Taiwan launches immersive tourism exhibition in Paris

Paris, Oct. 8 (CNA) An immersive tourism exhibition highlighting Taiwan's diverse landscapes and year-round cultural events opened in Paris on Wednesday, hoping to drum up interest in Taiwan among younger potential visitors, according to Taiwan's Tourism Administration.

The exhibition, titled "TAIWAN -- Waves of Wonder: A Journey Through the Seasons of Taiwan," is in Paris after a run in London last month, and comes just months after the administration opened its first European service center in the city in April, tourism officials said.

"We want the French to know that Taiwan is not just about chips and technology, but also its natural beauty, culture, and friendly people," said Hsieh Chang-ming (謝長明), director of the administration's office in Frankfurt.

The exhibition, which runs until Oct. 13, features activities such Taiwanese tea tastings, immersive projections of railway landscapes, lantern painting workshops, and an "autonomous sensory meridian response (ASMR)" experience focusing on Taiwanese cuisine, the administration said.

Hsieh said that in addition to the traditional demographic over 50, younger independent travelers from France are on the rise, and the exhibition, along with campaigns tied to foreign influencers on social media, is aimed at attracting younger travelers.

Sébastien Erson, a French internet celebrity who was invited to attend the inauguration ceremony, told CNA that he was most impressed with Taiwan's natural scenery and indigenous culture.

Erson, whose YouTube channel has 175,000 subscribers, said he found Taiwan "incredible" when he traveled across the island in one week in 2019.

According to Hsieh, French arrivals to Taiwan have started to rebound following the COVID-19 pandemic.

The number of French visitors to Taiwan so far this year has increased by 26.84 percent compared to the same period in 2023, but was at about 88 percent of the level seen during the same period in 2019.