BANDAR SERI BEGAWAN

TAIWAN currently has 51 certified Muslim-friendly restaurants and hotels, and 13 national scenic areas with prayer rooms and restrooms for Muslims, Taiwan Tourism Bureau announced yesterday.

Speaking to various travel agency representatives and members of the media at a dinner event in Dynasty Restaurant in Gadong, Director of Taiwan Tourism Bureau Kuala Lumpur Office David Tsao explained that Muslim travellers from Brunei would now be able to visit Taiwan without having to worry about where to eat or where to pray.

Muslim-friendly travel information about the six mosques in Taiwan (including the Taipei Grand Mosque), halal-certified hotels and restaurants, Muslim-friendly tour guides, and special events held by the Taiwanese Muslim community, is now easily accessible through the Malay-language website www.taiwan.net.my.

The information has also been compiled into a Taiwan tourism Malay-language guidebook, said Tsao.

According to Tsao, about 8.01 million tourists visited Taiwan last year, and over nine million tourists are expected to visit by the end of this year.

Tsao also said that 42 distinctive events held across Taiwan have been compiled into a "Taiwan Tourism Calendar", to promote this year's "Time for Taiwan" travel campaign.

The calendar, which is easily accessible online, introduces the most popular and festive events held annually around Taiwan.

This was to ensure that visitors would have useful information about activities that were happening in Taiwan during their visit, regardless of which time of the year it was, Tsao further said.

The Taiwan Tourism Bureau will have booths set up as part of the 11th Abacus Holiday Travel Fair on September 27 and 28.

The fair will be open from 9am to 9pm, at the Grandstone Ballroom of the Centrepoint Hotel in Gadong.

Also present at the dinner yesterday was Albert Huang, representative of the Taipei Economic and Cultural Office in Brunei.

The Brunei Times