Tourism stakeholders band together to promote Japan

SINGAPORE Changi Airport kicked off a three-day Enchanting Japan fair at the airport's terminal three today, bringing together various stakeholders in the travel and tourism industry to promote travel from Singapore to Japan.Besides cultural and culinary exhibits, there will also be travel agent booths highlighting the various Japan travel packages avaliable.

The fair is an integral part of the Friends of Japan marketing drive, spearheaded by the Changi Airport Group (CAG), and backed by the Japan National Tourism Organisation (JNTO), local travel agents and airlines.Motonari Adachi, executive director, JNTO, said that the fair was a good platform to showcase Japan.

He explained that JNTO was adopting a multi-pronged approach to promote Japan, collaborating with the media as well as local travel agents, to stimulate interest and reassure travellers that it was now safe to visit the country. JNTO is currently focusing its marketing efforts on China, Singapore, Thailand, Malaysia and India.'Ultimately, we hope to see the number of arrivals return to 2010 levels by the end of this year,' he said.

In addition to the fair, CAG has sponsored advertorial features in local dailies to introduce lesser-known Japanese destinations such as Kyushu and Shizuoka. It has also partnered with Chan Brothers Travel to send radio DJs on a three-week Japan tour in end-July, to provide first-hand accounts of their trips there.Meanwhile, Singapore Airlines is working closely with CAG to offer promotional fares to Japan, via Singapore, to Indonesian, Indian and Australian travellers.

Source = ttgasia