Two artists put finishing touches to their creation, titled Migrant Birds, in a patch of wetland in Yunlin County, western Taiwan Friday. The display is part of an environmental installation art exhibition jointly organized by the Council of Agriculture and a private education fund to promote the preservation of Taiwan's natural landscape and wildlife as well and the area as an eco-tourism destination. Central News Agency

The Tourism Bureau has declared success in its latest promotional efforts, as the number of visitors in March hit a new single-month high of 516,512.

Tourism Bureau Director-General Janice Lai said Friday, the figure represents a steep 30.7 percent year-on-year growth. The previous single-month record of 450,000 was set last December, Lai said.

"Most encouraging was the fact that there was an increase in the number of visitors from every major tourist source in March," she noted.

Moreover, the number of arrivals in every individual category also all increased from the year-earlier level, she added. For example, the number of sightseers, which formed 60 percent of the total arrivals, rose 46 percent in March, she said.

Even more impressive was the 85 percent year-on-year increase in the number of visitors who came to Taiwan for study purposes, said Lai. In other categories, the number of conference-goers rose by 60 percent, the number of visitors attending family reunions by 30 percent, and the number of business visitors by 21 percent.

"All these figures indicate that not only the Tourism Bureau but also various government agencies have contributed to the drive to attract more visitors to Taiwan," Lai said.

Amid improved relations across the Taiwan Straits, the mainland emerged as Taiwan's main source of tourism in March, with 149,617 mainlanders visiting the island, up 71.97 percent year-on-year.

Incentive trips offered by major mainland-based companies contributed significantly to the surge in the number of tourist arrivals from the mainland, Lai said.

Mainland travelers made 344,136 visits to Taiwan in the first quarter of this year - an increase of 98.64 percent year-on-year. Travel industry sources predicted that the total number of mainland visitors will break the 1 million mark before the year ends.

Japan ranked second in terms of the number of visitors to Taiwan in March, totaling 112,231 and increase of 6.5 percent year-on-year.

Hong Kong and Macao combined were the third largest source, with 61,024 arrivals, representing an annual growth rate of 6.9 percent.

The number of visits by American citizens in March was 37,696. That marked a 26.86 percent year-on-year increase and put the US in fourth place as a source of tourists.

She noted that the annual number of arrivals from Malaysia rose by a whopping 106.96 percent to 26,698, which put Malaysia in fifth place as a tourism source market. She attributed the steep growth in visitor arrivals from that country to the increase in the number of Taiwan-Malaysia flights and the launch of budget travel between them.

The number of visitors from Europe, Singapore and South Korea increased in March by 17.37 percent, 14.75 percent and 28.67 percent, respectively.

The increase in the number of tourist arrivals has benefited the local travel and hospitality industries and even street vendors, market sources said.

Moreover, the tourism boom has helped hotel operators in the eastern counties of Taitung and Hualien recover from the effects of Typhoon Morakot, which wreaked havoc in southern and southeastern Taiwan last August, according to industry sources.

China Daily/CNA

(HK Edition 04/24/2010 page4)