Travel in Taiwan

Asian travel marketplace Klook has confirmed its first strategic partnership for 2024 – a deal with Krungsri, the Bank of Ayudhya PCL in Thailand. 

Good morning from Skift. It’s Wednesday, January 10. Here’s what you need to know about the business of travel today.

The first major airline deal of the year has been formally confirmed. Taipei-based EVA Air has finalized terms with Airbus for a new fleet of widebody and narrowbody planes. A total of 33 new aircraft will be joining the Taiwanese carrier, comprising 18 A350-1000s and 15 A321neos. 

Visitors to China can have an easier time getting into the continent beginning January 01, 2024. The Embassy of the People’s Republic of China in the United States of America released a notice at the end of 2023 stating that the tourist visa (L-Visa) application documents will be simplified. Here’s what travelers should know.

The airline network planners didn't simply fast forward to 2024.

Toward the end of each year, I love opening my camera roll and reflecting on all the pictures and videos I took during the year.

With its sensational national parks, beguiling cities, rich Indigenous culture and dramatic landscapes – ranging from towering Andean mountains and high-altitude lakes to shimmering salt flats and dense Amazonian rainforests – Bolivia is a magnet for travelers from across the globe.

The Transportation Security Administration (TSA) has added four more international airlines to its popular trusted traveler program, TSA PreCheck. 

Tripla, which provides a booking engine to hotels in Japan and Southeast Asia, has acquired a hotel tech company in Taiwan.

Attention, all travel enthusiasts. If you want to maximize your travel plans and book an additional flight at no extra cost, booking a Flying Blue stopover can help unlock more value from your miles. In 2022, Air France-KLM Flying Blue began allowing stopovers on its own one-way, round-trip and multi-city award ticketed flights. Then, in 2023, the airline loyalty program expanded stopovers to all partner award tickets.

President Joe Biden is a self-described train fan, commuting between Washington, D.C. and Delaware on Amtrak for decades as a Senator. Now to beef up U.S. passenger rail, his administration is doling out more than $8 billion, including funds for two high-speed trains in California and Nevada.

Delta Air Lines will launch flights from Seattle to Taiwan next summer, flying direct from the United States to the island for the first time.

Seven years later, Delta Air Lines is officially returning to Taiwan.

United Airlines CEO Scott Kirby said on Thursday that he remains fully confident in his business plan for the airline despite some early concerns about the broader market.

Luxury and expedition cruise line, Seabourn, is offering a new World Cruise for 2026, a 129-day voyage onboard the Seabourn Sojourn that visits fourteen different countries, called the “Ring of Fire: Hidden Gems,” available for booking now. 

Tours and activities operators in Asia expect at least another 6 to 12 months of pent-up travel demand. However, maximizing this opportunity depends on addressing capacity bottlenecks, especially in markets like Japan. 

“Last April, my wife, Liv, and I took our firstborn, Lyla, from Los Angeles to Taiwan to meet Liv's entire family, which was a really big deal because family is such an important part of Taiwanese culture. Six or seven of Liv's closest relatives brought us to the Shilin Night Market in Taipei, and you know how Asian night markets can get kind of insane. Lyla had this stink face the entire time because she wasn't used to the humidity and the noise and the smells. She was just like, What the hell is this place? But that's the energy of Taiwan: all that commerce, the mom-and-pop shops, the food stalls feeding millions of people every day. My mother-in-law loves bringing us to a stall that does fermented tofu—grilled with all sorts of sauces from spicy to sweet. You can tell the stall is near when you smell that pungent scent permeating the air. It's phenomenal, walking through those night markets. That's Asia to me, those aromas and the loud bustle. As for Lyla, once we got her some fruit, she warmed up to it all. Just take her to a watermelon stall and you've got her. We've traveled a tremendous amount with her since she was a baby, but every stage of traveling with kids as they grow up is totally different. Liv and I have another newborn now, so hopefully we can keep up the trend of showing our girls the world. Taiwan is such a strong cultural reference point for Liv, having grown up there, that we want to pass it on to our kids. It's one of those places that's always going to evolve as time goes on. There will be changes in its future, but that's what Taiwan has endured for ages. Each time we visit, it will have changed, and our family will have changed with it.” —as told to Matt Ortile

Air travel generates a lot of carbon pollution, contributing to a climate crisis whose worsening weather also makes air travel more turbulent and unpleasant. As those conditions intensify in the years ahead, research suggests high-speed trains — which don’t exist in the U.S. — would be a resilient alternative.

Imagine spending your vacation days exploring ancient temples in Cambodia, indulging in the vibrant street food culture of Vietnam, or exploring the neon-lit skylines of Japan’s cities—all while enjoying the comforts of home.

Day two of World Travel Market London 2023 – the world’s most influential travel and tourism event – saw key topics discussed including diversity and inclusion, the future of travel and responsible tourism.

At 27 years old, I completed my wanderlust dream of traveling to every country in the world as a solo female traveler. To be exact, I've visited all 193 sovereign nations — plus Taiwan, Kosovo, and Palestine. Then, by the age of 30, I achieved my athletic dream of becoming an Ironman. I find great fulfillment in inspiring and educating young women to get out and pursue their passions — or whatever gets them excited in life.