Over half of Taiwan's star-rated hotels are in Taipei; Taipei City’s star-rated hotel guidance program proves successful

Reporter Zhu T? Mian? Taipei News /p>

For out-of-town visitors to Taipei, besides dining and entertainment, accommodation is also crucial. The Taipei City Government’s Tourism Bureau launched the “Taipei City Star-Rated Hotel Guidance Program” in 2012. Among the current 67 certified star-rated hotels, 35 achieved their ratings through the program. Notably, the five-star hotels include The Okura Prestige Taipei and Taipei Garden Hotel, marking significant success.

▲ The luxurious guest room at Grand Formosa Regent, which received a four-star rating, features an added seating sofa. (Photo / Provided by Taipei City Department of Tourism and Information)

Chen Yuyan, head of the Tourism Industry Section at Taipei City Government’s Department of Information and Tourism, stated that last year, the department collaborated with the Taipei City Government, Taipei Hotel Association, National Association of Small and Medium Enterprises, relevant industry experts, and local hotel operators to launch the guidance program. A total of 95 businesses participated, and among the 67 hotels that received star ratings in 2012, 35 achieved certification through the Tourism Bureau’s guidance initiative. The Okura Prestige Taipei and Taipei Garden Hotel earned five stars, Grand Formosa Regent received four stars, and 20 hotels were rated three stars.

Chen Yuyan explained that the program offers two on-site guidance sessions for participating businesses, referencing the evaluation criteria of the star-rating system. The first session involves a team of experts in interior design, architecture, business management, and fire safety who provide advice to help improve the physical quality of the properties. The second session is a follow-up on-site review to assess improvements. Zhao Xinping, director of the Department of Information and Tourism, mentioned that for hotels yet to obtain a star rating, they can also develop annual improvement plans based on expert diagnostics to enhance hardware and service facilities.

% Ji Bei died of tourism song select city, drink in the city (and city), drink in the city (p>

During the implementation of the “Taipei City Star-Rated Hotel Guidance Program,” the Department of Information and Tourism also found that some evaluation criteria set by the Tourism Bureau under the Ministry of Transportation and Communications may not be suitable for every hotel. Certain aspects—such as location, surrounding transportation, room size, and corridor width—can be challenging for general hotels to meet or improve.

Additionally, most hotels in Taipei are urban-type accommodations. Given the convenience of public transport and comprehensive living amenities, the practical need for on-site restaurants is lower. For motels, overall designs prioritize guest privacy, often integrating public-area facilities within guest rooms. As a result, under the current star-rating evaluation scoring system, some hotels may receive lower scores than expected, making it difficult to achieve their desired star rating and reducing their willingness to participate in the program.

Zhao Xinping pointed out that she hopes the Ministry of Transportation and Communications can better assist businesses and local governments in highlighting the brand value of star-rated hotels. She also calls on the central government to take industry feedback into account and introduce supportive measures to increase participation in the star-rating program. This could encourage more hotels to join the ranks of star-rated establishments in the future.

% Ji Fei Shaofa Guo Kao standard Kang Mengzhuang, Ya Cai Tan Zeng, Zeng Tan Bin Wei Diao Zheng Zeng Jia Xian Shi Xiao (Figure / Provided by Taipei City Department of Tourism and Information)