A group of Taiwan tourism, exhibition and conference companies came to Shanxi's Taiyuan city on July 31 to encourage companies on the Chinese mainland to go to Taiwan for exhibition,conference and tourism activities. This is the first time that Taiwan tourism, exhibition and conference companies have came to Shanxi to promote their business. The companies also offered detailed information and help for the “self-help trip to Taiwan” program to be launched on August 18.
Shanxi’s Taiwan tourism market came into being in April 2009, and local people have shown great enthusiasm towards Taiwan in the past five years. More than 2,500 Shanxi people traveled to Taiwan in 2009; the figure grew to 74,000 in 2013.
“A total of 70,000 Shanxi people visited Taiwan from January to June this year, equal to the whole number of tourists last year,” said Wang Wenbao, deputy head of the Shanxi Tourism Administration. The self-help trip will further stir up local enthusiasm towards Taiwan, according to Wang. Wang also asked Taiwan people to come and enjoy Shanxi food.
Taiyuan has contributed a great number of tourists to Taiwan, and the self-help trip will make it easier for Taiyuan people to savor the island, said Lan Shuqi, a host at the tourism promotion meeting.
Taiwan has sent personnel to six cities on the Chinese mainland since July to hold convention and company tourism promotion meetings. It aims to attract more enterprises from the mainland to hold conventions and exhibitions and organize tourist activities in Taiwan. Famous tourism, convention and exhibition companies in Taiwan attended the promotion meeting in Taiyuan.
Taiwan has allowed 4,000 self-help tourists from 36 cities to arrive per day since April 16, 2014. Those cities are Beijing, Shanghai, Xiamen, Tianjin, Chongqing, Nanjing, Hangzhou, Chengdu, Jinan, Xi'an, Fuzhou, Guangzhou, Shenzhen, Suzhou, Ningbo, Qingdao, Shijiazhuang, Changchun, Hefei, Shenyang, Zhengzhou, Wuhan, Changsha, Nanning, Kunming, Quanzhou, Zhangzhou, Wenzhou, Harbin, Taiyuan, Dalian, Yantai, Guiyang, Wuxi, Nanchang and Zhongshan.
