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Tohoku sets its sights on tourism revival
The government is gearing up to support municipalities and private entities that have tried to attract foreign visitors.
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Although the increasing number of foreign visitors to Japan has been highly publicized, the reconstruction of tourism in Fukushima and the five other Tohoku prefectures, as they seek to promote their charms domestically and abroad, is still under way. (Bloomberg/Shiho Fukada)
O
n a day in early February that saw a dusting of snow, about 70 people from 11 countries visited Aizuwakamatsu in Fukushima Prefecture. The visitors — from countries including France, Spain and Italy — were participating in a tour organized by Tokyo-based travel agency Miki Tourist Co.
The tour took in Tsurugajo castle, an old samurai residence and sake brewery, as well as an Aizu lacquerware workshop. The participants also got to peek into the kitchen of a hot-spring inn and visit a bus company in Koriyama in the prefecture.
Miki Tourist created the tour as a model project for the Reconstruction Agency because Aizu is full of sightseeing spots. The company specializes in European tours for Japanese tourists, and asked European firms in the tourism industry to participate. Miki Tourist emphasized that the area is safe, citing a decline in radiation levels.
The company started offering a seven-day, five-night tour at €1,980 (about ¥250,000) per person, including air fare. The tour, which included an overnight stay in Tokyo, proved popular.
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A woman from Portugal experienced a Japanese-style inn and hot spring for the first time, saying she was satisfied to see the “real” Japan — or one that is different from Tokyo.
The company is planning a new Tohoku tour for fiscal 2017.
Six years have passed since the Great East Japan Earthquake. Although the increasing number of foreign visitors to Japan has been highly publicized, the reconstruction of tourism in Fukushima and the five other Tohoku prefectures, as they seek to promote their charms domestically and abroad, is still under way. The government is gearing up to support municipalities and private entities that have tried to attract foreign visitors.
Nationwide, there were 64 million overnight stays made by foreigners at lodging facilities with over 10 employees in 2016 — up 2.5-fold from 2010. However, the six Tohoku prefectures only saw a 1.3-fold increase, or 640,000, which accounted for only 1 percent of the nationwide figure. Visitor numbers in Iwate and Miyagi prefectures have recovered to predisaster levels, but Fukushima Prefecture is struggling.
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Given the situation, the government assigned 2016 as “the inaugural year of Tohoku tourism reconstruction” and allocated ¥5 billion for the fiscal 2016 budget for reconstruction related to tourism, a 10-fold increase from the previous fiscal year. It also set a goal to annually have 1.5 million overnight stays by international visitors in Tohoku in 2020.
Since last fiscal year, the Tourism Agency has been working harder to extend subsidies to projects led by local governments. Examples include Miyagi Prefecture’s initiative to launch wireless LAN (local area network) services and Akita Prefecture’s promotional drive using Akita dogs. It has also focused on overseas promotion in tandem with the Tohoku Tourism Promotion Organization and other bodies.
In May last year, the Reconstruction Agency chose 13 out of about 70 initiatives as model projects with the aim of helping private sector entities develop new travel products and services. Other projects have also been carried out besides that of Miki Tourist. They include a tour taking in the frost-covered trees of Zao, Yamagata Prefecture, and other locations; an initiative to launch a reservation system for South Korean tourists; and the introduction of a rental bicycle scheme.
The 13 projects, which have brought about 10,000 overnight stays by international visitors in the region, are continuing this fiscal year.
A Reconstruction Agency official said: “The atmosphere in the region and the market reactions have changed. We hope to establish a ‘distribution’ system in the tourism industry that leads to an influx of tourists.”
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Local mascot for reconstruction
Tohoku Zunko, a character created in 2011 to support reconstruction, has also been used to promote tourism in the region. A stamp-collecting event currently being held in a shopping district in Shiroishi, Miyagi Prefecture, and other places is a case in point. The event will last through April 23.
Tohoku Zunko was named after zunda, a sweet paste made of edamame and broad beans that is a specialty of the southern Tohoku region. The commercial use of the character is allowed mainly for companies in the six Tohoku prefectures. “Zunda Horizon,” a 30-minute anime starring Zunko, was produced this year using subsidies from Animetamago, a Cultural Affairs Agency project to nurture young animators.
The stamp-collecting event is the eighth of its kind. Stamps of Zunko have been placed at 15 locations in Shiroishi and Sendai. People who collect nine of them can receive some Haruiro Onmen noodles, a Shiroishi specialty, featuring Zunko on the package.
Monthly travel magazine Ryoko Yomiuri featured Zunko in its May issue, released March 28. Some copies of the issue sold at convenience stores came with a plastic file case featuring the character.
“Zunda Horizon” and three other films created using Animetamago subsidies will be shown at Theatre Shinjuku in Shinjuku Ward, Tokyo, from April 22 to April 28.
This article appeared on The Japan News newspaper website, which is a member of Asia News Network and a media partner of The Jakarta Post
