Taipei rebrands city exploration for Japanese tourists as 'romantic stroll'

Taipei's tourism authority has enlisted Japanese actor Sota Fukushi to reshape how visitors from Japan experience the city. The Department of Tourism and Communication launched a campaign this month with a simple, almost romantic premise: "Getting lost in Taipei can be a date." Rather than steering tourists toward the well-worn landmarks they've already seen, the city is now asking them to slow down, wander into unmarked alleys, and treat the familiar as something worth rediscovering.

Fukushi, who has visited Taipei repeatedly and counts himself among the city's xiao long bao devotees, became the face of this shift in thinking. He filmed the campaign walking through Taipei's streets, embodying the unhurried pace the tourism department wants to promote. The choice of Fukushi was deliberate. Yu Hsiang, the department's director, noted that the actor's approachable manner and genuine affection for the city aligned with what Taipei wanted to communicate to Japanese travelers: that there is always something new to find, no matter how many times you've been.

The reasoning behind the campaign reflects a specific challenge in destination marketing. Japanese tourists already know Taipei's major attractions. They've visited the famous temples, the night markets, the observation decks. The department recognized that simply promoting the same sites wouldn't draw repeat visitors. Instead, it reframed the entire travel experience around discovery and slowness—concepts that appeal to travelers seeking something beyond the standard itinerary.

Hsiang explained the philosophy directly: "For Japanese tourists, Taipei's famous tourist spots are already well known. However, Taipei has new charms no matter how many times you visit." The campaign invites visitors to embrace getting lost as part of the adventure, to venture into back alleys where encounters happen by chance rather than by guidebook. This approach treats the city not as a checklist but as a place that reveals itself differently depending on how you move through it.

The department has structured the campaign with concrete geography in mind. A model itinerary begins in Dadaocheng, a neighborhood Japanese visitors already recognize, then moves through Dalongdong Baoan Temple, continues along Xinzhongshan Linear Park and Chifeng Street, and concludes in the Xinyi district, described as sophisticated and romantic. The route is designed to feel like a natural unfolding rather than a prescribed tour, each stop flowing into the next.

The campaign integrates online and offline elements, creating touchpoints across digital platforms and physical spaces. The goal is straightforward: convince Japanese tourists who have already visited Taipei once or twice that the city warrants another trip—not to see what they missed, but to experience what they might discover if they approached it differently. In framing urban exploration as a form of romance, the department is betting that the appeal lies not in novelty but in intimacy—the kind that comes from wandering without a fixed destination.