Twin events set in push for Taichung tourism

Thai Vietjet in cooperation with the Tourism and Travel Bureau in Taichung, will offer free tickets to the first 10,000 customers booking seats on the new flights to the flora exposition, from November 3 onwards. 
The inaugural flight, VZ560, will depart from Suvarnabhumi airport at 09.00 and arrive in Taichung at 13.45 while the return leg will depart Taichung at 14.40, arriving at Suvarnabhumi airport at 17.15. The service will be available five days a week on Monday, Wednesday, Friday, Saturday and Sunday, starting from November 3. 
“Taichung has great potential in tourism and Vietjet already has direct flights from Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh city to the destination,” says Tony Wannaphan, Marketing Manager,Thai Vietjet Air Joint Stock Company Limited.
Thai Vietjet expects up to 3,600 Thai tourists flying to Taichung on the direct flights monthly, according to Tony.
“We hope the 2018 Taichung World Flora Exposition, along with the start of the BangkokTaichung direct flights, will boost tourism exchange between the two countries,” says Tsao ChungYu, Senior Executive Officer, Taichung
City Government Tourism and Travel Bureau.
The total number of inbound visitors to Taichung stood at 1.32 million last year, a 7.03 per cent increase from the previous year. From January to July this year, up to 40,844 Thai tourists arrived in Taichung, rising 27.72 per cent from the same period last year, according to Tsao.
There were 54,671 Thai tourists visiting Taichung in 2017. With the Thai Vietjet direct flights and the World Flora Exposition, we expect a 200per cent surge in the number of Thai tourist arrivals in Taichung this year, he added.
The 2018 Taichung World Flora Exposition, running from November 3 to April 24 2019, features three key areasThe Houli Horse Ranch and Forest Park Area, Fongyuan Huludun Park, and the Waipu Park Area, each with its unique themes. 
For example, the Fongyuan Huludun Park under the theme of ‘Flora City’, aims to display the incorporation of historic and commercial facets, including a ‘Garden Competition Area’ and a ‘Water Features Area’.
“Taiwanese and Thai cultures have many similarities, making Taichung an attractive location for Thai tourists. We would gladly welcome Thai tourists to the flora exposition and have produced leaflets in Thai,” said Tsao. 
The Taichung City Government has set a budget of NT$8.6 billion (Bt9.07 billion) for the 2018 Taichung World Flora Exposition, while expecting NT$30.3 billion (Bt 31.98 billion) in total revenue from the event, according to Tsao. 
Taichung is located on the western side of central Taiwan. It occupies 2,215 square kilometres with a population of 2.7 million. The city's main tourist attractions include the Fengjia Night Market, Gaomei Wetlands and the Lihpao Land theme park.