away from reliance on Chinese tourism.
Based on data from Taiwan's Tourism Administration, the number of Thai tourists visiting Taiwan in the first quarter of this year increased by 12% compared to the same period in 2019. Singaporean visitors increased by 10%, and Malaysian tourist numbers have returned to pre-pandemic levels.
Despite the continued low number of Chinese tourists, hotel revenues and the amount of local travel agencies have recovered to pre-pandemic levels—positive news for Taiwan's tourism industry.
From January to April, Malaysia led Southeast Asian countries with 173,410 visitors, accounting for 6.5% of all inbound travelers to Taiwan. Thailand came in second with 153,638 visitors (5.8% of the total), followed by the Philippines with 152,688 arrivals (5.7%), Singapore with 147,590 travelers (5.5%), and Vietnam with 126,526 (4.8%).
All but Vietnam surpassed China, which accounted for 126,943 inbound passengers, and tied Vietnam for the percentage of visitors at 4.8%.
Tourism Administration Deputy Director-General Lin Hsin-jen (林信任) told Bloomberg that Singaporean and Malaysian tourists seek hotels with more distinctive features and higher prices. This trend has driven total hotel revenues last year to NT$178 billion (US$5.4 billion), exceeding the NT$156 billion registered in 2019.
Bloomberg forecasts that if this trend continues, it could reshape Taiwan's tourism industry, which has long relied on Chinese tourists. The trend contrasts sharply with a decade ago when Taiwan relied heavily on Chinese visitors.
Lin said the Tourism Administration is now eyeing boosting incentives for “travelers and developing high-end markets for tourists including Southeast Asians and India," which he described as Taiwan's “key markets now.”
Taiwan received only about 99,000 Chinese tourists in the first quarter of this year, compared to approximately 793,000 in the same period in 2019.
For example, the Taiwan Glass Gallery in Changhua County saw a shift from 30% of visitors coming from China before 2019 to almost none now. However, Southeast Asian travelers have boosted attendance, increasing visitor numbers by 80% compared to 2019.
The museum also noted that while Chinese tourists typically traveled in groups and spent little time at attractions, individual travelers from countries like Singapore and Malaysia tend to linger longer and purchase more at the gift store.