He also explained two key themes based on the results of a survey of approximately 28,000 travelers from 33 countries.
According to Hiroko Takagi, the company’s Area Manager for Western Japan, the trend for GW travel is “Travel is LIFE. While in the past it has been more about escaping from “the unusual” and “reality,” in 2024 it will be more about finding a better way to live, she said.
GW Travel Trend 2 “Enthusiastic Travel in Pursuit of Hobbies
Destinations: Sendai, Naha, Yokohama, Kobe, Chiba
Accommodations: City hotels, apartment hotels
Description: Enjoy being “me, the hero” at theme parks, festivals, etc.
While the weak yen and rising prices have had an impact, many Japanese people feel that various parts of Japan have potential as tourist destinations. In addition, “a la carte luxury,” in which visitors spend less on lodging instead of on tickets and admission fees, is also gaining popularity.
The number of lodging reservations for GW is slightly lower than in 2023, and there appears to be an increase in last-minute reservations and staggering of travel dates.
During the panel discussion in the latter half of the presentation, Yohei Harada, professor and marketing analyst at Shibaura Institute of Technology, took the stage and stated that “self-branding through SNS is also applicable to travel” in terms of youth trends.
The content of their social networking posts, he points out, is “unprocessed ‘style’,” giving the impression of a life-size version of themselves and changing the focus from celebrities to their closest friends. In addition to tourist destinations such as Itoshima City in Fukuoka Prefecture, Naoshima Town in Kagawa Prefecture, and the 21st Century Museum of Contemporary Art in Kanazawa, Ishikawa Prefecture, which are popular for their videos, areas that have not previously attracted attention, such as Okazaki City in Aichi Prefecture, the sacred place of YouTuber “Tokai On Air,” are also gaining popularity.
In terms of accommodations, the trend is toward “all-inclusive” accommodations, where all services such as lounge access and welcome drinks are included in the room rate, and cultural experiences such as evening meals of bubu-zuke and playing ozashiki with maiko (apprentice geisha).
Takenori Okada, General Manager of Gran Vista Hotels & Resorts, said, “Inbound travelers stay an average of 2.5 nights when booking 90 to 120 days in advance, while domestic travelers stay an average of 1.3 nights when booking 20 to 30 days in advance. He suggested that early reservations and consecutive nights may increase overall travel satisfaction.
Mr. Harada, who has created such buzzwords as “Generation Z” and “Satori-generation,” concluded the presentation by inventing a new trendy word, “life-size-style self-branding.
© Source travel watch
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