A small tour group from mainland China embarked on a three-day trip to a Taiwan-governed archipelago on last Friday, becoming the first group tour to visit the islands since Beijing loosened travel restrictions following the Covid-19 pandemic.
A seven-member tour group departed from a pier in Fuzhou, the capital of Fujian province, and arrived in the Matsu Islands. They will spend three days exploring tourist attractions including the Giant Matsu Statue, the Matsu Liquor Factory Industry Co, Qinbi Village, and the Beihai Tunnel, according to Taiwan’s Central News Agency (CNA).
The trip was made possible by Beijing’s announcement in April that residents of Fujian, the coastal province that sits across the strait from Taiwan, would be the first from the mainland to be permitted to visit the Matsu Islands.
