IN AN attempt to persuade more holidaymakers to venture off the beaten track, the Japan National Tourist Organisation will be using World Travel Market to promote 11 themed regions within the country, each of which has its own tourist attractions.
Leaflets highlighting areas of interest within each region will be available on the Japan stand, and there will be a delegation from Kansai which is one of the 11 regions, at Earl’s Court.
“The aim is to encourage potential tourists to explore areas in Japan other than the traditional Tokyo-Kyoto-Nara route,” said a spokesman for the JNTO in London.
In total, there will be nine exhibitors on the stand – one more than last year – including the JNTO and the Kansai Committee.
The other exhibitors will be the City of Osaka, New Otani Hotel, Prince Hotel, Japan Travel Bureau, Nippon Travel Agency, Creative Tours and, for the first time, ANA World Tours (Europe).
Meanwhile, South Korea will have a greater presence at Earl’s Court this year as the Korea National Tourism Organisation has taken a slightly larger stand than in the past.
It will use the show to promote a number of events being held in Korea in 2000.
Marketing manager of the KNTO in the UK, Nigel Lloyd, said: “Business from the UK is very good and it has picked up a lot since the Korean economy started to recover. As Koreans start to travel again we are hoping that airlines that suspended services during the Far East economic crisis consider going back into the capital Seoul.”