TSMC chip factory opening in Japan’s Kumamoto sparks tourist rush from Taiwan
- Airlines and local businesses are preparing to cash in on the surge in visitors from the island following the opening of the chip maker’s first plant in Japan
- ‘Everyone in Taiwan knows Kumamoto, Kumamon and TSMC,’ said a worker at a Taiwanese travel company
The number of arrivals is expected to grow following the opening of the world’s largest contract chip maker’s first factory in Japan on Saturday, with mass production planned to commence between October and December.
The factory “will, I believe, improve the resiliency of chip supply for Japan and for the world,” TSMC’s 92-year-old founder Morris Chang said on Saturday at an opening ceremony.
After China Airlines and Starlux Airlines launched direct flights connecting Taipei and Kumamoto last September, overnight stays in the prefecture by Taiwanese people from that month through November grew around 20,000 from the previous three months to 82,160, according to Japanese government data.
Underscoring the robust demand, the seat occupancy rate on the two Taiwanese airlines’ direct flights exceeded 80 per cent through the end of the year, with tourists accounting for many of the passengers, according to the prefectural government.
The number of round-trip flights connecting the two locations will be increased by one to 12 per week starting Tuesday.