A trickle of Chinese tourists returns to a Taiwanese island just across the strait from the mainland.

Remnants of military conflict surround Zhang Zhong Jie's cafe.

An abandoned military fortification houses a coffee shop, with rusting tanks surrounding its entrance.

The citizens of Taiwan's remote Kinmen Island are familiar with the scene of the cafe, which is separated from mainland China by 6 miles of choppy water and a row of anti-invasion spikes along the beach.

Since its opening in 2018, the cafe's primary source of revenue has been tourists from the mainland, despite ongoing tensions between Taiwan and China.

Zhang stated that initially, we had daily group tourists, consisting of at least two or three busloads from travel agencies.

But five years on, things look very different.

Despite China's assertion of sovereignty over Taiwan, Chinese tourists were barred from traveling to Taiwan for several years.

Since August 2019, Beijing has restricted individual travelers from visiting Taiwan due to poor cross-strait relations. In 2020, tour groups were prohibited from visiting Taiwan due to the Covid-19 pandemic.

For many on Kinmen, the lack of Chinese visitors has been devastating.

"The tourism industry in Kinmen has been heavily reliant on Chinese tourists for years, so the absence of mainland tourists has had a significant impact."

From tanks to tourism

In the 21st century, Kinmen was a key location in China's struggle against Taiwan.

Anti-Communist propaganda filled towns, bomb shelters were hidden in gardens, and soldiers trained on the beaches.

As the military presence on Kinmen decreased, the island shifted its focus to tourism.

Many residents embraced the island's tumultuous history, turning former military fortifications into cafes, serving "war rations" in restaurants, and crafting unique "bomb knives" from old Chinese artillery shells.

A short boat ride away

Although Kinmen is only 1.8 miles away from China, it is over 110 miles distant from the Taiwanese mainland, as stated by the Kinmen County Government.

"Business in Kinmen heavily relies on links with mainland China," stated local tour guide Chen Hua Sheng. Despite the resumption of half-hour-long boat rides connecting the island with China, the majority of passengers have been Taiwanese since Chinese travelers were prohibited from visiting Kinmen.

The hope was that the boats would bring Chinese tourists back to Kinmen after the end of Covid.

On Feb. 14, a collision between a Taiwanese Coast Guard boat and a Chinese boat resulted in the deaths of two Chinese citizens, leading to an increase in tensions.

While some Chinese tourists are visiting Taiwan's remote islands, the return of travelers to Kinmen has been sluggish. According to Taiwan's Mainland Affairs Council, the number of Chinese nationals entering Kinmen via boat decreased from over 400,000 in 2019 to under 18,000 in 2023.

Beijing's lack of tourists for Wu Zeng Yun, CEO of the Kinmen-Matsu Joint Services Center, is seen as a punishment, he stated.

Struggling under pressure

Nearly $200 million contributed by Chinese tourists to Kinmen's annual economy has been lost, causing local business owners to feel the impact.

Beddy Chang, owner of a noodle shop, stated that Chinese customers made up 80% of her clientele. Currently, she is focusing on exporting her products overseas due to the absence of Chinese customers.

Similar to Wu Zeng Yun, who once sold "bomb knives" to tourists on Kinmen Island, other businesses have also shifted their focus to Taiwan's main island.

"Wu stated that without mainland tourists, their business is taken out. They frequently hold events in department stores across Taiwan."

But others have had less luck.

Lu Wen Shiung, the former restaurant owner, has been struggling with fishing and boat tours as a supplement to his income.

Since the Feb. 14 incident, China's Coast Guard has frequently increased its presence in the area, entering Kinmen's restricted waters and conducting military exercises in May, as well as boarding a Taiwanese tour boat in February.

Lu, standing in his small boat in the narrow strait separating Kinmen and China, said he personally experienced those escalations.

He displayed videos he recorded on his phone of Chinese Coast Guard vessels approaching him while he navigated through the waters near Kinmen.

Lu expressed a slight concern that if we are captured while in our waters, we may be subjected to unconventional treatment, as he stared out across the waves.

Sustained hope

In late July, an agreement was reached between Taiwanese and Chinese authorities that permitted the return of the bodies of the deceased Chinese fishermen to the mainland following the Feb. 14 boat incident.

In late August, Kinmen legislator Chen Yu Jen journeyed to Beijing to discuss the revival of tourism to Kinmen. She was informed that Chinese tourists would imminently resume their visits.

According to local media, the first group of mainland tourists arrived in Kinmen in late September.

Although the 22 people who came for a two-day visit are not a complete resumption of Chinese tourism, it marks a beginning. Nevertheless, some in Kinmen doubt that the situation will ever return to its former state.

But local guide Chen is optimistic, he said.

"Taiwan and Kinmen hope to welcome mainland Chinese visitors once again to promote economic growth on both sides."

— Translators Alex Huang and Edison Tseng contributed to this report.