On July 18, JATA (Japan Association of Travel Agents) held a briefing session on the current state, challenges, and future of the travel industry.
At the beginning of the meeting, Chairman Hiroyuki Takahashi presented the volume of business handled by major travel agencies (January-May), the state of support for the Noto Peninsula earthquake, and introduced Tourism Expo Japan 2024 to be held in Tokyo from September 26 to 29.
He also reviewed several scandals in the industry since 2021, including the improper receipt of employment adjustment payments, and most recently, the Fair Trade Commission’s exclusion order against five JATA member companies for violations of the Antimonopoly Law, and explained efforts to strengthen compliance.
Specifically, the Compliance Promotion Office was established in April, and disciplinary rules were formulated in May. In addition, a guidebook for specific measures has been published, and JATA-sponsored compliance training will be held from July onward. A follow-up meeting is scheduled for next year to confirm progress by a committee of experts. Chairman Takahashi said, “By steadily implementing specific measures, we will wipe out fraud and regain public trust. I would like to take the lead in making a sincere effort to achieve this goal,” he explained.
On the other hand, with regard to Japanese outbound travel in the latest order trends, while noting that 2024 is the 60th anniversary of the liberalization of overseas travel and the Japan-U.S. Tourism Exchange Year, he also mentioned the pain of uncontrollable factors such as the weak yen and high prices that stand in the way.
In fact, a look at the recovery rates of the 43 major travel agencies that handle overseas travel shows that the overall recovery rate from January to May 2024 is 165.0% compared to 2023, but only 60.6% compared to 2019, with business travel showing a solid recovery at 82.9% compared to 2019, while leisure travel is still in a difficult situation at Business travel is showing a solid recovery at 82.9% over 2019, while leisure travel is still in a difficult situation at 43.9% over 2019.
Looking at the number of outbound travelers in the same period by country/region, even Hawaii, a staple destination, is at 43.5% of the 2019 level, Thailand, with many repeat visitors, at 54.1%, and Taiwan at 63.1%. On the other hand, there are some good signs, such as Turkey with 111.5% (195.0% compared to 2023), South Korea with 85.6% (176.3% compared to 2023), and Australia with 79.2% (161.2% compared to 2023).
Chairman Takahashi has long stated that “without a revival of overseas travel, there will be no revival of the industry,” and the key to this revival is the younger generation.
The passport ownership rate among Japanese is in the 17% range (24% even before Corona), the lowest among developed countries, and it has been a long time since people started to complain that young people are not traveling abroad. Mr. Takahashi also points out that “the cost of obtaining a passport is too high in Japan,” and he hopes that the government will do something like issuing passports free of charge to those who reach the age of majority.
JATA and the Japan Tourism Agency have been conducting a campaign to subsidize the cost of obtaining a passport under the “Now is the time to go abroad” declaration, an initiative to build momentum for overseas travel! Declaration” by JATA and the Japan Tourism Agency, a campaign to subsidize the cost of obtaining passports is underway, and some local governments are currently subsidizing passport acquisition for local residents in order to maintain international flights at local airports. However, international flights cannot be properly maintained unless there is a balance between inbound and outbound travel, and if the current situation continues, when outbound travel recovers, there will be a problem of not being able to secure seats for flights departing from Japan.
Even if passports were issued free of charge to newcomers, the number of passport holders would be about 800,000-1,000,000 each year, and although this would not lead to a significant recovery in passport ownership, “If you don’t have a passport, it is not a prerequisite for going abroad,” he added, “Young people going abroad will become the foundation for developing an international outlook and will be active on the international stage. and this will lead to a future in which they can play an active role on the international stage. If we do not nurture young people, our future international competitiveness will be affected,” he said, expressing his hopes for the younger generation and his sense of crisis about the current situation.
© Source travel watch
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