Report by : Gan Yung Chyan
/ KUCINTA SETIA
Distributed to All Press & Travel Professionals
Tourism Expo Japan 2017 was held from 21 to 24 September 2017 at Tokyo Big Sight, Odaiba, Tokyo. On the opening day, the third Japan Tourism Awards ceremony and Japan's first Inbound Tourism Business Expo took place.
As the largest tourism market event in the world, Tourism Expo Japan known informally as JATA Tourism Expo has helped to attract increasing numbers of inbound tourists. In 2016, there were 4 million inbound tourists to Japan and there is an increase of 5.4 per cent in the number of outbound tourists from Japan since 2016. As 2017 is announced by UNWTO as the International Year of Sustainable Tourism for Development, Japan hopes to continue to engage tourism as the driver of regional revitalization as it aims to be a tourism-oriented nation. With these objectives in mind, the Japan Tourism Awards now cover Awards to foreign and local tourism bodies that helped Japan to benefit from global tourism. It has opened the Inbound Tourism Business Expo to draw more inbound tourists.
During the third Japan Tourism Awards ceremony at Tourism Expo Japan 2017, at least five awards were given to tourism bodies and tourism personnel.
For the first time, the Special Award was conferred on the Philippine Department of Tourism for its key role in facilitating travel flows and tourism growth in the Philippines and Japan. Its Subic Bay tourism organization has even contributed press releases to JATA Tourism Expo web-site.
Awards for Excellence were given to Park Hotel Tokyo under the Business Division, Inakadate Village Renewal Project Promotion Council under the Regional Division and Oboke-Iya Ittemirukai under the Regional Division and in the Field of Outbound Travel under the Business Division, JTB World Vacations Inc won one of the Awards for Excellence.
Park Hotel Tokyo initiates the "Artist in Hotel" Project. In this project, an artist is invited to a specified region for a certain period of item to make works of art on-location ("Artist in Hotel"). The concept here is that individuals engaged in the fine arts renovate rooms to create "artists' rooms" out of conventional guest rooms. The artist stays in the hotel, paints directly on the wall paper and creates original paintings or affixes art objects to the walls, drawing thee inspiration they derive from staying at this place. The rooms are sold once production is complete. As a result, the appeal of Japan as a whole has been enhanced.
In the Field of Domestic/Inbound Award for Excellence, Inakadate Village Renewal Project Promotion Council won the award for introducing rice paddy art to the world. These rice paddies serve as giant canvasses with different colours of rice that serve as "paints". Each year, additional varieties of rice are added to the original three. This year, the total has reached 7 different colours and 13 different types of rice.
In 2012, the Yayoi-no-sato Observation Deck was built to showcase two examples of rice paddy art. In 2013, rock art was added using the same production technologies as rice paddy art. Though at the outset the "Kanji of the Year" Japanese character served as the theme, this concept has been replaced by themes entitled "People We Miss" and "Short Literary Works". From 2015, this initiative features winter rice paddy art, made by stepping in the snowy fields, which are showcased at the second rice paddy art venues.
Rice paddy art allows tourists to engage in rice-planting and harvesting, achieving the goal of sustainable tourism and revitalizing local regions.
Inakadate Village is a key sightseeing town in Aomori, Japan.
JTB World Vacations, Inc. celebrates 45th Anniversary this year and the Award for Excellence in the Field of Outbound Travel has definitely enhance the Japan trademark reliability and image. It won the Award by developin the OLIOLI brand with an objective to create superior visitor convenience in Hawaii and infrastructure/services addressing current market needs. The product adds to the successful product portfolio that JTB has introduced to the outbound travel market worldwide. JTB has offices in Singapore, Hong Kong, Thailand, the Philippines as well selling Airport Limousine Group tickets and various Japanese land transport tickets. It is also a key exhibitor at both the inaugural Japan Inbound Business Tourism Expo and the established JATA Tourism Expo.
The OLIOLI brand involves a complete backup system spanning mobile phone lending to customer care centres to tour desks, with trolley bus, rental car and guidebook services. Its "Enjoy Coupon" product service allows visitors to experience food, culture and environment of Hawaii as they wish. A complimentary shuttle bus serves Kailua, Haleiwa and more, boosting convenience and flexibility.
The brand programme of OLIOLI is based on the concept of "Tour and Stay" and is not limited to Hawaii. By maximizing customer satisfaction and diversifying projects, the appeal of the covered region is bolstered to attract more visitors and contributed to economic revitalization.
Grand Prize of the third Japan Tourism Awards goes to Minami Sanriku Hotel Kanyo, located in Minamisanriku, Miyagi Prefecture, for community revitalization and social interaction initiatives through the Storyteller Bus, a project designed to help communities retain lessons learned in the Tohoku earthquake and tsunami of 2011.
Using buses owned by Minami Sanriku Hotel Kanyo, its staff and local resident storytellers guide visitors through an hour tour covering the town areas including the earthquake ruins. As visitors view the enormous damage incurred by the disaster-stricken areas directly, the storytellers onboard convey what they most want to say to visitos through their personal accounts of the disaster. In addition to words, some storytellers use imagery such as photographs, videos and images with tablet devices to provide tourists with more sensory experiences relayed in multiple languages concurrently. The bus storyteller service provides an invaluable experience not only on the importance of remembering the lessons from the earthquake disaster, but also preciousness of life itself.
The Storyteller Buses run daily catering to individuals and tour groups to eastern Japan.
In the wake of the Great East Japan Earthquake of 2011, initiatives such as the Storyteller Bus have paved way for recovery by way of close coordination with the local community, for example by offering accommodation facilities for use by earthquake survivors. Another result has been increase in awareness of disaster prevention by conveying the experience of the earthquake to others. Steps taken to ensure that the lessons from the disaster are learnt have been very well-received. Awarding the Grand Prize to Minami Sanriku Hotel Kanyo is in the hope for continued implementation to achieve full recovery of the affected areas in eastern Japan.
With the various tourism effects introduced to Japan, it is ripe for JATA Tourism Expo to introduce the first Inbound Business Tourism Expo in partnership with Nikkei.
JTB World Vacations, Inc. not only explains the OLIOLI brand in details at the first Inbound Business Tourism Expo, it continues to market its tour products including the nationwide train tour network.
Airserve is another Japanese company exhibiting at the Inbound Business Tourism Expo. It markets its travel earphone to tourists. Renting one travel earphone from Airserve costs 1000 Yen so that the tourist can listen clearly at crowded areas.
There is also product ingenuity at the Inbound Business Tourism Expo. IP Dreams Inc aims to introduce the world's first web-and-mobile phone-based auto Smart Interpreter Service (SIS) in November 2017 to solve the problem of shortage of multilingual staff and allow simultaneous speech translation in multiple languages. SIS can be used by multiple parties like a web-chat.
IP Dream Inc. says SIS will be ideal for tour guides who need to guide tour groups from multiple countries and staff members at tourists facilities that want to express hospitality towards guests from various countries.
The company's participation at Inbound Tourism Business Expo sets a launchpad to test the tourism and travel market reactions to SIS. Devices available to use this service through a web browser include smartphone (Android for the time being), tablets and PCs while iphone cannot be used with the microphone and speaker since SIS is a web-based service.
IP Dream Inc aims to develop iOS application and implement various APIs such as collaboration with video/still image, GPS, schedule, videophone, etc.
For further information on usage of SIS, please email IP Dream Inc. at sales@ip-dream.co.jp or browse the web-site https://www.ip-dream.co.jp.
Tourism Expo Japan ends on 24 September 2017 at 6 pm. The next edition of this Tourism Expo will be held on 20 to 23 September 2018 at Tokyo Big Sight. News and pictures from the Travel Showcase of Tourism Expo Japan 2017 will be published later.
Originally founded by the Japan Association of Travel Agents (JATA) as JATA Tourism Expo on the like of Hong Kong ITE and ITB, Tourism Expo Japan is co-organized by Japan Travel and Tourism Association (JTTA), JATA and Japan National Tourism Organization (JNTO).
/ KUCINTA SETIA
Distributed to All Press & Travel Professionals
Tourism Expo Japan 2017 was held from 21 to 24 September 2017 at Tokyo Big Sight, Odaiba, Tokyo. On the opening day, the third Japan Tourism Awards ceremony and Japan's first Inbound Tourism Business Expo took place.
As the largest tourism market event in the world, Tourism Expo Japan known informally as JATA Tourism Expo has helped to attract increasing numbers of inbound tourists. In 2016, there were 4 million inbound tourists to Japan and there is an increase of 5.4 per cent in the number of outbound tourists from Japan since 2016. As 2017 is announced by UNWTO as the International Year of Sustainable Tourism for Development, Japan hopes to continue to engage tourism as the driver of regional revitalization as it aims to be a tourism-oriented nation. With these objectives in mind, the Japan Tourism Awards now cover Awards to foreign and local tourism bodies that helped Japan to benefit from global tourism. It has opened the Inbound Tourism Business Expo to draw more inbound tourists.
During the third Japan Tourism Awards ceremony at Tourism Expo Japan 2017, at least five awards were given to tourism bodies and tourism personnel.
For the first time, the Special Award was conferred on the Philippine Department of Tourism for its key role in facilitating travel flows and tourism growth in the Philippines and Japan. Its Subic Bay tourism organization has even contributed press releases to JATA Tourism Expo web-site.
Awards for Excellence were given to Park Hotel Tokyo under the Business Division, Inakadate Village Renewal Project Promotion Council under the Regional Division and Oboke-Iya Ittemirukai under the Regional Division and in the Field of Outbound Travel under the Business Division, JTB World Vacations Inc won one of the Awards for Excellence.
In the Field of Domestic/Inbound Award for Excellence, Inakadate Village Renewal Project Promotion Council won the award for introducing rice paddy art to the world. These rice paddies serve as giant canvasses with different colours of rice that serve as "paints". Each year, additional varieties of rice are added to the original three. This year, the total has reached 7 different colours and 13 different types of rice.
In 2012, the Yayoi-no-sato Observation Deck was built to showcase two examples of rice paddy art. In 2013, rock art was added using the same production technologies as rice paddy art. Though at the outset the "Kanji of the Year" Japanese character served as the theme, this concept has been replaced by themes entitled "People We Miss" and "Short Literary Works". From 2015, this initiative features winter rice paddy art, made by stepping in the snowy fields, which are showcased at the second rice paddy art venues.
Rice paddy art allows tourists to engage in rice-planting and harvesting, achieving the goal of sustainable tourism and revitalizing local regions.
Inakadate Village is a key sightseeing town in Aomori, Japan.
JTB World Vacations, Inc. celebrates 45th Anniversary this year and the Award for Excellence in the Field of Outbound Travel has definitely enhance the Japan trademark reliability and image. It won the Award by developin the OLIOLI brand with an objective to create superior visitor convenience in Hawaii and infrastructure/services addressing current market needs. The product adds to the successful product portfolio that JTB has introduced to the outbound travel market worldwide. JTB has offices in Singapore, Hong Kong, Thailand, the Philippines as well selling Airport Limousine Group tickets and various Japanese land transport tickets. It is also a key exhibitor at both the inaugural Japan Inbound Business Tourism Expo and the established JATA Tourism Expo.
The OLIOLI brand involves a complete backup system spanning mobile phone lending to customer care centres to tour desks, with trolley bus, rental car and guidebook services. Its "Enjoy Coupon" product service allows visitors to experience food, culture and environment of Hawaii as they wish. A complimentary shuttle bus serves Kailua, Haleiwa and more, boosting convenience and flexibility.
The brand programme of OLIOLI is based on the concept of "Tour and Stay" and is not limited to Hawaii. By maximizing customer satisfaction and diversifying projects, the appeal of the covered region is bolstered to attract more visitors and contributed to economic revitalization.
Grand Prize of the third Japan Tourism Awards goes to Minami Sanriku Hotel Kanyo, located in Minamisanriku, Miyagi Prefecture, for community revitalization and social interaction initiatives through the Storyteller Bus, a project designed to help communities retain lessons learned in the Tohoku earthquake and tsunami of 2011.
Using buses owned by Minami Sanriku Hotel Kanyo, its staff and local resident storytellers guide visitors through an hour tour covering the town areas including the earthquake ruins. As visitors view the enormous damage incurred by the disaster-stricken areas directly, the storytellers onboard convey what they most want to say to visitos through their personal accounts of the disaster. In addition to words, some storytellers use imagery such as photographs, videos and images with tablet devices to provide tourists with more sensory experiences relayed in multiple languages concurrently. The bus storyteller service provides an invaluable experience not only on the importance of remembering the lessons from the earthquake disaster, but also preciousness of life itself.
The Storyteller Buses run daily catering to individuals and tour groups to eastern Japan.
In the wake of the Great East Japan Earthquake of 2011, initiatives such as the Storyteller Bus have paved way for recovery by way of close coordination with the local community, for example by offering accommodation facilities for use by earthquake survivors. Another result has been increase in awareness of disaster prevention by conveying the experience of the earthquake to others. Steps taken to ensure that the lessons from the disaster are learnt have been very well-received. Awarding the Grand Prize to Minami Sanriku Hotel Kanyo is in the hope for continued implementation to achieve full recovery of the affected areas in eastern Japan.
With the various tourism effects introduced to Japan, it is ripe for JATA Tourism Expo to introduce the first Inbound Business Tourism Expo in partnership with Nikkei.
JTB World Vacations, Inc. not only explains the OLIOLI brand in details at the first Inbound Business Tourism Expo, it continues to market its tour products including the nationwide train tour network.
Airserve is another Japanese company exhibiting at the Inbound Business Tourism Expo. It markets its travel earphone to tourists. Renting one travel earphone from Airserve costs 1000 Yen so that the tourist can listen clearly at crowded areas.
There is also product ingenuity at the Inbound Business Tourism Expo. IP Dreams Inc aims to introduce the world's first web-and-mobile phone-based auto Smart Interpreter Service (SIS) in November 2017 to solve the problem of shortage of multilingual staff and allow simultaneous speech translation in multiple languages. SIS can be used by multiple parties like a web-chat.
IP Dream Inc. says SIS will be ideal for tour guides who need to guide tour groups from multiple countries and staff members at tourists facilities that want to express hospitality towards guests from various countries.
The company's participation at Inbound Tourism Business Expo sets a launchpad to test the tourism and travel market reactions to SIS. Devices available to use this service through a web browser include smartphone (Android for the time being), tablets and PCs while iphone cannot be used with the microphone and speaker since SIS is a web-based service.
IP Dream Inc aims to develop iOS application and implement various APIs such as collaboration with video/still image, GPS, schedule, videophone, etc.
For further information on usage of SIS, please email IP Dream Inc. at sales@ip-dream.co.jp or browse the web-site https://www.ip-dream.co.jp.
Tourism Expo Japan ends on 24 September 2017 at 6 pm. The next edition of this Tourism Expo will be held on 20 to 23 September 2018 at Tokyo Big Sight. News and pictures from the Travel Showcase of Tourism Expo Japan 2017 will be published later.
Originally founded by the Japan Association of Travel Agents (JATA) as JATA Tourism Expo on the like of Hong Kong ITE and ITB, Tourism Expo Japan is co-organized by Japan Travel and Tourism Association (JTTA), JATA and Japan National Tourism Organization (JNTO).
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