Articles tagged “japan”

Japan has grand ambitions to bring more than 40 million visitors to the country by 2020, and 60 million by 2030. But the country isn’t just dreaming big, it’s acting big too. Thanks to a concerted country-wide push by tourism officials and local business leaders to transform the Japanese tourism economy, the country seems on track to achieve this vision.

No destination gets away uncriticized for imposing a tax on tourists. Japan is no exception, especially since the destination is loved by millions of tourists and it isn’t clear-cut why they are being taxed. But it's unlikely tourists will say sayonara to Japan, say operators.

The big vacation rental players have formed an association in Japan, with the blessing of the Japan Tourism Agency. It may be a model for other Asian countries to follow.

Where will luxury travelers be jetting off to in 2019? For clues, look at where the world's high-end brands are opening their newest properties.

Japan turned out to be the lifeboat for Thomas Cook China when Thailand turned disastrous, as the tour operator appears to be sailing away blithely with four new initiatives to scale up its China market.

Ever since Naoshima, Japan, became home to a number of contemporary art museums, sculptures, and installations, the island's identity as an "art island" has become intertwined with its history and culture. Naoshima now represents a way for other destinations to think about how tourism, and art tourism specifically, can be used to revitalize communities while preserving tradition and demonstrating respect to heritage.

Average train delays of 36 seconds every year? Who could complain about that kind of service? The Japanese icon JR East is one of the subjects in Skift's recent sixth anniversary book, For the Long Haul, Lessons on Business Longevity, whose chapters we are excerpting for you here in the coming weeks.

Airbnb's moves in Japan are smart for its future growth. But again we can't help but wonder: Why is the company so willing to fully comply with local laws in certain regions, like Japan, but so reluctant to do the same in others, like New York City?

Times are tough for legacy travel media brands and they are having to come up with more creative ways to cash in. But bringing in a charge for its A-List — no matter how this manifests itself — calls into question the idea of editorial independence.

Japan lags far behind its Asian tourism competition in attracting Western visitors. As the 2020 Tokyo Olympic Games approach, the country is adopting a new strategy for landing on the region's tourism medal stand.