Taiwan hosts 2nd biggest Pokemon GO event in world, rakes in NT$1.5 billion

台灣舉辦世界第二大神奇寶貝GO活動，籌資15億新台幣

Southern Taiwanese city of Tainan hosts 2nd biggest Pokemon GO in world, rakes in NT$1.5 billion in profits
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TAIPEI (Taiwan News) -- At total of 1.01 million people visited the southern Taiwanese city of Tainan and brought in NT$1.5 billion (US$48 million) in business to the local economy over the course of the 5-day Pokemon GO Safari Zone event, the game operator also said that the scale of event was the second biggest in the world. < p>

The total number of participants in the "Pokemon GO Safari Zone in Tainan" event, which ran from Nov. 1 - 5, was 560,000 at the main Chimei Museum venue, far surpassing the original estimate of 200,000, while a total of 1.01 million visitors came to the city of Tainan during that period, according to Tourism Bureau of Tainan City Government. With each of the one million visitors spending an average of NT$1,500 during their stay, the event pumped in an estimated in NT$1.5 billion in revenues into the city's economy.< p>

Hilda, an Asia Pacific community manager for the developer of the game Niantic, told Up Media that Tainan had great success in marketing the event and that it became the second largest Pokemon GO Safari Zone event in the world, trailing only Yokohama, Japan. She added that, after Tainan's success, many cities around the world are eager to cooperate with Niantic on hosting similar events in the future. < p>


Photo of huge crowd in front of Chimei Museum. (Photo from Tourism Bureau of Tainan City)< p>

The Tourism Bureau of Tainan City Government said that even though the last day of the event fell on a Monday (Nov. 5), many trainers (Pokemon GO players) still showed up. On Nov. 5 alone, over 80,000 trainers participated in the event in Tainan Metropolitan Park and the grounds of the Chimei Museum, while 160,000 visited the city of Tainan that day. < p>

The tourism bureau said that Niantic sent a team of people to Tainan to support the event and coordinate with staff from the Chimei Museum, the Tourism Bureau, the Environmental Protection Agency, the Department of Health, the Transportation Bureau, police, and local telecom companies. A total of 1,300 personnel from various agencies were dispatched over the course of five days to make the event a success and enjoyable for players. < p>

Over 10% of the trainers were from foreign countries, with the largest number coming from Japan and Hong Kong, according to the tourism bureau. In addition, there were a large number of trainers from South Korea, Indonesia, Malaysia, and the United States. < p>


Trainers from Sweden and the Netherlands were also interviewed on the scene. Many foreign tourists said that it was their first trip to Tainan, so they stayed for an extended period, ranging between three to seven days. < p>

The tourism bureau said that the city government spent NT$3.6 million on transportation, hardware, meals, administrative activities, marketing, and other preparations for the event. Niantic cooperated with the local government, but did not receive any royalties, instead focusing on the event as a way to expand its brand. < p>