A MASSIVE US$782 million, 250 hectare beach resort complex - complete with shopping centre, five-star hotel, amusement park, conference rooms, water park, cottages, multiple swimming pools and an 18-hole golf course - is underway in the east coast city of Hualien.
Upon completion the Promised Land Resort will be the biggest beach resort in the country, according to the Taiwan Tourism Bureau. For the past several years, the Tourism Bureau has offered financial incentives for tourism developments on the east coast.
Michael Hsueh, former manager of the Hong Kong Tourist Association (HKTA) office in Taiwan, has been named senior manager of marketing and planning for the Promised Land Resort Corp.
The resort will be built in stages, said Hsueh. The first phase, to include cottages, hotel, shopping centre, theme park, and water park, is scheduled to open in the middle of next year. Stage two, to include the golf course and residential units, is set to open by 2005.
The resort will initially aim for 80 per cent Taiwanese guests, and about 20 per cent overseas guests, said Hsueh. "But the number of overseas visitors will increase, especially if Hualien gets an international airport in two years, as planned," he added.
International hotel companies are keen to secure the management contract for the resort's luxury hotel, which will have conference facilities for 1,500 guests, and a 2,000-seat banquet hall.
Marriott Group and Westin Hotels and Resorts are both competing for the contract, although Westin is said to have the inside track.
The city of Hualien is the gateway to Taroko Gorge National Park and the east coast, two of the top scenic areas on the island. Work on the resort began in March this year.