Last month, the Italian island of Sicily announced that it would pay a portion of travelers’ post-coronavirus travel expenses by covering with canopy part of all airline tickets plus one in 3 hotel nights. Today, Japan is looking for similar artistic tactics to fill its empty ryokans, high-speed trains, and sushi restaurants. The head of Japan’s Tourism Agency recently announced that the government is creating a plan called the “Go To Travel” initiative, which aims to encourage tourism by providing subsidies to some of the travelers. First, travelers were induced to cover the costs of travel abroad. Japan’s Tourism says lately that the program will only apply to domestic travel, but unofficial sources say the program could stick to Italy’s lead in extending the subsidy to foreign visitors. when travel restrictions are lifted.
As the main points of the program evolve, a document from Japan’s tourism government reports that the proposed program will cover a portion of the expenses up to a maximum of ¥20,000 ($186) depending on the day. Travelers will also have the option to Get Prepaid Coupons up to 20% off the value of food at attractive restaurants. And some entertainment events would be reduced by 20% if purchased through certain vendors.
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This new program would charge Japan $12. 5 billion. And while there are many main points about how it will work, whether there will be spending limits or when (or if) it can make foreign travelers bigger, the initiative may start as early as July 2020, depending on when travel restrictions ease.
“The glorious thing about this offer from the Japan Tourism Agency to subsidize Japan is that it is helping the Japanese tourism industry and the ers themselves. tours, entertainment and meals,” says Marian Goldberg, a Japan expert who runs a marketing company that works with many Japanese clients.
Subsidies or not, Japan may be hot with foreign visitors when it reopens, given the way it behaved with the coronavirus pandemic. history. At press time, the country of another 126 million people had only 16,433 infections and 784 deaths. Experts highlight the country’s low number of proactive early measures, universal physical care, low obesity rates, experience in treating pneumonia and a culture already known for its fair hygiene behavior and social distancing skills.
This is not the first time Japan has tried to encourage tourism. Last December, coronavirus-free times, Japan Airlines and the Nomura Research Institute (a group of economic experts) announced a promotion that would offer 100,000 seats on domestic flights in a bid to catch foreign visitors to explore the country beyond Tokyo and Kyoto.
And Japan wants the business, since tourism is the country’s main economic engine. Japan has reportedly been hit hard by the lack of foreign arrivals, which have fallen 99. 99% year-on-year since April 2019 with just 2,900 tourists visiting the country in April. The last low of foreign visitors per month was 17,543 in February 1964. Last year, the country recorded the highest number of tourists ever recorded with more than 32. 5 million foreign visitors.
In fact, my circle of relatives and I were among the 32. 5 million travelers in 2019, when we were on vacation in the country during the cherry blossom spring season. travel and get ready for a post-pandemic (and perhaps cheaper) vacation to Japan.
Tokyo Cherry Blossom Season
During Sakura, the cherry blossom season, Tokyo comes alive. Along the Nakemeguro Canal, pink lanterns are lit and the city holds an open-air street fair to celebrate, with piles of pink champagne. (With all its cool restaurants and trendy shops, the Nakemeguro community is fun at any time of the year. )
Mori Museum of Digital Art – Tokyo
The Mori Digital Art Museum (also known as Teamlab Borderless) is a must-see. Plan to spend a few hours wandering from room to room and the magic of virtual art installations.
Tsukiji Open Air Market – Tokyo
Food in Japan is like an art painting. A must-see in Tokyo is the Tsukiji Open-Air Market, which is full of fish and food stalls. It is very useful to explore it on an excursion with Arigato Japan, who will guide you to the most delicious stalls and help you savor everything from sushi. to snails. Arigato Japan also offers other city and country tours, from delicious food from Tokyo’s Harajuku district to whiskey and sake in Kyoto.
Sky Tree – Tokyo
Don’t miss a stopover at Skytree, the tallest tower in the world. From the levels that scratch the sky, you can enjoy perspectives that extend all the way to Mount Fuji. Skytree is also home to Solamachi, a multi-level entertainment center. packed with great department stores and restaurants (we enjoyed sushi on the treadmill in Toriton). There is also a beautiful aquarium, Sumida, where you can see Japanese eels, puffer fish and penguins.
Hotel Tobu Levant – Tokyo
The views are breathtaking from the Tobu Hotel Levant, a reasonable one that overlooks the Skytree Tower and the Tokyo skyline. The hotel’s breakfast buffet is simply fabulous.
Shiba Park Hotel – Tokyo
Located in the center of Tokyo, the modern and modern Shiba Park Hotel, where they make origami with children. My daughter enjoyed the huge globe spinning in the lobby.
Hotel Hoshinoya – Tokyo
Hoshinoya Tokyo is a luxurious ryokan-style hotel located in central Tokyo, where you take off your shoes and wear slippers during your stay. At the top point there are onsen baths fed through a deep underground hot spring.
Hello Kitty Earth Tokyo
Kids love Sanrio Puroland, also known as Hello Kitty Land Tokyo, a theme park in the Tokyo suburb of Tama. It’s just a 30-minute exercise ride from Shinjuku Station and it’s worth checking out the character-themed games, kabuki theater experience, and the most productive Collection of Hello Kitty-themed products you’ve ever seen.
Ryōanji – Kyoto
Not to be missed in Kyoto, the Ryoanji Temple, a Zen area with a famous rock garden. Beyond the temple is a large park with beautiful scenery and koi ponds. In Kyoto, it’s a smart concept to rent a personal consultant like Bodhi Fishman, who showed my circle of relatives an aspect of the city we would otherwise have missed and prepared invaluable reports like classes from a master calligrapher.
Yoshida-Sanso Ryokan – Kyoto
A lovely place to stay in Kyoto is Yoshida-Sanso, which is located in an old imperial villa and is surrounded by beautiful gardens. It is run by a woman and her mother who take care of him as if he were part of the family.
Nikko
Nikko, a small town in the mountains, is noted for its temples and shrines, hot springs and waterfalls. Nikko is less than two hours from Tokyo Tobu Railways and values the ride.
Kanmangafuchi Gorge – Nikko
Nikko’s Kanmangafuchi Gorge is covered with buddha statues as the eye can see, dressed in hats woven by the locals to keep them warm.
kai nikko
The place to stay in Nikko is the Kai Nikko, a ryokan hotel with onsens fed through herbal hot springs, classical music shows for guests, multi-course kaiseki dinners, and views of the lake and mountains.
Gyoshintei Restaurant – Nikko
In a silent temple-like setting, the women-run Gyoshintei Restaurant specializes in authentic vegetarian shojin cuisine based on Buddhist principles and absolutely delicious.
Edo Wonderland – Nikko
In Edo Wonderland, the Japanese edition of Colonial Williamsburg, you can dress up in Edo-style clothing, from steamy princess dresses to black ninja clothes. The park is animated through a seventeenth-century village, with houses where you can practice throwing. shuriken (ninja weapons), find out how to play shamisen (a musical tool used by geisha) and immerse yourself in ancient Japanese culture.
Editor’s note 05/24/20: Details about Japan’s grant program are still evolving, so the name and some terms of the story were replaced after publication.
Editor’s Note 05/27/20: Details of the grant program have been updated after receiving a copy of the post-coronavirus tourism plan.
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