Tourism EXPO Japan will visit Aichi for the first time in 2025, boosting tourism in Hokuriku after the devastating earthquake

Japan Travel and Tourism Association, Japan Association of Travel Agents (JATA) and Japan National Tourism Organization (JNTO) announced that ‘Tourism EXPO Japan 2025’ will be held at the Aichi Sky Expo in Aichi Prefecture for four days, from 25 to September 28, 2025.

Hiroyuki Takahashi, JATA Chairman, revealed that the first EXPO in Aichi will have three main themes: ‘decentralization of incoming tourists to local areas’, ‘long-term support for tourism promotion in the Hokuriku area damaged by the Noto Peninsula earthquake’ , and ‘expansion of the international network from Centrair Airport.’

The Chubu area and the Hokuriku area have cooperated in the promotion of tourism, and economic federations in both areas expect that the EXPO will be a great opportunity to encourage incoming travelers from Centrair Airport to the Hokuriku area, which can contribute to an earlier repair of the damage caused by the earthquake. .

(左から)JATA髙橋会長、中部経済連合会の宮本氏、北陸経済連合会の牧野氏、愛知県観光協会More information

Tourism EXPO Japan 2024 could be an opportunity for outbound travel recovery?

Tourism EXPO Japan 2024 will open on September 26, 2024 at Tokyo Big Sight with the theme of Travel, an encounter with new value awaits. From today, 80 countries and regions, more than 70 countries and regions last year, will exhibit at the EXPO. “This will be an opportunity to send a message of the recovery of Japan’s travel market to the world,” said Takahashi. “An increase in exhibitions by foreign countries and regions represents their expectation for the Japanese market. We expect the EXPO to be an important step in the recovery of the outbound travel market towards full recovery next year.”

Organizers predict business meetings will reach 7,000 or more, up from 5,768 last year, and about 180,000 attendees over four days, up from 148,000 attendees last year in Osaka.

During a keynote discussion, Eduardo Santander, CEO of the Europe Travel Commission, Eijiro Yamakita, CEO of JTB and two more regional representatives in Japan will discuss the expansion of tourism exchanges.

The TEJ Conference of Tourism Ministers will be joined by Tourism Ministers from 10 to 15 countries, the UN Tourism World Travel & Tourism Council, Pacific Asia Travel Association (PATA) and Adventure Travel Trade Association (ATTA).

In addition, there are a variety of professional tourism seminars for every domestic, inbound and outbound market. The 8th Japan Tourism Award recognizes organizations, companies or individuals for their contributions to tourism development efforts.

(左から)日本観光振興協会の最明理事長、JATA髙橋会長、JNTO高橋理事長代理。

Expansion of domestic travel exhibitions

The domestic travel exhibitions will be expanded to include ‘dark sky tourism’, ‘car tourism’, ‘adventure tourism’, ‘academy’, ‘cruise’, ‘theme-oriented tourism’ and ‘sports tourism’. Hitoshi Saimyo, chairman of the Japan Travel and Tourism Association, said: “We want to create opportunities for high-quality travel and attract travelers to local regions in the Expo.”

In addition, there are special exhibitions on the Osaka Kansai EXPO 2025, tourism in Hokuriku and the 60th anniversary of the liberalization of foreign travel.

Visit Japan Travel & MICE Mart for inbound buyers

JNTO will host Visit Japan Travel & MICE Mart, along with 280 international buyers (including 15 MICE buyers) and 300 domestic sellers. It is believed that a total of 6,000 or more business meetings will take place.

After the Mart, approximately 250 international buyers will participate in 12 different FAM tours in eastern Japan. JNTO expects to cooperate with Tourism EXPO Japan to enable international buyers to collect tourism information from domestic travel exhibitors.