FITs from 10 More Chinese Cities Allowed to Tour Taiwan

Tourism authorities in Taiwan and China  recently agreed to allow FITs (free independent travelers) from 10 more Chinese cities to tour the island, including Harbin of Heilongjiang Province, Dalian of Liaoning Province, Yantai of Shangdong Province, Guiyang of Guizhou Province, Wuxi of Jiangsu Province, Nanchang of Jiangxi Province, Quanzhou of Fujian Province, and Zhongshan of Guangdong Province. In all, there are a total of 36 mainland Chinese cities whose residents are allowed to visit Taiwan as FITs.

A senior official at Taiwan's Tourism Bureau indicates that FITs from China have been allowed into Taiwan since the start of June 2011 and the number of such tourists has risen rapidly.

The number of Chinese FITs to Taiwan daily has jumped to 2,500, surging from the maximum of 500 set initially. Up to 4,000 Chinese FITs are now allowed in Taiwan daily and as many as 5,000 packaged tourists.

In the first five months of 2014 the number of incoming Chinese FITs came to 470,000 and that of group tourist arrivals 1.05 million. Over one million Chinese FITs are expected this year with the new, more liberal rule.

Tourists from Beijing and Shanghai have been the two major sources of incoming Chinese FITs, accounting for 45% of the total FITs. (JL)