On June 19, the German Tourist Board held a press conference in Tokyo. Mr. Akira Nishiyama, Director General for Asia and Director of the Japan Bureau, took the stage to explain the current situation surrounding the German travel market, forecasts for future recovery, and the SNS campaign.
According to Nishiyama, the number of Japanese departing abroad in January-April 2024 will be 60% of the 2019 level. In terms of the recovery rate of overnight stays, he said, Japanese demand for travel to Germany is steadily recovering, although much more slowly than in major countries such as the U.S. and China.
The number of direct flights between Japan and Germany is 70% (compared to 2019). Citing inflation in Germany and the impact of the historically low yen, he stated, “When converted to Japanese yen, I would even hesitate to eat in a restaurant.
Furthermore, the Russian invasion of Ukraine has resulted in a ban on traffic over Russia, extending flight times by 2 to 3 hours and causing a shortage of crews and equipment, so a return to pre-Corona disaster levels is expected to be far from certain.
In addition, the “Outlook for Recovery of Major Travel Agencies in 2024,” a survey was conducted on FIT (individual travel), group organized travel, and land operators (travel service arrangement business), with FIT being the segment that will recover the fastest.
Based on these factors, Japanese demand for travel to Germany is expected to recover by 52% in 2023 (compared to 2019), with a target of 60%-70% in 2024.
As for efforts aimed at the Japanese market, the Embassy of the Federal Republic of Germany has been running the “Tokyo German Festival” since 2010.
Regarding the results of the visitor survey (over 2,400 respondents), Nishiyama explained that the Japanese market is very mature, as more than 170 places were named as favorite towns and places to visit in Germany.
Cultural and sustainable themes such as “countryside tours,” “food culture,” and “traditions and customs” are popular for travel tours.
Despite the difficult economic situation, the average length of stay is longer than before, 4.04 days in 2019 versus 4.19 days in 2024, according to the report.
The German Tourist Board has developed different strategies for different target groups. For the middle class, who are less able to afford European travel, a medium-term approach will be implemented through online and social media to keep them interested until inflation and the yen’s depreciation subside.
The three major campaigns are “UNESCO World Heritage”, which will be continued from 2023, “Country of Culture and Arts”, which has been implemented since May, and “FEEL GOOD”, which will be implemented in September and proposes sustainable tourism.
UNESCO World Heritage sites are appealing for a total of 52 sites, one more than in 2023. The campaign “Goethe Road Trip” with the travel word-of-mouth and comparison site “Fortravel” is running until June 30.
Follow the official X of the German Tourism Office (@GermanyTravelJP) and repost the eligible post to win a 100,000 yen Amazon gift certificate for one lucky winner.
In addition, ads will be available on TikTok and YouTube starting in late June, and a chat-style quiz game will be offered on the official LINE account.
© Source travel watch
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