Books and expert talks available — the first travel-themed café opens

▲ The coffee bar resembles a flying ship, soaring along with the aroma of coffee. (Photo / Huang Shih-yuan)

Reported by Huang Shih-yuan / Taipei

The world’s first café combining travel, coffee, and books, “World Tour Petite Travel Café,” officially opened on the B1 floor of Eslite Bookstore’s Xinyi branch on the 21st. In addition to offering boutique coffee from three continents, the venue provides travel books, iPads, as well as talks and consultations with travel experts, billing itself as the first-ever travel-themed café.

World Tour is a mainland-based independent travel website that offers services such as flights, accommodation, insurance, Eurail passes, car rentals, private transfers, and attraction tickets. Founder and current chairman Zhang Heping said that in addition to these offerings, World Tour also attracts travel experts to provide consultation services on the site through an incentive mechanism. As long as consumers purchase World Tour products as a result, the experts receive a certain percentage of the commission.

Why did he think of opening a café in Taiwan, and the world’s first at that? Zhang Heping said he loves both travel and coffee, and had long had the idea of opening a café that combines the two. During his New Year’s holiday trip to Taiwan in 2015, he was deeply captivated by the country, especially Eslite Bookstore, which has a rich cultural atmosphere. He then decided to open a café here. Through a friend’s introduction, he met Jian Boyi, general manager of Petite Café, and the two quickly launched “World Tour Petite Travel Café.”

“World Tour Petite Travel Café” currently offers boutique coffee from Peru, Java, and Ethiopia, with plans to expand to more than ten varieties in the future. Besides specialty coffee, Jian Boyi said the café will gradually add a variety of travel books and invite experts for talks, allowing customers to access more travel information. Additionally, there are four iPad Airs available for customers to use the World Tour app to learn more about travel. However, because World Tour does not have the qualifications to sell travel products, no goods will be sold at “World Tour Petite Travel Café.”

World Tour Petite Travel Café — Taipei Xinyi Eslite Branch
Address: B1, No. 11, Songgao Rd., Xinyi District, Taipei City
Phone: 02-2345-6913
Business hours: Sun–Thu 11:00–22:00, Fri–Sat 11:00–23:00
Minimum spending: NT$100
From April 17 to April 30, 2015, enjoy special opening promotions upon visit.