TAIPEI -- More and more travelers from Taiwan are exploring the mainland in greater depth, fueled by the rise of social media and the mainland's well-developed railway network, according to visitors and industry insiders at the 2025 Tainan Travel Expo now underway in the island's southern city of Tainan.

At the four-day expo that opened Friday, the Kaohsiung office of the mainland-based Association for Tourism Exchange Across the Taiwan Straits, along with the cultural and tourism department of Fujian province, set up a booth showcasing the province's major attractions and recommended travel routes.

Among the visitors drawn to the display was Carol Liu, a local resident who plans to visit Fujian next year. Over the past year, she has already traveled to the mainland three times with her husband and several friends. They explored destinations ranging from the southwestern city of Guilin, known for its scenic landscapes, to the city of Xi'an, home of the renowned Terracotta Warriors.

"During our trips on the mainland, we enjoyed good food and comfortable accommodations at very reasonable prices -- great value for money," she said, noting that some of her friends had initially been hesitant about traveling to the mainland, but completely changed their view after the positive trip experience.

"We hope that there will be more direct flights so we can reach more destinations even more easily," Liu added.

Nino Wang, who currently lives in Kaohsiung, also had an in-depth travel experience on the mainland last year, which was her first visit. She spent a month traveling alone through more than a dozen destinations, including Ruili, a small and relatively little-visited border city in Yunnan province.

For her, the trip required little more than following her interests and booking the next ticket. "People I met along the way were all very kind. Many restaurant owners even offered me small treats when they learned I was traveling from Taiwan," she said, adding that she hopes to visit the historical city of Quanzhou in Fujian in the near future.

Wang Hsien-wen, vice director of the Tainan Association of Travel Agents, the expo's host, said the mainland's high-speed railway system has made it much easier for visitors from Taiwan to reach a wider range of destinations.

He also noted that many travelers, especially the young ones, are shifting from traditional nature-focused sightseeing to city-based trips in search of popular spots highlighted on social platforms such as RedNote and short-video apps like Douyin.

The southwestern city of Chongqing, for example, is one of the new favorites for travelers from Taiwan. "Many people head straight to see the famous metro train that passes through an apartment building, or Hongya Cave, which they first watched on social media," Wang said, referring to the latter as a large stilted architectural complex built into a cliff above the river.

Although more tourists from Taiwan are visiting the Chinese mainland, several practical obstacles remain. The Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) authorities in Taiwan have yet to lift their ban on organized group tours to the mainland or remove the travel alert for Taiwan residents. Direct cross-Strait flights and routes have not yet been fully restored.

Wang expressed hope for the restoration and even expansion of direct flights between mainland cities and Taiwan.

"With more direct flights, travelers could save time in transit and explore more during their trip," he said.