Taiwan Wants to Give You Free Money to Travel There
Tourists will be given an allowance to spend on the island.
Imagine heading off to the island of Taiwan and discovering all of its stunning metropolises and hidden gems. Now, imagine being paid to do that.
It isn't a new dream-job alert, and no specific skills are needed to partake. All you need to be is a tourist looking to visit Taiwan. In an effort to attract more visitors and bring tourism levels back up to what they used to be before the pandemic, Taiwan's government is planning to pay the equivalent of $165 each to vacation there. If you're a tour group, even better, as you'll be offered up to $658 per group.
The new measures were announced on Thursday by Taiwan's Premier Chen Chien-jen, who said that Taiwan is planning to attract six million tourists in 2023, CNN reports. In 2022, the island only saw 900,000 inbound visitors, which is only a small portion of what Taiwan's tourism looked like pre-pandemic. In 2019, the island counted 11.8 million international tourists (up 7% from previous years), according to the Taiwan Tourism Bureau.
Though specifics of any limitations to the allowances are scant right now, Transport Minister Wang Kwo-tsai said in a statement provided to CNN that tourists will receive the money digitally, and they'll be able to use it for their expenses while vacationing, including paying for their hotel and accommodations.
Slots, though, will be somewhat limited. According to Taiwan's plan, the government will issue payments to 500,000 individuals and to 90,000 tour groups.
While it's not completely free flights like Hong Kong is offering in another tourism initiative with a similar aim, free money is free money. More details on how to apply for the tourism allowance are expected in the near future.