About 20,000 people working in the tourism industry took to the streets on Monday demanding government aid in the wake of a major drop in Chinese tourists. Acting Tourism Bureau director Wayne Liu said the government would earmark NT$30 billion (US$950 million) to develop the tourism industry.
There were only 170,000 visitors from mainland China in August, which is nearly half of the 320,000 last August. Liu said that 38 tourism agencies, 250 hotels, and over 80 shops and tour bus operators have been directly affected.
"Currently the total number of visitors to Taiwan has grown 8.4%, so the tourism industry is growing overall," said Liu. "For those who have been affected, we will try to compensate them through domestic travel promotions. We will also work with the Ministry of Labor to look into alternative plans for those who lost their jobs or are on unpaid leave."
Liu said the government also wants to attract tourists from other parts of Asia. Visitors from Thailand were up 37% from January to July after new visa-free status and other marketing promotions. Cruises have also increased visitors from India by 50%. The bureau also plans to increase tourists from Southeast Asia by 20%. Though Chinese tourists have decreased, Liu said the bureau still hopes it can meet a goal of 10.44 million visitors this year.