AGRICULTURE TOURISM SHARES IN-DEPTH EXPERIENCE|陸客團減少 農村改做外國團.深度旅遊

Efforts across Taiwan to develop agriculture-based tourism have been blunted by a sharp decrease in the number of Chinese tourists. However, some local villages and neighborhoods have been quick to respond to the situation and are now looking for new business models. Their eyes are on the international market, rather than China, and on offering a more in-depth experience to tourists. This is the Longmu neighborhood in Kaoshiung's Dashu district. Here, visitors can pick pineapples themselves and make their own pineapple douchi sauce. Many visitors from Taipei find the whole experience fascinating, and are eager to show support for local agriculture. ==Visitor from Taipei== This encourages more Taiwanese people to know more about Taiwan's agriculture. We can't always rely on the mainland. The neighborhood has been developing local tourism for seven years. In the past, more than 300 tour groups from China came every year, but as the number of inbound Chinese tourists dwindles, it has become important to target other markets. This 70-people tour group is here on a company outing, and they are here because representatives of the community met them at a recent tourism expo. ==HSIEH KUN-SUNG, Chair, Dashu Leisure Agri. Zone== Last year, we still received about 300 groups from China. This year there's only been 100 so far. It really is a nosedive. In a nearby neighborhood, business was especially poor. Over the span of a fortnight, only one Chinese tour group visited, trampling on the small dash of short-lived optimism for rural agriculture communities. But the Longmu neighborhood isn't ready to give up. Other than shifting focus back to Taiwan's domestic market, they have also reached out further. ==CHEN MEI-JING, Director, Dashu Leisure Agri. Zone== We went to the Hong Kong International Travel Expo in June to promote ourselves in the Honk Kong and Macao market. Our half-day or whole-day package is geared towards independent travelers. The package includes pickup, drop-off and a guided tour. In addition to existing packages that focus on the farming experience, the neighborhood is also working with travel agencies on more in-depth offerings. However, as they work to help traditional agricultural economies adapt to new realities, they also hope the government could lend a stronger hand in international marketing. REPORTER：JEFF CHANG