TORONTO — Hong Kong and Taiwan, two powerhouse destinations, have joined forces for the first time ever to jointly promote multi-destination travel in Asia.

The Hong Kong Tourism Board (HKTB) and the Taiwan Tourism Bureau (TTB) made the announcement in Toronto this week, both identifying North American leisure markets as their main focus. Canada, in particular, holds enormous potential for both destinations, each seeing steady growth in Canadian arrivals last year. There are currently over 50 flights a week connecting Canada to Taiwan and Hong Kong, with an expected increase of 11% in 2016.

Riding on this momentum, the new multi-destination initiative will persuade Canadian travellers to get the maximum value for their travel dollar by visiting two of Asia’s most fascinating destinations in one Asian trip. Hong Kong and Taiwan are conveniently linked by over 60 flights a day and are only approximately 80 minutes apart by plane.

“According to our survey, 94% of visitors from Canada arriving in Hong Kong would like to visit other destinations on the same trip,” said Anthony Lau, HKTB Executive Director. “The trend of multi-destination travel in Asia has been gaining importance in recent years, as tourists want to get the most out of each trip. We are confident that this cooperation between Hong Kong and Taiwan will help draw more visitors to Asia and drive our mutual business.”

Added Wayne Liu, TTB Deputy Director-General: “Data shows that in the past four years, half of the Canadian visitors arriving in Taiwan are tourists – the percentage is the highest among all long-haul markets. With the increasing of direct flights between Canada, Taiwan and Hong Kong, we believe by joining hands with Hong Kong, promoting a full Asia experience in one single trip could attract more Canadian visitors. We are confident that this would soon become their top choice for travel to Asia.”