Tag Archives: Japan

Japan removes barrier at Mount Fuji viewing spot

A barrier erected in Japan to block a popular view of Mount Fuji has been taken down for now after succeeding in discouraging unruly tourists, a town official said.

Fujikawaguchiko put up the large screen in May after residents complained about streams of mostly foreign visitors causing problems while trying to snap photos of Japan’s famous volcano.

The town lowered the screen on August 15 ahead of a typhoon and has decided not to put it back up.
“We wanted to see what would happen,” the town official told AFP.

“There are still some people who come to the place. But we no longer find many people suddenly rushing out into the traffic to cross the road,” he said.

Pictures taken from the narrow pavement in front of a dentist’s office were popular online, with the snow-capped mountain rising photogenically into the sky from behind a convenience store.

The town’s struggle with unruly tourists made international headlines as record numbers of tourists headed to Japan over the summer, creating some opposition among locals.

The Fujikawaguchiko official said the town can put up the screen again if tourists return and cause more problems. (Source: AFP)

5,000 hotels commit to sustainability with WTTC programme

 

The World Travel & Tourism Council (WTTC) has achieved a significant milestone with over 5,000 properties in more than 80 countries now embracing its Hotel Sustainability Basics (Basics) program. This initiative represents a crucial step in promoting sustainable practices within the hospitality industry, demonstrating the sector’s readiness to adopt eco-friendly measures. Hotels across Europe, Africa, the Americas, and the Asia-Pacific region have adopted the Basics program, which continues to receive extensive global support. Partnerships with tourism powerhouses such as Japan, the Philippines, and India highlight the programme’s expanding influence and commitment to sustainability.

The Hotel Sustainability Basics program aims to guide hoteliers in their initial steps towards enhanced sustainability. It is an independent verification program, supervised by renowned assessors Green Key and SGS, ensuring rigorous standards and credibility. The programme empowers hotels of all sizes with a comprehensive 12-step criteria aimed at reducing carbon emissions, improving energy and water management, and ensuring that local communities benefit from hotel operations. Leading hotel brands such as Jin Jiang, Louvre Hotels Group, Choice Hotels, Radisson Hotel Group, and Accor have adopted the program, setting a standard for the industry and demonstrating their commitment to sustainable practices.

In Japan, the Japan Tourism Board has partnered with WTTC through its Japan Sustainable Tourism Initiative (JSTi) to support the launch of Basics across the country. In the Philippines, Tajara Hospitality Group and Greenview have collaborated with WTTC to introduce the program through their annual sustainable hospitality event, PhilHost. India is also seeing significant support, with backing from WTTC Members such as The Indian Hotels Company Limited, Radisson India, WTTC India Initiative, Hotel Association of India, and MakeMyTrip. This concerted effort underscores the importance of sustainability within the Indian hospitality sector.

The Basics programme is now available in multiple languages, offering comprehensive resources in English, French, Spanish, and Japanese to meet international demand. This accessibility ensures that hotels worldwide can adopt the program and implement sustainable practices effectively. Julia Simpson, President & CEO, WTTC, emphasised the collective effort in promoting sustainable practices in the hospitality industry, stating that surpassing 5,000 verified properties demonstrates Travel & Tourism’s readiness to embrace sustainability globally. The program’s widespread adoption signifies a pivotal step forward for the Travel & Tourism sector, showcasing the hospitality industry’s readiness to embrace environmental stewardship and community engagement as core components of their operations.

Japan implments e-Visa for tourists from 11 countries

As per its Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Japan has implemented electronic tourism visa system for eligible nationalities for a period of 90 days.

This single-entry visa is applicable for nationals from Australia, Brazil, Cambodia, Canada, Saudi Arabia, Singapore, South Africa, Taiwan, the United Arab Emirates, the United Kingdom, and the United States, VisaGuide.World reports.

Under the new policy, applicants can apply for a visa online and obtain it through the Japan e-Visa system. However, as the Japanese authorities further noted, e-Visas are only available to individuals who travel by plane and have an ordinary passport.

During the application process, the applicant may be requested to appear in person at the Japanese overseas establishment with jurisdiction over the place of the applicant’s residence for an interview.

However, for Chinese nationals living in China, such visas will be issued for stays up to 15 or 30 days, while for Vietnamese nationals living in Vietnam, e-visas will be granted for stays up to 15 days.

Meanwhile, travellers holding an electronic visa must present a “visa issuance notice” at the airport in the Internet environment.

Japan welcomes million more visitors compared to pre-Covid during first half of 2024

Japan welcomed a million more foreign visitors in the first half of 2024 compared to pre-pandemic levels, logging a new record of 17.78 million, the Japan National Tourism Organization said.

The weak yen is attracting large crowds to Japan, with many tourists splashing out on everything from kimonos to knives and pricey meals.

The January-June figure beat the previous high from 2019 of 16.63 million, with the influx prompting locals at hot spots such as Kyoto and Mount Fuji to raise overtourism concerns.

By country, South Korean visitors to Japan topped the chart at 4.4 million in the six-month period. China was second at around 3 million, five times as many as in the same period last year.

Visitors from Taiwan were in third place and the United States in fourth.

Over the whole of 2023, 25 million visitors came to Japan, after strict pandemic-era border restrictions were lifted.
The country has set an ambitious goal of attracting 60 million tourists a year by 2030 — around double 2019’s full-year record of 31.88 million.

Last month, Ichiro Takahashi, head of the Japan National Tourism Organization, called the target “a figure that we can very much achieve by making the right efforts.”

“There are still many little-known places in Japan that are left unexplored by tourists from overseas — I believe Japan has infinite tourism resources,” he told reporters.

The government will introduce a new preclearance system from next January, starting with tourists from Taiwan, NHK reported. Visitors will be able to complete most of their immigration screening before departure to help shorten the time taken for entry procedures on arrival, according to the report.

The slump in the yen has turned Japan from a pricey bucket-list trip to a relatively inexpensive tourism and shopping destination. The government declared at a meeting to promote tourism held Friday that JYP 8 trillion ($50.7 billion) of spending by foreign visitors is within sight in 2024. (Source: AFP)

T&T sector deal activity down 12.6% yoy in H1, 2024: GlobalData

A total of 347 deals (comprising mergers and acquisitions (M&A), private equity, and venture financing deals) were announced in the global travel and tourism sector during the first half (H1) of 2024, which was a year-on-year (YoY) decline of 12.6% compared to the 397 deals announced during the same period in the previous year, according to GlobalData, a data and analytics company.

Aurojyoti Bose, Lead Analyst at GlobalData, said, “Even though there was a decline globally due to a dent in deal-making sentiments, the trend was a mixed bag across different markets and regions, with some countries contributing to the decline while some experienced improved activity. And the same was the case for the deal types under coverage.”

An analysis of GlobalData’s Deals Database revealed that the volume of M&A deals declined by 7.4% during H1 2024 compared to H1 2023, whereas the number of venture financing deals fell by 29.6% YoY. Meanwhile, private equity deal volume remained at the same level.

North America, Asia-Pacific, the Middle East and Africa, and the South and Central American regions witnessed YoY decline of 31.7%, 14.5%, 11.1%, and 41.7% in deal volume during H1 2024 compared to H1 2023, respectively, whereas Europe saw YoY growth of 11.7% in deal volume.

Similarly, the US, China, Australia, and France witnessed a YoY decline in deal volume by 31.5%, 46.4%, 18.8%, and 40%, respectively, during H1 2024 compared to the same period during the previous year. However, markets such as the UK, India, and Japan saw respective deal volumes grow by 7.9%, 12%, and 18.2% YoY in H1 2024.

Sri Lanka extends visa-free entry to 7 countries, including India

To promote tourist arrivals to the Island nation, Sri Lanka renewed visa-free entry for visitors from India and several other select countries.

The Sri Lankan government’s move will open exciting possibilities for seamless travel between the two nations.

The country’s Cabinet decided to award free-visa entry to nationals from India, China, Russia, Japan, Malaysia, Thailand and Indonesia who are on a 30-day visit to the island nation.

The scheme was launched in October as a pilot project to rebuild the tourism industry in the country.

According to the Department of Immigration and Emigration which handles visa-free entry, foreigners from the above-mentioned countries should apply visa via website www.srilankaevisa.lk before arriving in Sri Lanka and the validity period of this free visa is 30 days.

Meanwhile, the Cabinet has decided to maintain USD 50 fee for visitors who enter the country on arrival visa for 30 days.

“Amidst the notable progress in the country’s tourism sector, numerous stakeholders within the industry have recently urged President Ranil Wickremesinghe to maintain the maximum visa fee for foreigners at USD 50,” President Media Division (PMD) said.

Shifting the visa-issuing process from the government to a private company with an increased fee up to USD100 was criticised by many parties including tourism-related industries. They complained that the fee and complex procedure under the private player was discouraging tourists’ arrival to the country which is recovering from the worst-ever financial crisis.

Tourism, one of leading foreign exchange earners of the country, has suffered a setback due to the Covid-19 pandemic and economic and political crises in the South Asian country.