Tokyo free-and-easy trip for 9,888 yuan; 70,000 flock to travel fair’s opening day, setting new record

▲ Vouchers offered by various hotels at the travel fair attracted large crowds. (Photo / Reporter Chen Zi-yin, same below)

Reported by Reporter Chen Rui-zhong / Taipei

After the opening of the 2014 Taipei International Travel Fair today (November 7), the first-day attendance hit a new record of 69,803 visitors — nearly 70,000, which is a 13.4% increase compared to last year’s 61,550. In addition to strong sales of Asian itineraries such as Japan and South Korea, long-haul routes have also been a focus this year. Furthermore, hotel voucher sales at Hall 3 of the Taipei World Trade Center set a single-transaction record of 3 million yuan.

Affected by the depreciation of the Japanese yen, Japanese itineraries were the most eye-catching among this year’s offerings. Klook Travel launched a promotional package for a four-day Tokyo free-and-easy trip for 9,888 yuan, while Scoot also had a Tokyo five-day trip starting from 9,900 yuan. In addition to free-and-easy trips to major cities like Tokyo and Osaka, “skiing” has become a new favorite this year.

Huang Li-wen, a planning specialist at Klook Travel, said that this year, influenced by the opening of The Wizarding World of Harry Potter at Universal Studios Japan in Osaka and the depreciation of the yen, sales in the Kansai region increased by 30% compared to last year. In addition, winter-exclusive skiing packages have also been a key area of customer inquiry. Tang Gui-zhen, chairman of Tang Gui-zhen Travel Agency, also pointed out that many customers purchasing Japanese itineraries this year have already done their homework and directly specified routes, activities, and destinations on-site, which also accelerated sales.

▲ Real scene from the 2014 Taipei International Travel Fair. (Photo / Reporter Chen Zi-yin)

Aside from Japanese itineraries, long-haul routes in Europe and America also attracted many inquiries this year. Industry insiders revealed that with cash discounts, second-person promotions, and increasing interest in multiple destinations, several large travel agencies achieved the impressive feat of receiving 3,000 orders in a single day.

The most popular voucher items every year also drew large crowds this year. The Hospitality Group stated that due to the travel fair inviting over a hundred major corporations this year, sales were booming. The group revealed that one of those top enterprises purchased vouchers worth 3 million yuan on the first day.

Ms. Lin, a member of the public, said that because winter is approaching, she prioritized purchasing onsen (hot spring) vouchers, but the crowd this year was noticeably larger than last year — just queuing to get in took half an hour.