This multi-billion dollar deal would help kickstart Japan’s tourist industry.
With the international travel picture looking unclear, and tourists a little skittish about booking flights in the midst of a pandemic, savvy countries are working to offer incentives to bring visitors back to their shores. First, Sicily offered to pay half of your flight costs to go visit, and now Japan is working on a similar offer to entice travelers to the Land of the Rising Sun.
According to an article in The Mainichi, one of Japan’s largest newspapers, the Japanese government is considering giving the green light to a 1.35 trillion yen (approximately $12.5 billion) fund to lure back visitors. If approved, the fund would cover a portion of domestic travel expenses, in order to “stimulate domestic travel demand within Japan.”
The Japan Tourism Agency made this clarification after the initial announcement made it seem like the program could potentially pay for foreign travel costs as well.
the Go to Travel Campaign under consideration by the Japanese government is to stimulate domestic travel demand within Japan after the Covid-19 pandemic and only cover a portion of domestic travel expenses.(2/2)
— 観光庁(Japan Tourism Agency) (@Kanko_Jpn) May 27, 2020
It would work to offset a 99.9% decrease in visitors from April 2019 to April 2020 caused by the coronavirus pandemic. Hiroshi Tabata, chief of the Japanese Tourism Agency, revealed that the offer could start as early as July so long as coronavirus infections continue to subside.
The plan hasn’t been finalized, but with Japan having already had to push the Tokyo Olympics back to 2021 as a result of the outbreak, providing the nation’s tourism industry with a boost could be vital to mitigating any economic fallout. Similarly, the nation’s financially lucrative cherry blossom season enjoyed recently by these adorable deer – has been impacted by the pandemic, further increasing the need for a quick injection of revenue.
Currently, Japan is denying entry to people of roughly 100 nations as a result of the virus, meaning that any potential trip is likely to fall later in the year. Still, given the mix outstanding natural beauty, fascinating culture, and endlessly-enjoyable cuisine, the incentive is likely to prove tempting to travelers.