《TAIPEI TIMES》 Tourists book rare, expensive travel tour packages

/ Staff writer, with CNA

Rare and high-end overseas travel tours have become more sought after than expected following Taiwan’s lifting of its COVID-19 pandemic border controls in October, a travel agency said on Sunday.

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After the government lifted a ban on inbound and outbound tour groups, some companies inquired about overseas travel plans for corporations, Sunday Tours chairman Chen Yi-fu （陳依福） told a news conference.

Chen said that to his surprise, bookings for rare and high-end travel tours have been surging faster than before the pandemic.

For instance, 30 people have purchased a tour to the North Pole for next year priced at NT$1.28 million （US$41,675） per person, Chen said.

The company had expected to sell a South Pole tour package priced at NT$980,000 per person to about six clients, but eventually sold it to 30 people, he added.

Chen said that this might be because COVID-19 has changed people’s attitude toward travel, as after more than two years of border controls, many people are keen to travel again.

Travelers might also be worried that another pandemic could occur, or that if they were to catch COVID-19, they would have to undergo isolation, so they want to plan trips to “must-visit” tourist attractions without delay, Chen added.

Sunday Tours said that with travel expenses being much higher than before the pandemic, tourists are choosing longer tour itineraries.

For example, the company only offered one 11-day “Benelux” trip — which includes stops in Belgium, the Netherlands and Luxembourg — before the pandemic, but for next year, 11-day and 13-day itineraries have been arranged, Chen said.

However, the 11-day trip has been less popular than the 13-day tour, which has been fully booked.

This shows that tourists hope to have more time to experience local culture, history, scenery and food when traveling abroad, Chen added.

新聞來源：TAIPEI TIMES