Taiwan reaches 10 million tourists mark—10 millionth international visitor arrives at Taoyuan Airport

▲Taiwan’s 10 millionth visitor arrived on the 20th in the early morning!(Photo / Provided by the Tourism Bureau, Ministry of Transportation and Communications)

Reporter Cai Wenjun / Comprehensive report

Taiwan has become a top-tier travel destination with over 10 million international visitors. At 5:08 AM on the 20th, the 10 millionth international traveler arrived at Taoyuan International Airport. The traveler was Mr. Manuele Christopher from California, USA, who arrived on China Airlines flight CI007. The Tourism Bureau of the Ministry of Transportation not only welcomed him with an energetic lion dance but also presented him with a set of 100 gifts symbolizing perfection to celebrate him as Taiwan's first ever 10-millionth visitor.

34-year-old traveler Manuele Christopher is a computer software engineer. This is his and his wife’s first visit to Taiwan. His wife, who was born and raised in California, and he have been married for two and a half years. They plan to stay in Taiwan for two weeks and want to visit night markets, try stinky tofu, and pineapple cakes. His first impression of Taiwan is that the people are very friendly.Knowing that he was the 10 millionth international visitor in Taiwan’s tourism history, he said he was very happy and also pleasantly surprised by the grand lion dance welcome.The tourism bureau also invited Manuele Christopher and his wife to attend the welcome press conference at 2 pm.

▲“Medicinal Herb Vegetable Hotpot” (Photo / Golden Chef Awards)(Photo / Provided by the Tourism Bureau, Ministry of Transportation and Communications)

The tourism bureau stated that to welcome the 10 millionth visitor to Taiwan, they have prepared 100 gifts symbolizing perfection and completeness. These include business class round-trip tickets, local specialty gifts from various counties and cities, HTC smartphones, five-star hotel vouchers, and other great prizes. At a press conference at Taipei Guest House at 2 PM on the 20th, President Ma Ying-jeou personally presented these gifts to the lucky traveler, aiming to offer this year’s 10 millionth international visitor an honorary gift and to showcase the beauty of Taiwanese products.

The number of travelers visiting Taiwan rose steadily from 3.845187 million in 2008, surpassing 9.91 million last year. For six consecutive years, Taiwan has welcomed over a million visitors annually, and this year's total of 10 million is 2.7 times the figure from eight years ago. The growth in tourism has brought positive energy to Taiwan, and the constantly evolving travel experiences, along with everyday life scenes, have also become part of the island’s appeal to international visitors.Major international media outlets such as Lonely Planet and The New York Times have recommended Taiwan as a top global travel destination in recent years.