‘How long can you maintain it?’ Cost of Taiwan’s pursuit of Covid zero starts to show

The island, once a pandemic success story, is effectively closed off to the world and despite the toll on tourism, trade and lifestyle there is no plan to reopen

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At a beachside bar at the southern tip of Taiwan, a handful of visitors in swimwear and bare feet mill around the open air deck, enjoying the warm midweek night, cheap beer, lack of crowds, and zero Covid.

The bar's owner, in between serving drinks, says domestic tourism to the surf village of South Bay, is booming, but the custom is concentrated on the weekends. There are no international visitors to fill tables during the week, let alone to make up for a difficult three months of forced shutdown during the summer outbreak of Covid.