EDITORIAL: Too many European castles in Taiwan

It is no secret that Taiwan’s tourist hotspots are often sullied by tasteless kitsch — if you have spent time traveling around the nation, recall how many fake Santorini-style monstrosities there are littered across the landscape.

Beautiful Yilan County is dotted with horrendous imitation European-style guesthouses, and one has to look very hard to find the one or two minsus on Siaoliouciou Island (小琉球) that retain any semblance of the local sanheyuan courtyard architecture. And yes, there is an ugly Santorini there too.

It is not just these two places — kitschy buildings plague the entire nation.

Sunday’s edition of the Taipei Times featured the controversial European castle-shaped Spring City Resort Hotel in Hualien County, which is unmissable towering above the flamegold trees.

While some locals say that it is pretty and boosts tourism, others argue that it does not fit in with the scenery and is an eyesore blocking the view. Furthermore, area residents were not consulted when it was built.

People are entitled to their opinions, but the problem is why do these poor imitations continue to appear en masse nationwide?

Sure, it is an opportunity for locals to stay at a European-style castle without leaving Taiwan, but the sheer number of these structures being built is alarming.

However, they are too often cringeworthy copies that do not capture even a fraction of the charm of the originals in Europe.

Castles are fascinating because of the rich history and cultural heritage behind them, and staying at a castle or dining in a Santorini-style cafe in Taiwan is not the same, no matter how well-done the exterior.

Furthermore, no tourist from Europe would want to stay in these structures. They come to Taiwan to experience a different culture, not see a butchered version of their own.

Even worse, many of these buildings are simply embarrassing and will leave visitors with a bad impression.

At a time when Taiwan needs as much international exposure as possible, it needs to showcase the best of the nation — and whatever that might be, it is not some gimmicky imitation of something entirely foreign.

There are many criticisms to make of Taiwanese society from this — lack of pride in local culture, copycat developers, blind obsession with all things Western without delving into the substance — but that these structures keep being built signifies that they do make money. And it is hard to blame developers whose main goal is to profit.

In a society where traveling is less about the trip and more about the selfies, these developers seem to be giving the public exactly what it wants.

However, at what cost? Is there any way to curb this phenomenon and actually build something that reflects local heritage while still generating money? How do we balance local tourism with international tourism, while educating people about the value of authenticity?

What even is Taiwanese architecture? We live in an ethnically diverse nation with diverse historical influences, and that is a loaded question for which there might be no answer. Perhaps each area can have its own specialties, but the locals should at least be consulted if a giant castle is going to be built right on their doorstep.

We are not advocating that everything should be built in Taiwanese-style, but even a sleek and modern design is better than kitsch.