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Changi Airport kicks off a three-day ‘Enchanting Japan’ travel fair at Terminal 3 (Check-in Row 11). The fair brings together various stakeholders in the travel and tourism sectors to boost consumer confidence and promote travel and tourism to Japan. The launch saw an energetic taiko drum display and a traditional sake barrel-breaking ceremony to bring luck to Japan’s tourism industry.
In March this year, Japan was hit by the strongest earthquake in its recorded history and this was followed by tsunami waves. According to figures from the Japan National Tourism Organisation (JNTO), visitor arrivals in April from its top ten markets fell by more than 50% year-on-year. In the period from March to May, visitor arrivals from Singapore, Japan’s ninth biggest market dropped 63%, from 42,300 in 2010 to 15,600 in 2011.
In terms of air traffic, passenger movements between Singapore and Japan, one of Changi Airport’s top ten markets, have declined 13.2% year-on-year between March and June. Traffic to Tokyo has been impacted more, dropping 16.8% during the same period.
To revive the interest of holiday makers to visit Japan, Changi Airport Group (CAG) is spearheading the Friends of Japan initiative, by working closely with partners, including travel agents and airlines. The initiative aims to reach out to various market segments through a variety of platforms. CAG’s support will amount to close to S$700,000.
All things Japanese
‘Enchanting Japan’ at Changi Airport, from 15 to 17 July, is one in a series of activities to get Singapore residents interested in visiting Japan again. At the fair, visitors can check out various tour packages offered by major travel agents. Tourism representatives from Japanese prefectures including Gifu, Kanagawa, Nagano, Shizouka and Toyama as well as the JNTO, are also on hand to provide advice on planning a holiday in Japan.
There are daily travel quiz shows with prizes such as Japanese gifts and Changi Dollar vouchers plus a chance to win free holidays to Japan in the daily lucky draw. Visitors will also enjoy Japanese cultural activities such as origami and soba-making demonstrations, and entertainment like minyo folk dance and Cosplay (costume play). The ‘Enchanting Japan’ fair is opened from 11am to 10pm daily, and
admission is free.
As an added bonus for consumers to choose Japan as their holiday destination this year-end, CAG will present $30 Changi Dollar vouchers daily to the first 1,000 who book a travel package to Japan (on direct flights) at the upcoming NATAS Travel Fair in August.
Multi-platform initiative
As part of the Friends of Japan initiative, CAG has sponsored advertorial features in major local dailies to introduce lesser-known Japanese destinations that have been unaffected by the events in March. Complementing these advertorials are tour promotions to Japan by travel agents.
CAG is also partnering Chan Brothers Travel, one of Singapore’s largest tour operators, for a series of daily live radio broadcasts on 883Jia FM, Love97.2 FM and Radio100.3 FM. Over a three-week period in end-July and August, each station’s DJ will tour Japan for a week and provide first-hand accounts of the sights and sounds to their listeners.
To extend the initiative outside of Singapore, CAG is working with Singapore Airlines (SIA) to reach out to its overseas markets. Leveraging its strong connectivity to Indonesia, India and Australia, which are emerging markets for Japan, SIA is offering promotional fares to Japan via Singapore in these markets. Passengers will also enjoy overnight stays in Singapore at special prices. This campaign hence drives overseas traffic to both Singapore and Japan at the same time.
Mr Yam Kum Weng, Executive Vice President, Air Hub Development of CAG, said, “Japan is an important market for Changi Airport, contributing about 1.8 million passenger movements a year, and four important city links to Changi’s network1. “In the last few months, tourism in Japan has taken a knock and air traffic to and from the country has been affected. CAG saw the need to take a more proactive and involved role to assist in the recovery of travel to Japan. Together with JNTO, we have worked closely with our aviation and travel partners to launch the Friends of Japan initiative. If we succeed in bringing passenger traffic between Singapore and Japan up to pre-March levels, the multiplier effect on Changi Airport, our airline partners, travel agents and tourism in Japan will be very significant.”
Mr Motonari Adachi, Executive Director of JNTO Singapore, said, “We wish to thank Changi Airport Group, airline partners and travel agents for the tremendous support extended to Japan during the earthquake crisis and riding together with us through this challenging period. Since the crisis started, our priority has been to provide relevant and updated information on the situation in Japan through various media platforms to assure travellers that it is safe to travel to Japan again. The ‘Enchanting Japan’ travel fair at Changi Airport is a very good platform to showcase Japan to Singaporeans and other foreign visitors.”
“JNTO Singapore has also lined up a list of activities that aim to encourage visits to Japan, including participation at the NATAS Fair in August, where 15 Japanese exhibitors will present the best of Japan to Singaporeans. We look forward to welcoming our Singapore friends to Japan, where they will once again be inspired by the picturesque scenery and touched by the warm Japanese hospitality,” added Mr Adachi.
Theodore is the Co-Founder and Managing Editor of TravelDailyNews Media Network; his responsibilities include business development and planning for TravelDailyNews long-term opportunities.
