As part of its ongoing campaign to raise the profile of Taiwan’s ports in the East Asia cruise vacation market, Taiwan International Ports Corporation (TIPC) is actively expanding cooperation with international cruise operators worldwide, with Mitsui O.S.K. Lines (MOL) subsidiary Mitsui Ocean Cruises an important target of current TIPC enticement efforts. While visiting senior Mitsui Ocean Cruises officials in early June 2024, TIPC President Chin-jung Wang formally invited the company to send a delegation to Taiwan to explore the country as a potential target for Mitsui Ocean Cruises expansion. After completing their recent visit, the Mitsui Ocean Cruises delegation announced their company would indeed be adding Taiwan ports to Mitsui cruise itineraries in the future to meet demand from their higher-end passenger segments for in-depth / culture travel experiences.
In a show of the importance placed on the Taiwan market, the Mitsui Ocean Cruises delegation arranged for an 8-day/7-night FAM visit from June 22nd to 29th, 2025 to be arranged and hosted by TIPC. The delegation itinerary was tailored to highlight the touristic allure of Taiwan’s ports and their surrounding areas, Taiwan’s world-class service capabilities, depth and diversity of cultural and tourism attractions, and included visits to Keelung, the Penghu, Kaohsiung, Tainan, Taichung, and Suao. In the wake of this highly productive visit, TIPC looks forward to Mitsui Ocean Cruises adding Taiwan ports to MS Mitsui Ocean Fuji’s East Asia itinerary as well as to strengthening cruise line ties and communications between Taiwan and Japan further.
The premier-class, medium-sized MS Mitsui Ocean Fuji, Mitsui Ocean Cruises’ new flagship cruise ship, weighs in at 32,000GT and can accommodate up to 450 passengers. Focused primarily on the domestic luxury-cruise market, the Ocean Fuji pampers passengers with iconic Japanese services and amenities and luxurious travel experiences. With Mitsui Ocean Cruises expecting to begin organizing East Asia cruise itineraries for the MS Mitsui Ocean Fuji later this year (2025), TIPC arranged the delegation to begin their exploratory visit in Keelung, followed by Penghu, Kaohsiung, Tainan, Taichung and, lastly, Suao. At each stop, in addition to exploring port facilities and surrounding transportation infrastructures, the delegation took time to investigate local cultural and tourism attractions and activities. During this visit, TIPC made a special effort to draw Mitsui Ocean Cruises’ attention to the significant tourism potential of its smaller ports, including Penghu, Anping (Tainan), and Suao (Yilan), underscoring the depth of Taiwan’s overall offering to the cruise tourism industry.
TIPC noted that the vibrant recovery of Asia’s cruise vacation market has led the company to expand its focus beyond cruise ship homeport operations to pursue a more diversified growth strategy. The 8-day visit of the Mitsui Ocean Cruises delegation not only confirms the ability of Taiwan’s tourism and ports to attract international cruise brand interest and enthusiasm but also bodes well for TIPC ports attracting a growing number of visits by premium-class luxury cruise ships. TIPC expressed its particular appreciation to the city governments of Keelung, Taichung, Tainan and Kaohsiung as well as Penghu and Yilan county governments for their assistance in making local itinerary / logistics arrangements and helping with promotion activities. Their efforts helped maximize the positive impact of this exploratory visit on Mitsui Ocean Cruises. Looking ahead, TIPC will continue to expand cooperation with international cruise lines with the goal of making ports in Taiwan increasingly regular stops on East Asia cruise routes.
The head of the Mitsui Ocean Cruises delegation noted this experience had been an eye-opener for her and the other delegates. Their visit, she said, had highlighted not only the significant recent upgrades in port facilities and services but also the strong potential for tapping into Taiwan’s cultural and tourism attractions. After thanking TIPC for making such comprehensive preparations for their visit, the delegation announced Mitsui Ocean Cruises will plan Keelung, Kaohsiung, Suao, Taichung and Anping cruise calls in the future and would be promoting Taiwan as a major and alluring stop on East Asia cruise voyages as part of efforts to meet the in-depth, culture-focused vacation travel interests of high-end cruise passengers in Japan.
Provided by：Harbor Operation Management Dept., TIPC
Contact Person：Ta-wei Wu, Manager
Telephone No.：07-521900#3350
E-mail Address：T03159@twport.com.tw
Image 1. TIPC Business VP Chan-Jung Chang (5th from left) welcomes representatives of Mitsui Ocean Cruises Mai Sasaki (4th from left) and Marika Mizutani (5th from right) on an exploratory visit to Port of Kaohsiung. Kaohsiung City Government officials were invited to brief the visitors on Kaohsiung tourism opportunities
Image 2. Mitsui Ocean Cruises delegation visiting Port of Kaohsiung’s “Great Harbor Bridge”, the first horizontally rotating bridge in Asia
Image 3. Delegation getting a close-up look of Tainan’s coastal mangrove ecosystem during a pontoon boat ride through Sicao Green Tunnel
Image 4. Delegation members try their hand at a local indigo dyeing experience, create one-of-a-kind works of indigo art
Image 5. Delegates join a tea-harvesting experience activity in Yilan, getting a feel for local tea farming heritage and the natural beauty of northeastern Taiwan
