Gov't wants Japanese travelers to see more of their own backyard
With domestic tourism in Japan struggling to keep pace with inbound visitors, a government report encourages residents to get out and spend more time experiencing their country's regional charms, Kyodo reports.
In its annual white paper on tourism, the Japan Tourism Agency shifted focus from inbound visitors to target Japanese domestic travelers whose numbers are yet to return to pre-pandemic levels.
Domestic overnight and day trips taken by Japanese travelers totaled around 540 million in 2024, down 8.2 percent compared to 2019, according to the report. By contrast, Japan welcomed 36.87 million foreign visitors in 2024, up 15.6 percent compared to 2019.
Despite efforts to encourage foreign visitors to explore regional destinations across Japan, Japanese travelers still accounted for more than 85 percent of overnight stays in rural areas in 2024.
But with the population aging and shrinking, the agency said it was necessary to promote an increase in the frequency and duration of visits among individual Japanese travelers.
Harnessing a trend among young travelers to be more involved with local communities, the agency said it will promote a new style of travel, moving away from the typical tourist experience. By facilitating opportunities for engagement between travelers and locals at the destination, it wants to encourage repeat visits that give travelers a feeling of having returned home.
The report highlighted the success of recent demonstration projects, among them a project in the mountain town of Dake Onsen, in Fukushima Prefecture.
Visitor programs introduced by the town's tourist association have broadened the area’s appeal beyond mountaineering and encouraged local mountain guides to take on the wider role of trip coordinator. According to the report, the programs have helped bring a new profile of visitor to the area, in addition to hikers and mountaineers.
With an increasing number of Japanese placing more value on leisure time, the agency also said that it aims to remove barriers to travel, including a reluctance to take time off work.
The report highlighted a so-called “learcation” initiative implemented by Aichi Prefecture.
A combination of "learn" and "vacation," the initiative encourages working parents to make use of vacation days by allowing them to take their children out of school for a day of educational experiences.
The initiative allows for three days a year out of school. Parents and students must submit a plan for the day in advance.
Over 36 percent of students in public elementary schools across the prefecture made use of at least one of the days during the 2024 academic year, according to a prefecture survey.
Despite the number of travelers remaining sluggish, spending by Japanese on domestic trips hit a record high of 25.1 trillion yen ($176 billion) in 2024 -- an average of around 47,000 yen per traveler on a single trip, based on preliminary figures.
Hot spring resorts and local food were the most popular trip themes for nearly all age groups, according to the report.
As reported previously, foreign visitors to Japan in April set a monthly record at 3.9 million.
