1980 In February, the North-Link Railway was opened to traffic, and the Taiwan Railway Administration's eastern and western lines were completed.

In November, the second-generation emblem of the Tourism Bureau was launched.The theme of the national flower-the plum blossom-and the national painting of Confucius's peregrination, were used as the themes for the design. This was meant to encourage the public to follow the ambitions of Confucius.

1981 In July, the Tourism Bureau established the first "Visitor Information Center" at Songshan Airport to help international visitors.

1982 In February, the Executive Yuan announced the approval of Taiwan's first National Scenic Area, the Northeast Coast Scenic Area. In June 1984, the "Northeast Coast Scenic Area Administration Office" was established(renamed the "Northeast Coast National Scenic Area Administration"in july 1995). Since then, a total of 13 national scenic areas have been established.

1983 Implemented a "plum blossom" evaluation system for tourist hotels,issuing 2 to 5 plum blossom grading badges.

In September, the first Sun Moon Lake International Cross-lake Swimming Carnival was held. The international camping event was co-organized by the Camping Association of the R.O.C., which was also the co-organizer of the Asia Pacific Rally F.I.C.C. in 1985.

1987 In May, the Raohe Street Tourist Night Market in Taipei was opened. In October, the 40-year-old Huaxi Street Night Market was rebuilt and reopened as a tourist night market. The local night markets throughout the country were also gaining popularity and developed into an important tourism resource in Taiwan.

In July, the government lifted martial law; on November 2nd, the government first allowed citizens to visit their relatives in mainland China.

In December, the first "Taipei International Travel Fair (ITF)" was held, which served as an important marketing platform in terms of the global tourism industry.

1988 In January, the government first allowed travel agencies to apply for licenses for operation to promote free competition in the tourism market.

1990 In January, the Taipei World Trade Center was opened. Together with its exhibition area, conference center and hotel, it formed an exhibition building complex offering all types of tourism functions.

In February, the first "Taipei Lantern Festival" was held (in 2001, the venue shifted to a different city each year and the title was changed to the "Taiwan Lantern Festival"). The first "Taipei Chinese Food Festival" also took place in the same month (renamed the "Taiwan Culinary Exhibition" in 2007).

1991 In December, construction of the South-Link Railway was completed and opened to traffic, finishing the last section that connected all parts of the island-wide Taiwan Railway Network.

1992 Completed the long-term "Taiwan Area Tourism and Recreation System Development Plan" and divided Taiwan into 36 interconnected recreation systems as a guideline for the development and planning of tourism and recreation.

1993 In February, all regions in the country were opened for sightseeing; in May 1995, the Kinmen National Park became the sixth national park and the first one located on an offshore island.

1994 In December, the "Statute for Encouragement of Private Participation in Transportation Infrastructure Projects" was announced and implemented to promote private participation in major tourism and recreation facilities through the use of BOO and BOT methods.(In May 1999, the Tourism Bureau set up a "Promotional Group for Rewarding Private Investment in Tourism and Recreation Facilities" and completed relevant review and operational regulations.)

1996 In March, Taiwan's first MRT Route—the Taipei Muzha Line-opened to traffic.

In November, the "Executive Yuan's Tourism Development Promotion Team" was set up to coordinate and resolve inter-ministerial tourism-related issues.

1999 The year 1999 was designated as "Taiwan Hot Spring Tourism Year. " A "Hot Spring Development Management Plan" was approved and 14 hot spring sites in various areas were rebuilt. This laid the foundation for Taiwan Hot Springs (and related Fine Cuisine) Festival activities.

2000 "The New Taiwan Tourism Strategies for the 21st Century" was implemented, and the tourism industry was listed as an important strategic area.

2001 Developed " a Ｗhite paper on Tourism Policy," shaping Taiwan into an island for tourism.

In January, the two-days-off per week policy was implemented to boost the development of domestic tourism. A heart-shaped "Taiwan-Touch Your Heart" logo was launched.Marina Watanabe became the first spokesperson for Taiwan tourism in the Japanese market.

2002 In June, the Taiwan Tourist Information Website was established to integrate tourism information with digital marketing.

In July, the "Tourism Development Promotion Group, Executive Yuan" was upgraded to a higher administrative level and renamed the "Tourism Development Promotion Committee, Executive Yuan".

In August, the "Doubling Tourist Arrivals Plan" was launched.

2003 In January, the "National Travel Card" system was implemented to promote tourism trends.

2004 In January, the "Visit Taiwan Year" project was launched along with the promotion of Taiwan Tour Bus travel products. (The name was formally changed to "Taiwan Tour Bus" in June 2012.)

In May, the "i-Center," a unified identification image for tourism consultations, was introduced.

2005 In November, the number of visitors travelling to Taiwan exceeded 3 million in a year for the first time; the number of Japanese visitors travelling to Taiwan exceeded 1 million.

2006 In October, the Taiwan Strait Tourism Association (Taiwan Tourism Association) was established to initiate cross-strait tourism exchange.

2007 In March, Taiwan High Speed Rail began operations, making one-day tourism between the cities of Taipei and Kaohsiung possible.

2008 In February, the "Tour Taiwan Years 2008-2009" program was launched to make Taiwan the best tourist destination in Asia.

In June, the "Straits Exchange Foundation"(SEF) and the "Association for Relations Across the Taiwan Straits"(ARATS) signed the "Cross-Strait Agreement Signed Between SEF and ARATS Concerning Mainland Tourists Traveling to Taiwan."

In July, mainland Chinese tourists were allowed to visit Taiwan for sightseeing, and the first group of mainland Chinese tourists arrived in Taiwan.

2009 In April, the Executive Yuan listed tourism as one of the six emerging industries in Taiwan, and launched the "Project Vanguard For Excellence In Tourism" program.

In July, the "Taiwan Strait Tourism Association" and the "Association For Tourism Exchange Across the Taiwan Straits" held the first round-table conference on cross-strait tourism exchanges in Beijing.

2010 In February, the first Taiwan-Jiangsu Lantern Festival was held in Nanjing.

In April, the Taiwan Tourist Shuttle was launched to transport tourists to and from major tourist attractions.

In May, the Taiwan Strait Tourism Association established an office in Beijing; in November 2012, the Taiwan Strait Tourism Association Shanghai Branch Office began its operations.

In July, the Tourism Bureau first adopted its own evaluation system for "Hotel Star Ratings" to provide tourists with different options, stimulating improvements in hotel services and facilities.

In October, the first "Taiwan Cycling Festival" took place.

2011 In February, 100 years after the founding of the Republic of China, a new tourism branding campaign of "Taiwan - The Heart of Asia " was launched. An early sub-theme of the campaign was "Asian Essence, Heart Touching Taiwan. " With this branding, Taiwan welcomed travelers from throughout the world to have a heart-felt experience by traveling in Taiwan. The slogan "It’s Time for Taiwan" was used to appeal to the coming of a new era in Taiwan tourism.

In June, mainland tourists were allowed to visit Taiwan as independent travelers.

2012 In May, the "Taiwan and Vietnam tourism cooperation memorandum" was signed, representing a significant milestone for Taiwan-Vietnam tourism.

In June, smart tourism was expanded with the launch of the "Travel Taiwan app."

In November, the "Taiwan Stay" website http://taiwanstay.net.tw was established.

In December, the "Taiwan Tourism Calendar" was released.

2013 In May, a large-scale tourism event "Taiwan Summer Solstice 235" was launched (renamed the "Formosa Summer Festival" in 2018).

2014 In April, Taiwan representatives signed the Asia Cruise Fund (ACF) with Hong Kong to strengthen the capabilities of both parties in the Asian cruise market. In 2015, the fund was renamed the Asia Cruise Cooperation (ACC).

In June, the friendly ambassador of the Tourism Bureau's super task force—"OhBear"—took up his job to promote Taiwan tourism.

In December, the "Information Station" innovative tourism service was launched.

2015 In July, the Smart Travel Ticket "Taiwan Pass" was officially launched.

In August, the Executive Yuan approved the "Value-Added Project for Cross-Area Attractions (2015-2018)."

In November, a project for "Simplifying Visa Regulations for High-end Group Tourists from Southeast Asian Countries" (the Guan Hong Project) was implemented to help successfully develop the New Southbound market.

In December, the number of visitors to Taiwan exceeded 10 million,passing a new milestone.

2016 The New Southbound Policy facilitated relaxed and simplified visa measures for tourists from New Southbound countries visiting Taiwan. Fifteen branch offices were successively set up in Bangkok, Ho Chi Minh City, London and other major cities, along with liaison offices in Mumbai, Jakarta, Sydney, New Zealand, and so forth. The number of inbound visitors from those countries has grown rapidly since.

2017 In January, the "Tourism 2020—Taiwan Sustainable Tourism Development Plan" was initiated to shape Taiwan into a friendly, convenient and in-depth tourism country. Specific themes were promoted for the subsequent four years were as follows: 2017–Year of Eco tourism, 2018–Year of Bay Tourism, 2019–Year of Small-Town Ramble, 2020–Year of Mountain Tourism, highlighting the development of sustainable tourism in Taiwan.

In March, the third week of March each year was designated as "Travel Safety Awareness Week."

In December, the number of visitors from the New Southbound countries exceeded 2 million.

2018 In January, Taiwan hosted the 2018 World Congress of the Most Beautiful Bays in the World, launched the 2018 Year of Bay Tourism, and strengthened the tourism charm of "10+ Offshore Islands of Taiwan."

In March, the Michelin Guide for Taipei was published for the first time.

In November, Heping Island Park and Baisha Bay were selected as the Most Accessible Tourist Attractions in the 2018 Svayam Accessibility Awards.

In December, the number of visitors surpassed 11 million.

2019 In January, the "2019— Year of Small-Town Ramble" project was launched to boost the development of local tourism, highlighting 40 small towns in Taiwan.

In February, three universities—National Kaohsiung University of Hospitality and Tourism, National Kaohsiung University of Science and Technology, and National Taiwan Ocean University—signed a Taiwanese cruise research and development MOU to support ACC and establish an Asian cruise research center.

In February, the Taiwan Lantern Festival celebrated its 30th anniversary. With the theme of "Ping An Penglai · Guangyao 30," it was the first time that the festival offered 3D marine performances and selected a local product – tuna – as the theme for its main lantern. The main lantern was named "Giant Tuna Brings Wealth." This broke the tradition of basing the main lantern on one of the 12 animals from the Chinese zodiac, and this innovative effort won the 2019 Taiwan Event Excellence Award as well as a number of international design awards.

In December, the National Tourism Policy Development Conference was held.

In December, the number of Japanese visitors to Taiwan exceeded 2 million.

2020 In January, the "2020—Year of Mountain Tourism" project is going to shape Taiwan into a renowned international mountain climbing and resort destination.