Working Your Way around Taiwan(a)|创意换宿游台湾

Working Your Way around Taiwan

The French say that travel is the best teacher a young person can have, and it is the spirit of this saying that has motivated countless young Westerners to pack their bags and head overseas to work for a while and experience life in other lands. In recent years, working holidays have become an increasingly popular option for travelers, giving young people opportunities to meet people from around the world, try out different kinds of work, and maybe even find their vocation. Even more recently, Taiwan has gotten on board with these working holidays as well.

In June of 2004, the governments of Taiwan and New Zealand signed a working holiday agreement, with New Zealand offering some 600 opportunities for Taiwanese people between the ages of 18 and 30 to spend a year working and traveling around the country. In the years since, Taiwan has signed similar agreements with Australia, Japan, Canada, Germany, South Korea, and the United Kingdom. According to Taiwan's Ministry of Foreign Affairs, as of late April, 49,626 young people from Taiwan had taken up these opportunities, with Australia being the destination of choice for 36,010 of them.

Young Taiwanese people can take advantage of the various working holiday agreements to experience life overseas, while young people coming to Taiwan can exchange physical or creative energy for free board. They can also enjoy the sights and sounds of Taiwan without having to fork over too much money. It's not hard to see why this has become such a popular alternative travel plan.

创意换宿游台湾

『旅行，是年轻人最好的导师。』这句法国俗谚鼓舞许多欧美青年背起简单行囊，远离家乡，到处打工换宿，体验异地生活。近年流行的打工度假，让年轻人能结交来自世界各国志同道合的朋友，体验不同工作，甚至找到一生的志业。这种旅游方式又称为 working holiday（打工度假），近年也在国内蔚为风潮。

2004年 6 月，台湾与纽西兰签订打工度假协议，纽西兰每年开放 600个打工度假签证给 18 到 30 岁台湾青年，可在纽国停留一年；随后我国又陆续与澳洲、日本、加拿大、德国、南韩、英国等签订打工度假协议。根据外交部统计，从开放申请至今年 4 月底止，持各国打工度假签证出国的台湾青年共有 49,626 人，其中又以澳洲人数最多，至今累积人数达 36,010 人。

台湾青年向外走，可以利用我国与他国签订的打工度假协议；外国青年则可利用劳力或创意换取免费住宿，享受花小钱就能走访台湾各地的乐趣，这正是近来颇受欢迎的新兴旅游法。