Japan will set up tourism promotion offices in seven cities abroad including Manila, Kuala Lumpur and New Delhi this fiscal year to reel in more foreign visitors, tourism chief Ryoichi Matsuyama said Thursday.
"We particularly want to promote the attractiveness of regional destinations in Japan," Matsuyama, president of the Japan National Tourism Organization, said in an interview in Dallas, where he was attending the World Travel and Tourism Council meeting.
Matsuyama said offices will also be opened in Hanoi, Moscow, Rome and Madrid, raising the total to 21. They will join existing offices in such cities as New York, Beijing and Paris.
The government is stepping up efforts to increase tourism as a key part of its strategy to improve the economy. Matsuyama said the offices will provide information on traveling to Japan and encourage airlines and travel agencies to promote trips for individuals and groups.
Most tourists traditionally end up spending the bulk of their time in Tokyo, Kyoto and Osaka, but the government is keen for areas outside the so-called golden triangle to reap the benefits of the tourism boom as well.
Matsuyama said the tourism body plans to promote lesser-known destinations to foreign government delegates and journalists at news conferences and exhibits when they visit for the Group of Seven summit next month in the Ise-Shima area of Mie Prefecture.
Matsuyama said he will especially promote the Tohoku region, where rebuilding from the March 2011 earthquake, tsunami and nuclear disaster continues.
"We want more people to visit Tohoku. A promising way to attract tourists is to organize tours through which participants can experience farming or fishing," Matsuyama said.
The government has said it aims to triple the number of foreign visitors to Tohoku who stay at least one night to 1.5 million by 2020, a three-fold increase from 2015.