Tourism Administration promotes extended weekday accommodation subsidy
By Shelley Shan / Staff reporter
The Tourism Administration yesterday urged the public to take advantage of the weekday accommodation subsidy program, which has been extended to the end of the year.
The scheme was designed to encourage people to engage in overnight, immersive domestic tours on weekdays, rather than only on weekends or holidays, the agency said.
Aside from hoteliers, the program has benefitted restaurateurs, transport system operators and businesses, it added.
A hotel room is pictured in an undated photograph.
Photo: Tsai Yun-jung, Taipei Times
More than 3.32 million people have registered for the subsidy since it started in September, it said.
To date, the program has been used to subsidize more than 840,000 room nights, with the second-night retention rate nationwide surpassing 54 percent, it said.
However, the program is not without its critics.
National Federation of Hotel Commercial Associations chairman Hung Chung-yuan (洪崇元) said it had done little to boost hotel occupancy rates, as most applicants use the subsidy for one-night stays.
The agency defended the program, saying that the hotel occupancy rate in September was up by 6.32 percentage points compared with the same time last year.
It said it initially planned to implement the program in April, but as the legislature did not pass the general budget until August, the program was not launched until Sept. 1.
“Aside from a shortened time to implement the program, there were three long weekends in September and last month, which curtailed the number of eligible weekdays stated in the program,” the agency said.
“People would have more flexibility to arrange weekday travel this month and next month as more eligible weekdays are available,” it said.
Some local governments offer additional incentives to attract domestic travelers, and they might not extend the validity of these offers until Dec. 31, the agency said.
The program applies to stays from Sunday through Thursday, excluding national holidays and consecutive holiday periods. Travelers are advised to check the list of participating hotels, eligible accommodation dates and program requirements before making reservations.
The weekday accommodation subsidy offers a discount of up to NT$800 for the first night and NT$1,200 for the second night. For outlying islands, the subsidy is NT$1,000 for the first night and NT$1,500 for the second.
Travelers booking two consecutive nights are allowed to stay at different participating hotels, rather than being required to stay at the same property.
In addition to the accommodation subsidy, people who won a birthday accommodation voucher should remember to use it before the end of the year, the agency said.
Each voucher is worth NT$1,200 and can be combined with the weekday accommodation subsidy.
Travelers staying two consecutive nights in general areas can receive a combined subsidy of up to NT$3,200, while those staying on outlying islands can receive up to NT$3,700.
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