Bookings for winter trips to Japan have more than doubled from a year earlier, as Kyowon Tour said on the 20th that it is launching travel packages to Shizuoka, offering Mount Fuji views and the appeal of Japan's smaller cities, ahead of the peak winter season.
Kyowon Tour's analysis of bookings for departures between November and February showed reservations for Japan packages rose 134% from the same period a year earlier. The company attributed the increase to expanded flight routes, a weak yen and growing repeat visits.
The new packages center on Mount Fuji and include tea plantations, waterfalls and lakes, along with hot springs and shopping. Travelers can choose between full packages and air-and-hotel deals.
Itineraries feature the Shiraito and Otodome falls west of Mount Fuji, the Obuchi Sasaba tea fields framed by the mountain, and Oishi Park near Lake Kawaguchi. The trips also include a visit to the Yamanashi Prefectural Museum of Art, which holds more than 70 works by French painter Jean-François Millet.
Guests stay at hot spring hotels throughout the trip, with access to natural hot spring baths, outdoor pools and saunas. The itinerary also includes a stop at Gotemba Premium Outlets, where shoppers can take in views of Mount Fuji.
Kyowon Tour has been expanding its lineup of trips to smaller Japanese cities, following earlier packages to Wakayama and hot spring tours of Niigata and Aomori.
"With demand for travel to Japan rising, we designed the Shizuoka packages to reflect customer interest in a different kind of Japan trip," an official at Kyowon Tour said. "We will offer a new travel experience through a distinctive product combining Mount Fuji's varied landscapes, tourist attractions, arts and culture, hot springs and premium outlet shopping."
Passenger numbers on flights to Shizuoka and other smaller Japanese cities are also climbing. Jeju Air (089590.KS) said its routes to midsize and smaller Japanese cities have posted strong passenger growth, extending the popularity of those destinations.
Data from the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport's air portal showed that through the end of September, about 184,000 passengers flew Jeju Air's Incheon-Hiroshima route, up 42% from roughly 129,000 a year earlier. The Incheon-Shizuoka route carried about 178,000 passengers, up 41% from some 126,000.
The Incheon-Matsuyama route carried about 188,000 passengers, up 11% from roughly 169,000 a year earlier, while seat capacity rose 5% over the same period. The Incheon-Oita route carried about 53,000 passengers, up 12% from some 47,000.
"As high fuel prices and a strong dollar push up the cost of travel, demand is shifting toward short- and medium-haul routes that are relatively affordable, and interest in midsize and smaller Japanese cities as new destinations is growing," an official at Jeju Air said.