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Ruffy Magbanua

KYOTO, Japan–From the irreparable damage of the ongoing war against terrorism in Marawi to the untimely deaths at the Resorts World Manila  inflicted by a distraught gun man, these tragic events created a sting of negative impression among our Japanese friends  here.

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One of those was Jenko, a retired teacher who earlier laid down a grand plan to visit the Philippines late this year. “Too dangerous to go there by this time,” she says.

Jenko and other Japanese tourists like her toned down their excitement to visit the Philippines. They eventually cancelled their bookings, something bad news for Tourism Secretary Wanda Tiu.

The declaration of martial law in Mindanao, the fighting in Marawi, the Resorts World incident, among others, put a deep dent on the country’s booming tourism industry.

Even domestic tourism has been in the red, particularly in Mindanao where travel is occasionally marred by military and police checkpoints in every nook and cranny of this troubled island.

On the contrary, domestic tourism in Japan is very much alive and thriving with thousands of Japanese taking their time out every day to enjoy and appreciate their own unique tourist attractions.

Their domestic tourism starts with a “Global-Osampo,” an efficient way to connect locals and visitors of families in Japan. “Osampo” means walk and stroll in Japanese.

This “Global-Osampo” can be a casual walk under cherry blossoms or an exciting day at the amusement park.

But most importantly, “Golbal-Osampo” is  a truly unique experience and a precious memory for both their visitors and local families.  “Global-Osampo” is  applied freely while consulting with each other’s family.

Japan has 19 world heritage sites, including Himeji Castle, historic monuments of Ancient Kyoto and Nara.

Popular attractions include Tokyo and Hiroshima, Mount Fuji, ski resorts such as Niseko in Hokkaido, Okinawa, riding speed trains (shinkansen) and taking advantage of Japan’s hotel and hot spring network.

Japanese domestic tourism, a recreational travel by Japanese within their home islands, is a huge industry and one of the primary recreational activities of Japanese people from all walks of life.

It is estimated that each year, Japanese take nearly 150 million leisure trips within the country, generally outside of their home regions, or prefectures.

Efforts to revitalize the domestic travel demand–which was forecast on a downward trend–because of the nation’s low birthrate and graying population were made to sustain Japan’s domestic travel industry.

Such an effort contributed immensely in the enhancement of Japan’s attraction for all local and international tourists.

Japan attracted 24.03 million international tourists last year. The “Travel and Tourism Competitiveness Report 2017” ranks Japan 4th out of 141 countries overall, which was the best in Asia.

Japan gained relatively high scores in almost all aspects, especially health and hygiene, safety and security, cultural resources and business travel.

Travel and tourism in Japan continued to perform positively. The Abenomics-led economic recovery in Japan improved consumer confidence and encouraged an increase in leisure and recreational activities.

Three peak holiday periods occur in Japan: Golden Week (spring), Obon (summer), and end of the year into the first week of the New Year.

Golden Week, generally a popular time to travel, occurs at the end of April and early May, during which four Japanese public holidays can be extended into a five to nine-day vacation.

The summer Obon holiday occurs around mid-August of every year. Since the longest school holiday of the year also occurs at this time, August is the peak month for all Japanese wanting to travel domestically.

E-mail: ruffy44_ph2000@yahoo.com

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