Two lakh Indians are set to visit Japan in 2024 - the highest till date as tourists benefit from improved connectivity and promotions.

A weak Yen has fueled growth in inbound tourism to Japan with the country receiving over 30 million tourists from around the world between January to October. The Japanese Yen has weakened by around 7.5 per cent against the US dollar in first eleven months of the year

Over 1.92 lakh Indians visited Japan during January-October. In 2019, number of Indians visiting Japan was around 1.76 lakh.

“We are expecting two lakh Indian tourists in 2024. Leisure market is expanding and we are seeing growth from meetings and conference segment too,” said Bunno Ryo, executive director, Japan National Tourism Organisation (JNTO), India office.

While April-June has been the main travel season, Japan is receiving Indian tourists in autumn and winter months too.

JNTO and All Nippon Airways (ANA) are promoting northern city of Sapporo which is famous for its ski resorts and snow festival. ANA has also partnered with Aamir Khan productions which has filmed a Hindi movie in and around Sapporo and is also offering discounted tickets each month. The airline hopes that the movie due for release next year will create more awareness about the destination.

Seamless travel options

Meanwhile on Monday, IndiGo and Japan Airlines (JAL) announced the launch of code share partnership providing seamless travel options for passengers from both countries.

This strategic partnership will enable JAL to expand its connectivity to India initially, while offering IndiGo customers more travel options on JAL’s extensive domestic and international network in later phases.

Currently, JAL operates daily services between Tokyo (Haneda) and Delhi, and five times weekly services between Tokyo (Narita) and Bengaluru. Through this new partnership with IndiGo, JAL will be able to establish a comprehensive network across India, connecting to numerous major cities via JAL-operated flights

“This codeshare agreement will further strengthen business, trade and tourism related travel between India and Japan,” said Abhijit DasGupta, senior vice president (network planning & revenue management) IndiGo

“ India has seen remarkable economic growth in recent years, which is leading to a significant increase in air travel demand between Japan and India.,” said Ross Leggett, managing executive officer in charge of route marketing, Japan Airlines

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