KUALA LUMPUR: Taiwan successfully attracted 60,742 Malaysian visitors since opening its borders in October 2022.
This made Malaysia the most significant source of visitors to Taiwan in South-East Asia, said Taiwan Tourism Bureau bureau director Chou Shih Pi.
In light of that, Chou said that they would be putting up a "Taiwan Pavilion" at the upcoming Malaysian Association of Tour and Travel Agents (MATTA) fair held from March 17 to 19 at the Malaysia International Trade and Exhibition Centre (MITEC) Kuala Lumpur.
Chou said the Taiwan Tourism Bureau would be teaming up with tourism ambassador, actress and singer Ayda Jebat to promote Taiwan’s beautiful scenery, delicious cuisine and friendly people to Malaysians.
"Ayda Jebat will make an appearance at the Taiwan Pavilion on the afternoon of March 18 to share interesting stories about the trip to Taiwan she and her husband went on," he said in the press conference on Thursday (March 2).
Chou said the Taiwan Tourism Bureau encouraged Malaysian tourists to experience the charm of Taiwan's railway tourism.
"Besides the high-speed rail from Taipei to Kaohsiung, Taiwan Railways has further launched sightseeing trains such as Future Express, Future Express Kitchen, and Breezy Blue."
He added that Taiwan was stepping up efforts to improve its environment for Muslim travellers with major transportation hubs and national scenic areas equipped with facilities catering to their needs.
"Malaysians only need to bring their passport with them to travel to Taiwan. There's no quarantine and vaccine certificate required.
"More than 324 restaurants and hotels have also obtained halal certification," he added.
Chou said the Taiwan pavilion at MATTA Fair would provide activities and events, including a "Fun to Art" event, that merges traditional Taiwanese dance with modern elements to create a new artistic expression.
MATTA vice-president (outbound) Cynthia Tan said the number of Malaysians travelling to Taiwan had yet to reach its pre-pandemic peak.
However, the Taiwan Tourism Board attaches importance to the Malaysian market.
In addition, she said, the MATTA Travel Fair was expected to attract 250,000 people to visit.
She said MATTA expected the two-way tourist flow between Malaysia and Taiwan to increase. The significance of this partnership was to facilitate the sharing of travel information and showcase the extraordinary experiences that travellers may have.
Admission to the MATTA fair is free and its open from 10am to 9pm on March 17 to 19. Frequent shuttle services to Mitec will be provided from KL Sentral and Sunway Putra Mall.
