MANILA-- Taiwan is seeking to attract thousands of Filipino tourists to the Taiwanese capital as it launched the "Undiscovered Taipei" tourism campaign in Manila Friday.
Director Jerry Chuang of the Taipei Economic and Cultural Office (TECO) in Manila cited a "very dramatic increase" in Filipino tourists to Taiwan, who reached around 419,000 in 2018.
"Filipino tourists have become popular tourists in Taiwan. You are well-informed and a lot of Filipinos make their travel plans," Chuang told reporters in Makati City during the launch.
"The Filipinos, they share information to their friends, they become ambassadors of Taiwan," he added.
To keep this "positive momentum", the capital seeks to reintroduce the Undiscovered Taipei campaign to Filipinos and to promote the city as "the best destination in the region."
Yi-ting Liu, the commissioner of the Taipei's Department of Information and Tourism, said the Undiscovered Taipei campaign is targeting Filipinos tourists who had already visited the capital.
"There are more and more spots that the people who've been there for the first time, for sure the second time they haven't been there," he told reporters.
"The number last year was 420,000 so I believe, this year, it could increase until 500,000 and I believe there will be more," he added.
Chuang attributed the growth of Filipino tourists to Taiwan with its visa-free entry policy for Filipinos, set to expire in July 2019.
When asked if there is a high possibility this could be extended, Chuang said the TECO will announce soon.
"Our office, we try very hard to follow up. We have a lot of queries so we convey back to Taipei, that's why we urge Taipei to make a decision early," he said.
"The visa-free policy has really brought Taiwan and the Philippines closer," he noted. (PNA)
