Fourth International Conference on Tourism and Leisure Studies

Abstract

This paper is intended to provide a narrative and thorough description of the trends and impact of the fourteen-day visa-free entry of Filipino tourists to Taiwan. It will offer a comprehensive understanding of the socio-cultural advantages and challenges of RP-ROC relations covering the formation of Formosa as Republic of China and its not “too” friendly relations with the Philippines. It will look into the costs and opportunity of travelling to a nearby lake of affluence and economic advantage. The seeming contradiction between poverty and economic advantage in tourism industry is a point of interest in this paper. Assumptions will be validated regarding economic depletion brought about by extravagant travels and vague cultural identification of a vagrant nation with an affluent neighbor. Various lens of consideration will be used in conducting an ethnography of “Filipinos” traveling as “tourists” to Taiwan. A controlled group of sixty four travelers to Taiwan organized by La Salle Green Hills Credit Cooperative for members and relatives will be used as locus and focus of the study. As a participant observer, the narrative of impact will be deduced from a thick body of information gathered from the participants and their surrounding environment. “Outang,” “touristing,” “fooding” and other expressions will be used as currency in interpreting details in this paper. The impact assessment will be relevant in resources management and policy decision on the micro and macro levels. This will also unearth the issues surrounding tourism that includes ecological risks and regional and national scale marketing plan.