Siraya National Scenic Area Headquarters

The Southern Taiwan Tourism Union has stepped up its international market outreach! Building on past promotional results, this year's initiative is led by the Siraya National Scenic Area Headquarters in partnership with the Southwest Coast, Maolin, and Dapeng Bay National Scenic Area Headquarters. To better meet market demand, the alliance recently brought together local industry representatives for the "Southern Taiwan Tourism Union International Promotion Sharing Session," inviting travel platforms ezTravel and Klook to share international trends and a Hong Kong content creator who won a top-ten popular creators award to explore southern Taiwan in depth. This year's strategy focuses on converting marketing buzz into actual bookings by integrating content creation, local experiences, and online platform sales, directing travelers to bookable tourism products and driving regional tourism growth.

Director-General Hsu Chu-Long of the Siraya National Scenic Area Headquarters said the initiative centers on integrating online and offline efforts. Offline, international travel content creators visit in person to experience southern Taiwan's culture, cuisine, and way of life from an international traveler's perspective; online, the program brings together travel platforms to build a dedicated Southern Taiwan Tourism Union page selling transportation, accommodation, and tour packages, backed by travel incentives worth a total of NT$ 10 million, so travelers can book directly after seeing the content. While past promotions built up buzz, travelers still faced complicated transportation arrangements, scattered information, and a lack of clear purchasing channels. This project therefore turns promotional content into products by bringing together attractions, experiences, accommodation, and transportation, so local features become innovative tourism products with clear themes, prices, and booking channels.

This strategy also builds on the direction set at the sharing session. Analyzing global trends, ezTravel Deputy General Manager Hsiao Kuan-Chun noted that today's travelers no longer rely solely on traditional attraction information; instead, they turn to social media videos, creator recommendations, and platform reviews to find travel experiences suited to their personal interests, seeking answers to "how to experience it" and "whether it can be purchased conveniently." Klook's business development manager added that only by deeply understanding traveler needs can marketing buzz be effectively converted into actual bookings.

To deepen its engagement with the Hong Kong market, the Southern Taiwan Tourism Union has, following its collaboration with EVA Air in Hong Kong, made a growing list of attractions available for purchase, including Houbi Sunu Village, Dakeng Leisure Farm, and Qigu Lagoon in Tainan City, Huaqiao Market in Pingtung, and Focus 13 in Kaohsiung City. It has also invited prominent Hong Kong travel content creator Ruby Lau to explore southern Taiwan in depth. Ruby, who won Hong Kong's Top Ten Popular Creators award, has long shared travel and food content and holds considerable influence among Hong Kong independent and repeat travelers.

Ruby noted that Hong Kong visitors enjoy convenient transportation to Taiwan and a high rate of independent travel; many have visited multiple times and increasingly seek deeper cultural experiences beyond the classic attractions. This itinerary links Pingtung, Kaohsiung City, Tainan City, and Chiayi, featuring a walking tour of Huaqiao Market, Wang Ye worship traditions at Donglong Temple, a cycling experience at Pengcun Wetlands, Wanshan Indigenous culture, Qishan District's banana industry, Gueidan Hot Spring in Nanxi District, Zengwen Reservoir in Dapu, Qigu Lagoon, and Jingzaijiao Salt Fields, showcasing the diverse faces of southern Taiwan. The itinerary emphasizes cultural interaction, local cuisine, and hands-on experiences with local artisans, transforming everyday culture into a must-visit, in-depth journey for travelers.

Director-General Hsu Chu-Long further stated that the initiative builds travel aspiration through creator content, captures demand through online platforms, and drives bookings with incentive mechanisms, gradually establishing a complete operating model of "content promotion, product readiness, channel sales, and visitor arrivals." Going forward, this model will serve as the foundation for connecting travel platforms, transportation providers, international creators, and local industries to meet the consumption needs of different international markets, transforming southern Taiwan's culture and scenery into tourism products that are easier to understand, convenient to purchase, and competitive, and making promotion a true starting point for driving local tourism spending and industry development.