Japan opens bookings for discounted travel to quake-struck Kumamoto
Sign up now: Get insights on Asia's fast-moving developments
Kumamoto Castle, which was damaged by an earthquake, is undergoing restoration work.
PHOTO: BLOOMBERG
- Japan started accepting bookings on Sept 15 for discounted travel and hotel stays in Kumamoto and Nagasaki to support tourism after the July earthquake.
- The campaign offers up to 60% discounts, with maximum savings of 35,000 yen for multi-prefecture stays, running from Oct 1 to Dec 25.
- Earthquake caused severe cancellations worth billions of yen; the government aims to restore tourism and improve the region's reputation through this campaign.
AI generated
TOKYO – Japan began accepting reservations on Sept 15 for discounted travel and hotel stays in Kumamoto and Nagasaki prefectures, under a campaign aimed at supporting the tourism industry across the south-western main island of Kyushu following a major earthquake in July.
The five other prefectures in Kyushu are set to begin taking reservations later.
The campaign offers discounts of 60 per cent in Kumamoto and Kagoshima, both prefectures where many hotel bookings were cancelled after the 7.1-magnitude quake, and 50 per cent elsewhere.
The maximum discount per person per trip is 20,000 yen (S$160) for a one-night stay, 30,000 yen for stays of two nights or more, and 35,000 yen for trips involving overnight stays in at least two prefectures.
Saga, Nagasaki, Kumamoto and Oita prefectures have announced that the discounts will apply to travel from Oct 1 to Dec 25. Saga is set to begin accepting reservations from Sept 24, and Oita and Miyazaki in late September.
Fukuoka aims to launch its campaign in October. Kagoshima, meanwhile, is considering starting in mid-October after its own tourism discount programme ends on Oct 13.
The impact of the July 28 quake on tourism has been severe. Cancelled hotel bookings in Kumamoto prefecture were worth about 2.7 billion yen as at Aug 21, while those in Kagoshima prefecture totalled about 2.3 billion yen by the end of August.
At a morning press conference, Chief Cabinet Secretary Minoru Kihara said the government hopes that the campaign will help counter reputational damage to the region and “steadily advance the recovery of tourism” across Kyushu.
Following the 2016 Kumamoto and 2024 Noto Peninsula earthquakes, Japan introduced similar travel discount programmes in which the government subsidised accommodation and tour costs up to a certain amount. KYODO NEWS