Transportation Minister Chen Shih-kai (陳世凱) attended the Taiwan Visitor's Association's (TVA) 69th anniversary celebration on Friday. Besides thanking the association for its long-standing leadership in Taiwan's tourism industry, he emphasized that Taiwan's tourism sector has reached a point of transformation, shifting its focus from simply increasing visitor numbers to prioritizing quality and product value.

Chen spoke on domestic tourism, which has grown from 160 million trips in 2019 before the pandemic to 220 million trips last year, with next year expected to be even higher. He said this demonstrates that tourism has become a part of Taiwanese people’s daily lives, and quality will be a very important direction for the future development of the tourism industry.

The Transportation Minister also revealed that the North Boarding Hall of Terminal 3 at Taoyuan International Airport will officially open on December 25, aiming to make international travelers feel at home as they enter Taiwan. The Transportation Ministry is additionally developing two large-scale projects to highlight the tourism features of central and southern Taiwan, allowing international visitors and Taiwanese to enjoy themselves from all around the island.

TVA President Chien Yu-yen (簡余晏) stated that the TTA has established a "Tourism Scholarship" for the first time. This has already attracted 57 students from 28 universities and colleges across Taiwan who have submitted 42 research reports in both Chinese and English to compete for the inaugural "Tourism Research Scholarship." Additionally, 252 students from 101 high schools and universities have created 222 travel videos to compete for the "Unmissable Taiwan Trip" short film scholarship. This demonstrates that Taiwan's tourism has become internationalized and that Taiwan belongs to the world.