Taiwan tourism & travel, reviews
 
台湾の観光&旅行
 
           
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Taiwan

         Taiwan travel  

ranks 10+th in Asia

The Star, 2024-7-22: Taiwan wants to lure higher-spending travellers from South-East Asia as Chinese arrivals dwindle

Taiwan's earthquakes

CNBC, 2024-6-4 ‘Everyone is too scared to come' : Taiwan's earthquake deals a blow to top tourism hotspot - The brunt of the earthquake's damage occured in Hualien County, which attracts millions of visitors per year to the towering peaks and waterfalls of its main draw, Taroko Gorge;   cnbc.com/2024/06/04/taiwans-april-earthquake-deals-another-blow-to-its-tourism-industry.html  Jan Camenzind Broomby
The Straits Times (Singapore), 2024-5-6  Travelling to Taiwan? Aftershocks can last up to a year, so earthquake preparedness is key; If you are indoors during an earthquake, drop down onto your hands and knees and seek cover.

 ★  2024  Michelin stars comparisons among main Asian countries

 Michelin cities

3 Star

2 Star

1  Star

total number

Tokyo (Japan) 12 33 138 183
 Hong Kong 7 12 60 79
Kyoto (Japan) 5 17 78 100
Osaka (Japan) 3 10 72 85
 Singapore 3 6 42 51
Shanghai (mainland China) 2 8 41 51
 Macau 2 6 8 16
Taipei (Taiwan) 2 5 30 37
Seoul (S. Korea) 1 9 23 33
  The China Times - Want Weekly, No.185: To emergently save dying tourism, Taiwan government spent NT90,000,000 (USD3 millions) to have <Michelin Guide> in Taiwan in 2018

★\

  Yahoo News (2024-4-30): Taiwan's a number of restaurants including Michelin 3-star Le Palais Cantonese restaurant (君品頤宮) in Palais de Chine Hotel and Michelin one-star MiPon (米香), A-Cut, Tien Hsiang Lo (天香樓) repeatedly failed to pass public health inspections in recent 4 years.  Taipei city councilor questions that if Michelin restaurants got food safety issues, what can our people eat ?  tw.news.yahoo.com/米其林餐廳也不合格-議員揭-食安地雷-君品頤宮-天香樓都入列-095930855.html

TIME, 2023-11-20:  Growth in Taiwan for 2023 is projected to be 1.61%—its slowest pace in eight years. Beijing only has to lift a ban on Chinese tourists to boost Taiwan's GDP by over 1%, according to Capital Economics.  time.com/6336441/taiwan-presidental-election-william-lai-profile/

CNN (2022-12-6): Taiwan's 'living hell' traffic is a tourism problem.  Taiwan is notorious for its dangerous roads. Multiple countries, including Australia, Canada, Japan and the US, have specifically called out Taiwan's road conditions. "Many drivers do not respect the pedestrian's right of way,” the US State Department warns.  The Canadian government: "Motorcycles and scooter drivers don't respect traffic laws. They are extremely reckless.” Cities in Taiwan share a major issue – a lack of pavements and consistent walkways for pedestrians, ... Pedestrians are then often “forced” to walk onto car lanes...  The number of people lost their lives to traffic incidents in Taiwan is approximately six times higher than Japan and five times higher than the UK.  msn.com/en-us/travel/news/taiwans-living-hell-traffic-is-a-tourism-problem-say-critics/ar-AA14Xb2n  brief

economist / The world's most liveable cities in 2023
City liveability index, Mar. 2023   -   Taipei ranks world No. 65, Asia's No.14

score

cities in Asia

90+ Melbourne, Sydney, Aucland, Adelaide, Osaka(Japan), Perth, Tokyo(Japan), Brisbane, Wellington, Singapore
 80-90 Seoul(Korea), Hong Kong(Chn),  Busan(Korea), Taipei (Taiwan), Kaohsiung, Taichung
60-80 Noumea, Nantong, SuZhou, Beijing, ShenYang, Shanghai, etc
top 5 cities: Vienna 98.4,  Copenhagen, Melbourne, Sydney, Vancouver ... No.10 Osaka, Auckland 96
Score out of 100*  five categories: stability, health care, culture and environment, education and infrastructure.

 

2023  Michelin stars comparisons among Asian countries

 Michelin cities

total number of stars

Green Star

3 Star

2 Star

1 Star

Tokyo (Japan) 202 12 12 39 139
Kyoto (Japan) 104 6 6 19 73
Osaka (Japan) 97 3 3 10 81
Hong Kong 81 3 7 13 58
Singapore 65 1 3 6 55
 Shanghai (China) 51 1 2 9 39
Seoul (S. Korea) 38 3 2 8 25
Taipei (Taiwan) 29 2 2 5 20
 By highlighting eco-friendly pioneer restaurants with the MICHELIN Green Star, and spotlighting their virtuous initiatives, it stimulates awareness and actions both within the industry and by gourmets. 

 

DailyMail (UK), 2023-4-28:  Young Australian student on his dream overseas exchange program is fighting for his life in Taiwan after eating street food laced with rat poison.  His Doctor father said:  "He had been misdiagnosed in Taiwan with an immune disorder".  Alex is at the Taipei Medical University Hospital ..."The medical services in Taiwan don't currently have the right treatments or drugs to stabilise his condition", "Alex's condition has grown worse and he needs to be flown to the Royal Prince Albert Hospital in Sydney via a specialised medical flight retrieval service".  dailymail.co.uk/news/article-12023841/Toowoomba-student-exchange-Taiwan-fighting-life-eating-food-laced-rat-poison.html
 New York Times, 2023-3-16: Xia Hai City God Temple - managing to cram more than 600 statues of deities in just over 1,600 square feet. One in particular stands out: the Love God  (ps: but Taiwanese prefer bread to romance) Chifeng Street is a fashion-forward shopping street flush with vintage clothing stores... Dadaocheng is Taipei’s oldest neighborhood, famous for its dried goods   Yangmingshan National Park is home to wild hot springs and volcanic peaks.Qixing Mountain is a dormant volcano and the tallest mountain in Taipei.Because of gentrification and noise complaints, many of Taipei’s night markets aren’t as robust as they were decades ago. Ningxia Night Market is a distinguished exception nytimes.com/interactive/2023/03/16/travel/things-to-do-taipei.html
CNN (2022-12-6): Taiwan's 'living hell' traffic is a tourism problem.  Taiwan is notorious for its dangerous roads. Multiple countries, including Australia, Canada, Japan and the US, have specifically called out Taiwan's road conditions. "Many drivers do not respect the pedestrian's right of way,” the US State Department warns.  The Canadian government: "Motorcycles and scooter drivers don't respect traffic laws. They are extremely reckless.” Cities in Taiwan share a major issue – a lack of pavements and consistent walkways for pedestrians, ... Pedestrians are then often “forced” to walk onto car lanes...  The number of people lost their lives to traffic incidents in Taiwan is approximately six times higher than Japan and five times higher than the UK.  msn.com/en-us/travel/news/taiwans-living-hell-traffic-is-a-tourism-problem-say-critics/ar-AA14Xb2n  brief

New York Times, (nytimes.com/interactive/2021/world/covid-cases.html) 2023-2-23 : Taiwan's CovID death rate (deaths per 100,000) ranks world No.1.   The ranks of other Asian countries : No.6 Australia, No. 7 Japan, No. 23 New Zealand, No. 27 Hong Kong, 35 Korea, 64 Malaysia, 66 Thailand, 68 Indonesia, 72 India, about 170 Singapore, about 200 China.
 

economist / The world's most liveable cities in 2023
City liveability index, Mar. 2023   -   Taipei ranks world No. 65, Asia's No.14

score

cities in Asia

90+ Melbourne, Sydney, Aucland, Adelaide, Osaka(Japan), Perth, Tokyo(Japan), Brisbane, Wellington, Singapore
 80-90 Seoul(Korea), Hong Kong(Chn),  Busan(Korea), Taipei (Taiwan), Kaohsiung, Taichung
60-80 Noumea, Nantong, SuZhou, Beijing, ShenYang, Shanghai, etc
top 5 cities: Vienna 98.4,  Copenhagen, Melbourne, Sydney, Vancouver ... No.10 Osaka, Auckland 96
Score out of 100*  five categories: stability, health care, culture and environment, education and infrastructure.

CNN: Taiwan will pay tourist to visit.
 

New York Times (2023-1-12): In the Times Travel section's 52 places to go in 2023, Taipei ranks No. 36, other Asia's selections include No.2 Morioka Japan, No. 5 Auckland NZ,  7 kangaroo island Australia, 12 Bhutan,  13 Kerala India,  19 Fukuoka Japan,  20  Flores Indonesia,  25 Ha Giang Vietnam,  27 U-K Tjuta National Park, Australia nytimes.com/interactive/2023/travel/52-places-travel-2023.html?campaign_id=7&emc=edit_mbae_20230113&instance_id=82548&nl=morning-briefing%3A-asia-pacific-edition&regi_id=93861781&segment_id=122347&te=1&user_id=4a9594d616730fc2c1567d65a316b5f1

 

WEF (World Economic Forum) , May 2022
world Travel and Tourism Development Index
Taiwan's rank -
n/a (last)
weforum.org/reports/travel-and-tourism-development-index-2021/digest

world rank Asia's rank economies/countries score (global average : 4.0)
1 1 Japan 5.2
2 2 USA 5.2
7 3 Australia 5.0
9 4 Singapore 5.0
12 5 China 4.9
15 6 S. Korea 4.8
19 7 Hong Kong 4.6
25 8 UAE 4.5
27 9 New Zealand 4.5
32 10 Indonesia 4.4
33 11 Saudi Arabia 4.3
36 12 Thailand 4.3
38 13 Malaysia 4.3
43 14 Qatar 4.3
52 15 Vietnam 4.1
54 16 India 4.1
74 17 Sri Lanka 3.7
75 18 Philippines 3.7
84 19 Mongolia 3.6
n/a n/a Taiwan n/a
statista.com/statistics/186639/best-ranked-countries-in-the-travel-and-tourism-competetiveness-index/#:~:text=In%202021%2C%20Japan%2C%20the%20United,a%20TTDI%20score%20of%205.1.

 

2022  Michelin stars comparisons among Asian countries

 Michelin cities

number of 3 stars

num. of 2 stars

number of 1 star

total num.

Tokyo (Japan) 12 41 150 203
Hong Kong 7 12 52 71
Kyoto (Japan) 6 19 83 108
Osaka (Japan) 3 11 82 96
Singapore 3 7 41 51
Macau 3 5 7 15
Seoul (Korea) 2 7 24 33
Shanghai (China) 2 8 37 47
Taipei (Taiwan) 1 6 24 31
TaiChung City (Taiwan) 0 1 4 5
Kaohsiung (Taiwan) 0 0 2 2
TaiNan City(Taiwan) 0 0 0 0
 

 China Times - Want Weekly, No.185: To emergently save dying tourism, Taiwan government spent NT90,000,000 (USD3 millions) to have <Michelin Guide> in Taiwan. 

 

Users/88695/Downloads/20220830_PR-MG_TTTK-2022.pdf
guide.michelin.com/th/en/article/news-and-views/michelin-guide-singapore-2022-new-starred-restaurants
   2022-7-12
guide.michelin.com/en/article/news-and-views/michelin-guide-seoul-2022-eng

guide.michelin.com/hk/en/article/news-and-views/michelin-guide-hong-kong-macau-2022-unveiled-today-with-11-newly-starred-restaurants
guide.michelin.com/en/article/news-and-views/the-michelin-guide-kyoto-osaka-2022-is-unveiled-en
michelin.com/en/press-releases/michelin-guide-2022-shanghai/
guide.michelin.com/en/article/news-and-views/michelin-guide-tokyo-2022-eng    
2021-11-29

Liberty Times (Taiwan), 2022-8-30, editorial :
From earliest days,  taro, sweet potato, millet, vegetables, wild herbs and seafood are aborigines' characteristics; then the Han people brought in different traditional dishes from Fujian and Guangdong,  in a period of Japanese colonial rule, sashimi, oden, Bento ... were in  ; after 1949, mainland Chinese moving to Taiwan are good at northern and southern Chinese cuisines...talk.ltn.com.tw/article/paper/1537171

 

2021  Michelin stars comparisons among Asian countries

 Michelin cities

number of 3 stars

number of 2 stars

number of 1 star

total num.

Tokyo (Japan) 12 42 158 212
Hong Kong 10 18 59 87
Kyoto (Japan) 7 19 84 110
Osaka (Japan) 3 12 81 96
Seoul (Korea) 2 7 23 32
Singapore Sept - - -
Shanghai (China) 1 10 32 43
Taipei (Taiwan) 1 7 21 29

New York Times (2022-11-15), Taiwan's CovID-19 death rate is worst among main Asian countries.  detail

According to New York Times (2022-10-25), Taiwan's CovID-19 cases per 100,000 and deaths per 100,000 both are the worst among main Asian countries.

★   AFP, 2022-10-13: Taiwan welcomes foreign tour groups as border fully reopens /  three days of hotel quarantine have been replaced with seven days of "self-monitoring" where tourists are expected to keep an eye on their health and wear face masks indoors and outdoors...tourists must submit to regular tests for a week after their arrival and cannot enter bars and restaurants for the first three days news.yahoo.com/taiwan-welcomes-foreign-tour-groups-035747205.html

★  SCMP, 2022-10-1:  As Taiwan eases some of world’s oldest quarantine rules, remaining curbs and concerns see airlines lament ‘half step forward’... Travellers will be allowed outside during the seven-day period if their Covid tests come back negative every two days, but analysts say testing remains a 'deterrent to travel' ... The weekly cap on arrivals will "hamper a full-fledged recovery" in Taiwan's tourism msn.com/en-xl/travel/other/as-taiwan-eases-some-of-world-e2-80-99s-oldest-quarantine-rules-remaining-curbs-and-concerns-see-airlines-lament-e2-80-98half-step-forward-e2-80-99/ar-AA12tLJi

 Washington Examiner, 2022-8-26: China's temper tantrum over House Speaker Nancy Pelosi's visit to Taiwan seems to have sparked a mini-boom in congressional tourism toward the island.  washingtonexaminer.com/opinion/op-eds/seventy-year-lie-china-has-never-had-a-serious-claim-to-taiwan
  NY Times, 2022-8-18: Taiwanese cuisine — layered, distinct, multiethnic ...has been shaped by many cultural forces, including the island's Indigenous tribes,  long-established groups of Fujianese and Hakka people; Japanese ;  Chinese immigrants in 1949+...   nytimes.com/2022/08/16/dining/taiwanese-cuisine.html


World Economic Forum (WEF)  <Travel and tourism competitiveness report> released at 9-4-2019

   Taiwan's travel & tourism  -  ranks 10th in Asia    
category Taiwan's rankings and/or score comparison
prioritization of travel and tourism   No75  Singapore No.6 ,  Hong Kong No. 11
Natural & cultural resources No.58  score 2.6 China  No.1, score 6.0 , France No.2,  5.0,  Spain  No.3, 5.7,   Japan No.7, 5.3,   Indonesia No.18,  Thailand No.21,  Korea No.24,  Vietnam No.26,  Malaysia No.31,  HK No.40,  Philippines No.46,  Sri Lanka No.52,  Nepal No.56
Natural resources  No. 87 Hong Kong No. 42, Singapore No.120
 
cultural resources & business travel No. 36  score 2.6 China No1, score 7.0
price competitiveness No. 78 China 5.7
Health & Hygiene  No.43,  score 6 score worse than Korea, Japan, Mongolia
international openness No. 60 only better than China, Mongolia
Safety & security No. 26 human resource & labor market: Taiwan No.18

 

UNWTO  World Tourism Barometer
UNWTO Tourism Dashboard, updated 2022-9-25
Asia countries  -  tourism performance

  Arrivals (million) Receipts (USD bn) Receipts per arrival (USD)
Macau 3.7 15.4 4169
Indonesia 1.6 0.5 334
Korea(ROK) 1.0 10.5 10814
Thai 0.4 4.8 11247
Australia 0.2 17.0 68990
Japan 0.2 4.7 19239
New Zealand 0.2 2.9 13855
Cambodia 0.2 0.2 937
Sri Lanka 0.2 0.5 2606
Philippines 0.2 0.6 3663
Vietnam 0.2 0.1 947
Nepal 0.1 0.1 801
Taiwan 0.1 0.7 5298
China   11.3  
unwto.org/tourism-data/global-and-regional-tourism-performance


South China Morning Post, 2022-7-13: many Taiwanese are ‘protecting themselves’ by shunning what are normally some of the most crowded spaces, and the trend continues to keep pressure on tourism operators  scmp.com/economy/china-economy/article/3185049/how-taiwans-tourism-industry-surviving-its-biggest-ever-covid

National Geographic, 2022-7-6: Japanese filmmaker Hayao Miyakazi denies that Jiufen (Taiwan) was an inspiration, but many have drawn a connection between the town’s ... resemblance to the settings in the 2001 film Spirited Away (《千與千尋》,《神隱少女》,(日语:千と千尋の神隠し), an Oscar-winning animated feature).   nationalgeographic.com/travel/article/exploring-the-magic-of-taiwans-spirited-away-city

 

ISSF's (The Indian Strategic Studies Forum)
World Soft Power Index 2022
Tourism
(Infrastructure + Footfall + Receipts + Visitor's satisfaction)

1 France
2 Italy
3 USA
4 Spain
5 Thailand
6 Swiss
7 Turkey
8 China
9 Germany
10 UK

img1.wsimg.com/blobby/go/905bb114-a609-4bd0-a33b-dabe335781b0/downloads/ISSF_s%20World%20Soft%20Power%20Index%202022.pdf?ver=1660547924817

ISSF's World Soft Power Index 2022
Brand Recognition

1 USA
2 Japan
3 Germany
4 S. Korea
5 UK
6 France
7 Italy
8 Swiss
9 China
10 India

img1.wsimg.com/blobby/go/905bb114-a609-4bd0-a33b-dabe335781b0/downloads/ISSF_s%20World%20Soft%20Power%20Index%202022.pdf?ver=1660547924817


 

 

main attractions for tourists
 

 
Insider (Jun. -2015, businessinsider.com/reasons-to-travel-to-taiwan-2015-6#now-get-to-know-another-country-24) introduced some places for tourists:

    ◎  Hehuan Mountain and Ali Mountain are two top-rated scenic spots on TripAdvisor. (阿里山等)    ◎  Sun Moon Lake(日月潭) 

    ◎ Kenting National Park(墾丁).   9 nationall. parks, which make up 8.6% of its land.  Taroko National Gorge (太魯閣) alone is worth spending at least two days hiking its numerous scenic trails.

    ◎ hot springs Beitou outside of Taipei, and Jiaoxi in Yilan (北投宜蘭等溫泉)
    ◎
Taiwanese people love to eat, signature food are beef noodle soup, soup dumplings, and the uniquely Taiwanese oyster omelets.
    ◎
Taiwanese breakfast: Fuhang Doujiang in Taipei
    ◎
Every major city has at least one night market — Shilin and Raohe in Taipei, Keelung's is arguably the country's largest and most renowned
    ◎
some crazy fruit :pink guava, wax apples, and “Buddha’s head.”
    ◎ Hehuan Mountain and Ali Mountain
    ◎ Taipei 101 is the 4th tallest in the world. It also boasts the world’s fastest elevator

 

 L.A. Times, 2018-2-18:  National Palace Museum - you can browse among some of the 600,000-plus artworks and artifacts — centuries of cultural wealth — that Chiang's people had spirited away from  China's Forbidden City 70 years ago (ps: Young people may not like old stuffs) ,  Taipei 101 (but no longer world tallest building) ,  Din Tai Fung (already degraded by Michelin Guide for a few years, no longer a star-restaurant) , Longshan Temple (a small temple), Shilin night market (Taiwan's night markets don't have same Michelin honors as those street food in Singapore, Hong Kong and Macau have )  ,  Chiang Kai-shek Memorial (Taiwan's parliament passed a law that calls for erasing Chiang's name and likeness from landmarks across the island) ,  Pingxi sky lantern ( biodegradable lanterns can be incredibly harmful to both the environment and wildlife. Sky lantern litter takes quite some time to decompose, and the wire frames have been known to strangle and maim wild animals and livestock. They may pose a  fire hazard),  You might feel the ground shake (Not too often, you may not feel it)   dailypress.com/life/la-tr-taipei-20180218-story.html

 

USA Today, 2020-11-21 (usatoday.com/story/news/world/2020/11/21/taiwans-relatively-covid-free-life-attracts-skilled-expats/6322040002/)Foreign professionals run up against a protectionist mentality in e-commerce segments such as ride-hailing and home-sharing services like Uber and Airbnb.  Taiwan’s English fluency lags Hong Kong and Singapore.  In one of the most densely populated places on Earth, people live so packed together in apartment blocks that a neighbor's footfall upstairs or roadwork just outside easily overpower the sound of one's own TV.

 

♣  New York Times, 2008-3-2: The National Palace Museum is considered by many to be the finest repository of Chinese art in the worldthe 1,670-foot Taipei 101,

Da An Park - the largest public park in Taipei (a median sized park with little flowers) , Beitou , renowned for its hot springs resorts, some modeled after those in Japan (some are good), Din Tai Fung, a mandatory stop on Taiwan's restaurant sceneLongshan Temple, shaved ice topped with fresh mango, strawberry or kiwi at Ice Monster in Yongkang Street nytimes.com/2008/03/02/travel/02hours.html

 

♣   MSN, 2022-9-12   https://msn.com/en-us/travel/tripideas/these-are-the-10-top-rated-tours-to-take-in-taiwan/ar-AA11Kmly

☉(1) Jiufen Village And Northeast Coast Tour From Taipei
☉(2)
Taipei Street Food & Night Market Tour With A Local ( Yanshan Night Market,etc)

☉(3) Private Night Tour Of Taipei ( historic Dalongdong Baoan Temple, Taipei 101,etc)

☉(4) 5-Day Best Of Taiwan: Sun Moon Lake, Tarako Gorge, Kaohsiung, Taitung

☉(5) Taipei City Tour With National Palace Museum Ticket ( National Palace Museum, Chiang Kai Shek Memorial, and the Martyr's Shrine.)

☉(6) Yehliu Geopark And Keelung Harbor Guided Tour From Taipei

☉(7) The 10 Tastings Of Taipei With Locals: Private Street Food Tour

☉(8) Tea Of Taipei: Small-Group Tour With Taipei City Sightseeing

☉(9) Thousand Island Lake And Pinglin Tea Plantation From Taipei

☉(10) 4-Hour Morning Cycling Tour In Taipei

 

♣  Lonely Planet, 2022-9-30:What to eat and drink in Taiwan / Yongkang Beef NoodlesTaipei.  pearl milk tea, zhenzhu naicha (珍珠奶茶) in Chun Shui Tang, Taipei.  gooey oyster omelets (蚵仔煎), ‘salt-crisp’ fried chicken tossed with basil leaves and five-spice, and shaved ice desserts (剉冰) in Miaokou Night Market, Keelung.  aboriginal Formosans cuisine: wild boar served with onions and greens, steamed rice stuffed into bamboo tubes, and millet wine – once the tonic of tribal rituals. You might also encounter dishes of betel-nut salad, bird’s nest fern and even flying squirrel try it in Taiya Popo, Yilain. lonelyplanet.com/articles/what-to-eat-and-drink-in-taiwan    Lonely Planet, 2022-10-22: 18 things you need to know before visiting Taiwan    lonelyplanet.com/articles/things-to-know-before-traveling-to-taiwan

 

♣  small eats (in night markets...) :  In a high-cost advertisement promoted by Taiwan government, you can see commercial endorser Japanese star 木村拓哉(きむらたくやKimura Takuya) keep eating "small eats" ...

 

♣   Rough Guides ―  Things Not To Miss In Taiwan

https://www.roughguides.com/destinations/asia/taiwan/things-miss/

1. Sun Moon Lake

2. KinMen 金門

3. Hot Springs

4. Kenting National Park墾丁

5.Taroko Gorge 太魯閣

6. LuGang

7.Orchid Island 蘭嶼

8.Aboriginal culture

9.TaiNan, myriad temples 台南

10.Surfing

Rough Guides (Jan. 2017) intro Taiwan's new wave cafés,  all-round sophisticated city life, and TW cuisine and night markets remain world renowned...China’s influence is obvious, of course, and the cultural remnants of the island’s past occupation by both Japanese and American forces are still discernible. But as the only democracy in the Chinese-speaking world, Taiwan has a unique geography, mentality and identity.....Non-stop nightlife is never far from bubbling hot springs and sunny sub-tropical shores...  https://www.roughguides.com/best-places/2017/top-10-countries/

 

other tourist attractions:
Taipei 101, National Palace Museum, Jiufen,  Ximending taipei, Chiang Kai-shek Mem. Hall, 
Chingshui Cliff Hualien
 

 


STATISTA: Leading countries in the Travel & Tourism Competitiveness Index (TTCI)

Taiwan's travel & tourism - 13th in Asia

  

statista.com/statistics/186639/best-ranked-countries-in-the-travel-and-tourism-competetiveness-index/
 

Asia Rank

country

score

world Rank

1 Japan 5.4 4
2 Australia 5.1 7
3 China 4.9 13
4 Korea Rep. 4.8 15
5 Hong Kong 4.8 16
6 Singapore 4.8 17
7 New Zealand 4.7 18
8 Malaysia 4.5 25
9 Thailand 4.5 29
10 UAE 4.4 33
11 India 4.4 34
12 Indonesia 4.3 36
13 Taiwan 4.3 37

 

 

World Population Review - Most Visited Countries 2022
Taiwan ranks No.34

World rank Asia's rank country
4 1 China
8 2 Thailand
11 3 Japan
14 4 Malaysia
17 5 Hong Kong
21 6 Vietnam
22 7 India
23 8 S. Korea
26 9 UAE
27 10 Indonesia
28 11 Singapore
31 12 Saudi Arabia
34 13 Taiwan
worldpopulationreview.com/country-rankings/most-visited-countries    2022-10-2

World Population Review - Most Visited Countries 2022
Taiwan is not selected

World rank Asia's rank country
4 1 China
9 2 Thailand
12 3 Malaysia
13 4 Hong Kong
16 5 Japan
18 6 Saudi Arabia
20 7 S. Korea
22 8 Macau
24 9 UAE
25 10 India
28 11 Singapore
29 12 Indonesia
onestep4ward.com/most-visited-countries-in-the-world/
No.1 France, No.2 USA, No.3 Spain, No.4 China, No.5 Italia

 

Asia's 50 Best restaurants 2022
Taiwan ranks No. 9 in Asia

country total number of winnings ranks
Japan 11 No.1, 3, 6, 11, 13, 14, 15, 17, 36, 42, 43
Thailand 9 No. 2, 4, 7, 10, 25, 29, 31, 33, 46
Hong Kong 6 No. 5,  9,  24, 32,  34,  48
Singapore 7 No. 8, 20, 23, 37, 40, 41, 44
China 4 12, 19, 28, 39
S. Korea 5 16, 18, 26, 27, 30
India 3 21, 22, 49
Sri Lanka 1 35,
Taiwan 2 38, 45
Macau 1 47
Malaysia 1 50
theworlds50best.com/asia/en/list/1-50
No.1  Den (Tokyo), No.2 Sorn (Bangkok), No.3 Florilege (Tokyo), 4. Le Du (Bangkok), 5. The Chairman (HK), 6.  La Cime (osaka), 7. Suhring (Bangkok), 8. Odette (Singapore), 9. Neighborhood (HK), 10. Nusara (Bangkok)

 

EATER / The world's best 50 restaurants in 2022
Taiwan failed

country total number of winnings ranks
Japan 4 No.20  Den (Tokyo), No.30 Florilege (Tokyo),
No. 41.  La Cime (osaka), No. 45  Narisawa (Tokyo)
Hong Kong 1 No. 24.  The Chairman (HK)
Singapore 1 No. 36.  Odette (Singapore)
Thailand 1 No. 39   Sorn (Bangkok)
eater.com/worlds-50-best-restaurants-awards/22960670/worlds-50-best-restaurants-2022-list-winners
   

CNN Travel / World's best restaurants for 2022 revealed
2022-7-20
Taiwan
failed

country total number of winnings ranks
Japan 4 No.20  Den (Tokyo), No.30 Florilege (Tokyo),
No. 41.  La Cime (osaka), No. 45  Narisawa (Tokyo)
Hong Kong 1 No. 24.  The Chairman (HK)
Singapore 1 No. 36.  Odette (Singapore)
Thailand 1 No. 39   Sorn (Bangkok)

edition.cnn.com/travel/article/worlds-50-best-restaurants-2022/index.html

 

Economist  /    Global Food Security Index 2022
Taiwan is not included

world rank country Overall Score Affordability Availability Quality & safety Sustainability & Adaptation
6 Japan 79.5 89.8 81.2 77.4 66.1
14 NZ 77.8 91.6 67.7 73.1 75.1
22 Australia 75.4 93.3 61.1 84 58.8
23 UAE 75.2 86.7 73.8 81.3 55.2
25 China 74.2 86.4 79.2 72.0 54.5
28 Singapore 73.1 93.2 77.8 69.7 44.3
30 Qatar 72.4 88.6 72.9 71.7 51.0
39 S Korea 70.2 76.8 71.5 71.5 58.5
41 Malaysia 69.9 87.0 59.5 74.7 53.7
46 Vietnam 67.9 84.0 60.7 70.2 52.2
63 Indonesia 60.2 81.4 50.9 56.2 46.3
64 Thailand 60.1 83.7 52.9 45.3 51.6
impact.economist.com/sustainability/project/food-security-index/

 

Adventure /  The best countries to fulfill your wanderlust

US News : usnews.com/news/best-countries/adventure-rankings

Asia Rank 2021

country of Asia-Pacific

world rank 2021

world rank 2020
1 Thailand 5 5
2 New Zealand 7 7
3 Australia 8 10
4 Philippines 17 17
5 Singapore 18 25
6 Malaysia 25 29
7 Japan 28 34
8 Indonesia 32 35
9 Vietnam 40 38
10 India 41 40
a study by George Washington University placed adventure tourism into three categories: physical activity, cultural exchange and interaction with the environment.

 

  ABC Radio National, Australia, 2-27-2020:  What's most apparent when visiting Taiwan is how ordinary it is — ordinary in the sense of normal, everyday, functional.      ps: In Taiwan, the houses/buildings are expensive "property", instead of "architecture arts",  the cars are for transportation or for business, always square shape with boring color, black, gray, etc,  hard to see a sports-car, convertible or a VW bug with clockwork on its butt ... unlike those with great vitality in the US !
Associated Press, 11-23-2020 says Taiwanese business may not be ethical ... mix the U.S. pork ( Ractopamine pork banned by 150+ countries ) with Taiwan pork
Apple Daily, editorial, 1-5-2021:  chaos !! Taiwanese are not confident in gov. control strategy ―  "Taiwan pork only" seal.  e.g., famous Taiwan cuisine restaurant " Formosa Chang (鬍鬚張)" is questioned to mark the official seal but partly use foreign pork.

 

Travel and Tourism Index by country in Asia

worldatlas.com/articles/51-best-travel-and-tourism-countries-in-the-world.html

Asia Rank

country

index score

1 Australia 4.98;  7th
2 Japan 4.94;  9th
3 Singapore 4.86  ; 11th
4 Hong Kong 4.68; 13
5 New Zealand 4.64; 16
6 China 4.54; 17
7 UAE 4.43;  24
8 S. Korea 4.37; 29
9 Taiwan 4.35; 32
10 Thailand 4.26; 35
factors: business environment, security, health and basic sanitation standards, labor and human resource,
cultural heritage, natural resources, air transport infrastructure

 

 

International tourism receipts /  Asia-Pacific countries

international tourism: data.worldbank.org/indicator/ST.INT.ARVL

Asia Rank

country of Asia-Pacific

receipts  US$ million '19

1 Thailand 60521
2 Japan 46054
3 Australia 45709
4 Macau 40060
5 China 35832
6 India 30720
7 Hong Kong 29043
8 S. Korea 21628
9 Singapore 20052
10 Malaysia 19823
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/World_Tourism_rankings

further more info.: worlddata.info/tourism.php

 

The statistics before CovID-19 and China suspending independent Chinese tourists to Taiwan talk the exact things - 
BBC (2019-7-31): Chinese tourists account for the largest proportion of foreign tourists - because - L.A. Times (2019-8-1) listed several reasons (1) it’s about strong cultural and deep historic connection across the [Taiwan Strait]“Most Chinese in my generation grow up with many Taiwanese novels, drama, variety shows and songs." coming to Taiwan satisfies a curiosity they had felt since reading about Taiwan as children  (2) They revel in religious, architectural and cultural similarities  (3)  They take home new information from Taiwan’s newspapers, news websites and television channels, all free of censorship.  Besides, flights of no more than 2~3 hours, and stoking business.  
By contrast, tourists from North and South America only
account for about 6%~ 8%, Europe 3% ~ 4% of all int'l tourists. 
 

A ruling party friendly news, the Liberty Times, editorial (2020-6-15): Taiwanese have always preferred traveling overseas to domestic tour.
Media like LTN, Apple Daily, Storm (2022-3-30),  United Daily,
Economic Daily (2022-9-10, udn.com/news/story/7338/6601661?from=udn-catehotnews_ch2 )  , analyze WHY Taiwan's tourism is sluggish.
 n(1) transportation problem (particularly for those newly found hidden scenic spots) n (2) a small country has no many natural attractions  n(3) catering and accommodation problems - few local government can properly guide tourists by such as star-rating, therefore lots of traps are out there   n(4). Accommodation, catering, and transportation are generally expensive but of poor quality.  n(5) The tour often lacks humanistic and cultural connotations, as well as ethnic traditions and lifestyles.   there is a lack of in-depth tourism to explore geographical, cultural and ethnic characteristics.  n (6) Lacking market segmentation -  among night markets, or old streets vs. night markets.  n (7) the government does not pay attention to the tourism industry, "inadequate resource integration capabilities, insufficient investment, and insufficient marketing"

 

Asia's 50 Best restaurants 2022
Taiwan ranks No. 9 in Asia

country total number of winnings ranks
Japan 11 No.1, 3, 6, 11, 13, 14, 15, 17, 36, 42, 43
Thailand 9 No. 2, 4, 7, 10, 25, 29, 31, 33, 46
Hong Kong 6 No. 5,  9,  24, 32,  34,  48
Singapore 7 No. 8, 20, 23, 37, 40, 41, 44
China 4 12, 19, 28, 39
S. Korea 5 16, 18, 26, 27, 30
India 3 21, 22, 49
Sri Lanka 1 35,
Taiwan 2 38, 45
Macau 1 47
Malaysia 1 50
theworlds50best.com/asia/en/list/1-50
No.1  Den (Tokyo), No.2 Sorn (Bangkok), No.3 Florilege (Tokyo), 4. Le Du (Bangkok), 5. The Chairman (HK), 6.  La Cime (osaka), 7. Suhring (Bangkok), 8. Odette (Singapore), 9. Neighborhood (HK), 10. Nusara (Bangkok)

 

 

Economist, EIU, THE GLOBAL LIVEABILITY INDEX 2022

Biggest movers down the ranking in the past 12 month

Taipei (Taiwan) ranks world No. 53 

  City Location Rank Index Rank Move Index Move
1 Wellington New Zealand 50  85.7  -46  -8.0
2 Auckland New Zealand   34  89.2 -33  -6.8
3 Adelaide Australia 30  90.7 -27 -3.3
8 Taipei Taiwan  53 85.1 -20  1.2

 

 
world's most livable cities  ...
 Taiwan has not been included in the top ranking list of the world's most livable cities  |
 

world best surveys Taiwan's rankings
in top list
comparison with
other Asia & Pacific countries
EIU's Global Liveability Ranking 2022 No. 53 1. Vienna 2. Copenhagen 3. Zurich 4. Calgary 5. Vancouver 6. Geneva 7. Frankfurt 8. Toronto 9. Amsterdam 10. Osaka
The World's Best Cities to Live In 2022 failed top 10 1. London, 2. Tokyo, 3. Shanghai, 4. Singapore, 5. Melbourne, 6. Sydney, 7. Paris, 8. Beijing, 9. NY, 10. Amsterdam
 The EIU's Global Livability Index Ranking   2019  failed in the top 50 No.2  Melbourne,  No.3  Sydney,  No.4 Osaka (Japan), No. 7 Tokyo,  No.10  Adelaide,  No.12 Auckland (NZ),   No.15 Wellington (NZ),   18 Brisbane  (Aus) ,    No. 38 Hong Kong,  No. 40 Singapore,   No.57  Seoul (Korea),  Taipei behind   
Monocle's Quality of Life survey 2019 failed in the top list

https://monocle.com/film/affairs/quality-of-life-survey-top-25-cities-2019/

No.2 Tokyo (Japan),  No.11 Melbourne (Australia), No.13 Sydney,  No.16 Hong Kong,  No.17 Kyoto (Japan),  No.21 Auckland (NZ), No.22 Fukuoka (Japan),  23 Brisbane,  25 Singapore
Deutsche Bank Liveability Survey
not included in the top list
https://www.dbresearch.com/PROD/RPS_EN-PROD/PROD0000000000494405/Mapping_the_world%27s_prices_2019.pdf
 
No. 2 Wellington (NZ),    No. 7 Melbourne ( Australia ),  No.10 Sydney,   No.14 Tokyo  No.16 Auckland (NZ),  No.17 Dubai (UAE), No. 23 Singapore,   No. 26 Saudi Arabia Riyadh,  No. 29 Seoul (Korea),  No. 33 India Bangalore,  No. 39 Malaysia  Kuala Lumpur,   44 Hong Kong,   46 India Delhi,  No. 48   Shanghai (China), No. 55 Beijing
Safe Cities Index (SCI)  2019,   EIU (Economist UK), NEC failed in the top 20 No.1  Tokyo, No.2  Singapore, No.3 Osaka (Japan),  No.5 Sydney (Aus), No. 8 Seoul (Korea), No10 Melbourne, No. 20 Hong Kong  
ArchDaily / The World's Most Livable Cities in 2019 failed in the top 20 No. 3. Auckland, New Zealand, 11. Sydney, Australia,  No.15. Wellington, New Zealand , No.17. Melbourne, Australia  
 The EIU's Global Livability Index Ranking   2018  failed in the top 50 No.2 Melbourne (Australia),  No.3  Osaka (Japan),  No. 7  Tokyo (Japan) ,  No.10       Adelaide  (Australia),   No.12 Auckland (NZ)    Wellington (NZ) ... ... (omitted),  Taipei 58
 The EIU's Global Liveability Index Ranking   2017  failed in the top 50  No.1  Melbourne,  No. 5  Adelaide,  No. 7  Perth,
No. 8 Auckland (NZ),  No.11 Sydney,  No.13  Tokyo,  No.  14  Osaka,  No.16 Brisbane,   No. 20 Wellington (NZ),  No. 35 Singapore,  No.45  Hong Kong,  No.58  Seoul (Korea),  No.60   Taipei  
     

EIU (Economist UK)'s  Global Liveability Index evaluates stability, healthcare, culture&environment,  education,   Infrastructure

 

United Daily News TV (8-23-2015, 8:00 pm, Taiwan) commented tourism is related to a country's living conditions, and analyzed many Taiwanese had trips to Japan because they love to experience high living environment (comments by SHU professor Chen J. Y.).   The tbl. above compares Taiwan's livability with that of other Asian countries.
 

 
Taiwan's soft power  vs.  Asia's soft power

Till 2020, Taiwan has not been included in  Top 30 Soft Power by Portland, etc,  Taiwan's soft power is behind Asian's "world top 20" nations , including Japan, South Korea, Australia, Singapore, New Zealand, China, India, UAE. 
   for details : click Soft Power
 

world best surveys Taiwan's rankings
in top 25~30 list
comparison with
other Asia & Pacific countries
Brand Finance -  Global soft power Index 2022 failed 1. US, 2. UK, 3. Germany, 4. China, 5. Japan, 6. France, 7. Canada, 8. Swiss, 9. Russia, 10. Italy
ISSF's World Soft Power 2022 failed 1. US 2. France, 3. Germany, 4. Japan, 5. UK, 6. Swiss, 7. Italy, 8. S. Korea, 9. Spain, 10. China,11.India,12. Sweden, 13. Canada, 14. Australia, 15. Denmark
Brand Finance -  Global soft power Index 2021 failed 1. Germany,  2. Japan, 3. UK, 4. Canada, 5. Swiss, 6. US, 7 France, 8. China, 9. Sweden, 10. Australia, 11. Korea, 12 Holland, 13.  Russia, 14. Norway, 15. Denmark, 16 NZ, 17. UAE, 18. Iceland,    19. Italia, 20. Singapore
US News: 2021 Best Countries Overall failed 2. Japan,  5. Australia   7. New Zealand
2020 Brand Finance -  Global soft power Index ,
 top 60
n/c https://brandirectory.com  No. 4 Japan, 5 China, 13 Aus,  14 Korea,  18 UAE,  20 Singapore,  22 NZ,  26 SA 27 India
 
 2019/2020 
Top 30 SOFT POWER by Portland
 failed No. 8 Japan, No.9  Australia, No. 17 New Zealand,  No. 19  S Korea, No. 21 Singapore, No. 27 China
US News: 2020 Best Countries Overall
The Best Countries in the World
n/c No.3 Japan, No.5  Australia, No. 11 New Zealand,
No. 15 China, No. 16 Singapore , No. 20  Korea,
No.22 UAE , No.25  India,  No. 26  Thailand,
No. 30  Qatar
2018/2019 Monocle's Soft Power survey  failed No. 3 Japan, No.8  Australia, No. 11 New Zealand, No.15 Korea, No. 19 China,  No. 21  Singapore,  No. 25 India
2018/2019 Soft Power 30 Study by USC Center on Public Diplomacy  failed No.5 Japan, No. 10 Australia, No. 18 NZ, No. 20 S. Korea, No. 21 Singapore, No. 27 China
2017/2018 Monocle's Soft Power survey  failed No. 4 Japan, No.9 Australia, No. 13 New Zealand, No.17 Korea, No. 19 China,  No. 22 Singapore, No. 24 India
2017/2018 Soft Power 30 Study by USC Center on Public Diplomacy  failed No.6. Japan,  No. 8. Australia,  18. NZ,  No. 20 Singapore, No. 21 S. Korea,  No. 25.  China
2016/2017 Monocle's
Soft Power survey
 failed No. 3 Japan, No.6 Australia, No. 13 New Zealand, No.17 Korea, No. 20 China,  No. 23 Singapore, No. 24 India
2015/2016 Monocle's
 Soft Power survey
 failed No. 4 Japan, No.6 Australia, No. 13 New Zealand, No.15 Korea, No. 21 China,  No. 23 Singapore
 

  According to a survey of 2020, Singapore ranks No.1, Japan No.7, Korea No. 9 on "enterprise",  Japan ranks No. 5, China No.10 on "engagement", Korea ranks No. 5 on "digital", Japan ranks No.6, China No. 8 on "culture", No any Asian country ranks top 10 on "education" and "govt."
 

Best Countries overall in 2020:  1 Swiss 2 Canada 3 Japan  4 Germany  5  Australia  6  UK  7 USA  8 Sweden  9 Nederland  10  Norway  11 NZ  12 France  13 Denmark  14  Finland  15 China  16 Singapore  17  Italy  18  Austria  19 Spain  20  Korea  21  Luxembourg   22 UAE  23  Russia  24 Portugal  25  India  26  Thailand  27  Greece  28  Brazil  29  Israel  30  Qatar  31  Saudi Arabia   32 Malaysia   33 Mexico  34  Poland  35  Turkey

 

 

 

 ●  
UNESCO’s list of intangible cultural heritage
  /   
https://ich.unesco.org/en/lists
 

ranks

Asian country heritage items selected
1 China 40
2 Korea 24
3 Japan 20
4 Mongolia 15
5 India 13
6 Indonesia 10
7 Saudi Arabia 8
8 Cambodia 5
9 Philippines 4
10 Qatar 3
10 Malaysia 3
10 Pakistan 3
13  Thai 2
14 Singapore 1
14 Sri Lanka 1
14 Vietnam 1
14 UAE 1

18~3X

Myanmar, Laos, Nepal 0
Taiwan 0
◆  Taiwan is doing De-sinicization (getting rid of Chinese culture) for political reason.

◆  sg.news.yahoo.com/singapore-hawker-culture-gets-nod-included-unesco-intangible-cultural-heritage-list-140941296.html  12-16-2020: Singapore’s hawker culture was officially approved on Wednesday (16 December) to be inscribed into UNESCO’s list of intangible cultural heritage of humanity.  The biggest thanks must go to the generations of hawkers for nourishing a nation’s stomach and spirits.   Taiwanese like its night market culture, but was not selected.

 

 

 

 

 

 US News & World Report 2022,  Asian countries
world influence - top  rankings  

Cultural Influence No.4  Japan   No. 7  S Korea   10.  Australia  11. China  14. UAE   18. Singapore  20. NZ  24. Thailand    29. Qatar  34. India   36. Saudi Arabia   40. Malaysia Cutting-edge centers of art, entertainment and fashion
Quality of Life 9. Australia   10. NZ   14. Japan  23. Singapore  24. S Korea   25. China   26. UAE    30. Qatar   31. Malaysia   34. Saudi Arabia   35. Thailand   36.Indonesia   37.Philippines  38. India  40.  Vietnam Through all phases of life, these countries treat their citizens well
Heritage 8. India      9. Japan   10. Thailand    13. China   19. Australia  25. NZ     27. Indonesia   29. Singapore   30. S. Korea    A deep vein of history courses through these countries