Japan, the land of cherry blossoms and Mount Fuji, not only possesses bustling modern cities like Tokyo and Osaka, but also hides countless other precious gems waiting to be discovered. From the wild beauty of Matsushima Bay with thousands of small islands, to the bustling, vibrant streets of Fukuoka, this country always has something new to surprise visitors.
However, when exploring Japan, many tourists often only focus on famous destinations and ignore lesser-known places. The reason is that these destinations are often scattered in many different regions, making travel difficult and expensive. Moreover, information about these places is not widely promoted, leaving tourists with few options.
Realizing this, the Japanese government has implemented many policies to attract tourists to new lands. Tourism incentive programs and free domestic air tickets have been and are being implemented to create favorable conditions for tourists to explore promising lands with great potential.
Japan Airlines said it will offer international travelers free domestic flights to provide a "seamless travel experience" across the archipelago, as well as help ease overtourism at some of Japan's most popular destinations.
To qualify for the free domestic flight, travelers only need to book a round-trip international flight with the airline, both ways must be purchased in one booking. The ticket is completely free if the stopover at the first destination in Japan is less than 24 hours. Otherwise, travelers must pay a stopover fee of 100 USD.
Currently, the airline is offering free domestic tickets to travelers from the US, Canada, Mexico, Thailand and Singapore. This policy also applies to travelers from Australia and New Zealand from September 19, Vietnam and the Philippines from September 25 and Indonesia, India, China and Taiwan from September 27.
Tourism incentive programs and free domestic air tickets have been and are being implemented to facilitate tourists.
The airline has announced that the list of countries eligible for free domestic flights will be expanded by the end of the month.
According to data released by the Japan National Tourism Organization (JNTO) on September 18, the number of foreign tourists to Japan in August increased by 36% compared to the same period in 2023, reaching 2.93 million, a record high for August. At the same time, it increased by 16.4% compared to August 2019, before the COVID-19 pandemic.
JNTO also said that since August 1, the number of tourists to Japan has exceeded 24 million, an increase of 58% compared to the same period in 2023. Currently, Japan - a country that aims to attract 60 million foreign tourists annually by 2030, is facing many challenges, including labor shortages at some accommodation facilities and negative impacts caused by the tourism boom, including traffic congestion.
