More than 500 tour operators from around the island were dressed in T-shirts with “Backlash against Illegal Rentals” slogan to support the government’s efforts of controlling unlicensed rentals that have a huge impact on Taiwan’s travel safety and image.
TAIPEI, Taiwan – Taiwan Tourism Bureau held a press conference to promote legal accommodation and end “unlicensed rentals” on June 12 in the main hall of the Taipei Main Station where visitors from Taiwan and overseas gather. It also announced that the government will conduct stringent inspections on property owners of unlicensed rentals in an effort to provide safe and premium accommodation for international tourists.
More than 500 tour operators from around the island were dressed in T-shirts with “Backlash against Illegal Rentals” slogan to support the government’s efforts of controlling unlicensed rentals that have a huge impact on Taiwan’s travel safety and image.
A number of high-quality travel service providers in Taiwan, including Ez Travel, Cola Tour, Star Travel, Ezfly International Travel, and Lion Travel were also praised at today’s press conference. They high-fived each other and took an oath on stage to oppose the sales of unlicensed rentals while fully promoting those of legal hotels. The bureau expressed its approval and assured the general public that making reservations on their travel sites is safe. For those foreign OTA that cannot attend the event, Rakuten promises that will proactively review and oppose the unlicensed rentals, while Booking.com and Agoda promise to fight unlicensed rental when they receive report violation reports. The Taiwan Tourism Bureau will publish the names of non-supportive platforms on TaiwanStay.net and issue news releases with an aim to protect travelers’ safety.
Data from AirDNA, an international data analysis website, showed that the primary consumer groups of backpackers and travelers renting short-term housing are young people aged between 21 and 30 who relatively lack comprehensive safety considerations.
In recent years, the bureau has continued to promote the concept of legal accommodation, and its efforts bear fruit. In addition to working with local governments in the implementation of fines, punishments and business closures, the bureau’s Travel and Accommodation Department also said that the government has actively controlled the sales of unlicensed rentals from travel agencies. Meanwhile, the bureau has also imposed heavy taxes and hefty penalties on unlicensed sales of unlicensed rentals provided by overseas travel e-commerce companies.
A number of premium travel agencies in Taiwan were also praised at today’s press conference. “Taiwan has more than tens of thousands of legal hotels and B&Bs, which means that there is enough hotel supply in the travel market,” Ez Travel said. “The responsibility of travel agencies should be actively developing and cooperating with legal hotels, thereby creating a win-win situation for the tourism industry. The consumer disputes arising from the sales of cheap and unlicensed rentals would create a negative impact on the image of the travel agencies and cause a great loss for them.”
The international travel platform, Lion Travel, also pointed out that it will provide consumers with safe, clean B&Bs at reasonable prices. But if local governments discovered any violation and verified it, the hotel-related products would be removed from their travel website.
The bureau suggested that TaiwanStay.net provides detailed information on legal travel and accommodation that can help minimize the risk of traveling and add safety into the happy memories of traveling.
Vicky is the co-founder of TravelDailyNews Media Network where she is the Editor-in Chief. She is also responsible for the daily operation and the financial policy. She holds a Bachelor's degree in Tourism Business Administration from the Technical University of Athens and a Master in Business Administration (MBA) from the University of Wales. She has many years of both academic and industrial experience within the travel industry. She has written/edited numerous articles in various tourism magazines.
