Kaohsiung Offering Tourism Subsidies 高雄燈會移至蓮池潭 春節旅行團享補助

Lantern festivals are being held all over Taiwan in the hopes of attracting tourists during the upcoming holiday. The Kaohsiung Lantern Festival will be held at Lotus Pond for the first time this year, and the city is offering subsidies to tour groups that stay in the city overnight.

Yanshui's Yuejin Lantern Festival opened on the 8th to the delight of locals and tourists alike. With the Spring Festival approaching, cities and counties all over Taiwan are holding lantern festivals. The Kaohsiung Lantern Festival, currently in its 22nd year, will be held at Lotus Pond for the very first time.

Chang Mei-hua, Old Commercial District Development Association Chair: “The Kaohsiung Lantern Festival is in its 22nd year, and is being held at Lotus Pond for the first time. This is a gift from heaven for local businesses or residents, and we are all very excited about the event and the tourists it will bring to our community. ”

Lotus Pond is one of Kaohsiung's top tourist destinations, but local businesses have struggled for the past three years due to the pandemic. The Lunar New Year holiday is the only time of year when the area has seen tourists. During the Lantern Festival, the city government will be offering up to NT$6,000 in subsidies for tour groups that stay overnight in Kaohsiung while also visiting temples in Zuoying.

Ms. Chen, Local Vendor: “We had no customers during the epidemic and we were dependent on tour bus customers. We're starting to see some tourists again now.”

Ms. Hu, Tour Guide: “I will talk to my company about the subsidy program. (So that tour groups say in Kaohsiung longer?) Yes.”

Temples are one of Zuoying's top tourism draws, and local vendors hope the Lantern Festival will bring large crowds to the area. Tour guides, meanwhile, say there simply aren't enough attractions in Kaohsiung to convince tourists to stay longer and the subsidies could be an incentive for travel agencies to promote Kaohsiung tours more.

燈光在夜晚依序亮起，獨特造型看起來就像煙花綻放，台南鹽水的月津港燈節昨（8）日試燈，各種造型的燈在水上亮起，相當美麗。春節即將到來，各縣市陸續公布燈會活動，高雄燈會舉辦22年以來，今年首度移師到蓮池潭。

舊城商圈發展協會理事長張美華表示：「高雄燈會今年邁入第22年，第一次在蓮池潭舉辦，這個不僅僅是給我們在地的商家或是在地的居民，是一個非常大的禮包，我們也非常期待這樣的一個活動，能夠帶來一個豐沛的人潮。」

攤商拿出蜜餞讓越南遊客試吃，蓮池潭是高雄著名觀光景點，近3年受疫情影響，平常日旅客寥寥無幾，整年往往就春節期間人最多，為振興觀光，市府宣布燈會期間，凡是到高雄住宿並到左營參香、旅遊的旅行團，加碼補助最高6000元。

當地攤商陳小姐說：「疫情都沒有人啊，就多少靠這些遊覽車的客人，現在開始遊客才會漸漸來。」

旅行團導遊胡小姐指出：「高雄這樣的補助，我也會跟公司說，會跟公司講。」

遊客開心在宮廟前合影，結合當地景觀、宮廟及商圈等觀光資源，攤商期待燈會能帶來更多人潮；而導遊認為高雄景點不多，要多停留不容易，若有補助，確實能提高旅行社多推高雄行程的意願，活絡地方觀光經濟。