SERENA GONZALEZ WRITES – After a 4-year closure to allow its marine ecosystem to replenish itself, Thailand’s Maya Bay, one of the country’s most famous beaches is back, but with some stringent rules in place. Surrounded by towering limestone cliffs on an uninhabited island in Thailand’s Phi Phi archipelago, the…
BADER ZAINAL WRITES — Like many countries around the world, Japan has suffered significant negative impacts to its tourism industry during the COVID-19 pandemic, but signs of travel restrictions easing bring hope for recovery. The beauty and mystique of Japan have long enticed visitors from international locales, with tourism soaring…
MILES WHITTINGHAM WRITES — Japanese cuisine is among the most popular in the world. But the Japanese fish market has been hit especially hard among the multitude of things affected by COVID-19. The most extensive wholesale fish trade located in Tokyo, Toyosu, has seen its sales halved in recent months.…
STELLA CHENG WRITES – When news broke that Taiwan had not been invited to a United Nations meeting on civil aviation last month, Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-Wen expressed strong dissatisfaction and regret. Since Tsai was inaugurated in May, relations with mainland China have grown more ambiguous, affecting the smaller country…
RYAN LIPPERT WRITES – When two Associated Press journalists visited North Korea over the summer, they saw things few, if any, foreigners have ever seen. No, they did not see concentration camps or nuclear weapons. But they did get to see what life is like for North Koreans from all…
YVONNE EPPS WRITES – What do police patrols, food, and WiFi have in common? No, it’s not cops eating donuts while browsing Tumblr on their smartphones, but rather Vietnam’s obsession with tourism. From promoting the country as the “kitchen of the world” to protecting tourists from robbers, Vietnam is concerned…
YVONNE EPPS WRITES – Today, life and the Internet are synonymous, so free Wi-Fi is to be expected, but what’s the benefit if citizens aren’t the intended users? Residents and tourists in Hue City, Vietnam’s former Royal Capital, are scheduled to receive free Wi-Fi in major public areas such as…
As Singapore becomes a hot vacation spot, tourists’ expectations increase as they hear of its booming economy and luxury resorts. But can Singapore keep up with these higher demands? Vacationers weighed in, seeming unimpressed. Recently, the Institute of Service Excellence at Singapore Management University released the results of its tourism…
The Chinese city of Sanya, in Hainan province, is catching heat from bloggers and critics alike due to the price-gouging occurring within its tourism market. Sanya received more than 500,000 tourists for this year’s Spring Festival. Tourists complained that they were overcharged “extremely irrationally” during the traditional Chinese holiday. Beijing-based…
Language can represent a daunting obstacle to traveling abroad. Kyodo News, Japan’s leading nonprofit news agency, aims to diminish this barrier through the introduction of Japan Portal. According to The Japan Times, the nation’s leading English-language publication, the trilingual website was created to both convey pertinent Japanese issues to foreigners…
