Comments on: Japan’s tourism problem http://www.karai.com/archives/2005/04/10/japans-tourism-problem/ the personal website of Chris Pearce Fri, 30 Jul 2010 03:44:04 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=1.5.2 Comment on Japan’s tourism problem by: moira http://www.karai.com/archives/2005/04/10/japans-tourism-problem/#comment-384 Thu, 12 May 2005 04:00:55 +0000 http://www.karai.com/archives/2005/04/10/japans-tourism-problem/#comment-384 karai hasn't given us any new food for thought in far too long. karai hasn’t given us any new food for thought in far too long.

]]> Comment on Japan’s tourism problem by: cpearce http://www.karai.com/archives/2005/04/10/japans-tourism-problem/#comment-380 Fri, 15 Apr 2005 19:50:10 +0000 http://www.karai.com/archives/2005/04/10/japans-tourism-problem/#comment-380 That's why I was trying to be vague about what an authentic experience is. People travel for so many different reasons and they're all looking for different things. As long as they can satisfy whatever expectations they had for their experience then the trip is probably successful. Economics is probably the biggest concern for Japan in promoting tourism. The economic impact that tourism can have for a country can be huge. Take France and Japan again. According to those WTO figures tourism generated $3.5 billion for Japan and $32 billion for France. There is a huge amount of money that Japan is potentially missing out on. And the economic factors of tourism are more important now than they were before because Japan's 15 year long period of economic stagnation. The money, jobs, and growth could be very beneficial to the nation. That’s why I was trying to be vague about what an authentic experience is. People travel for so many different reasons and they’re all looking for different things. As long as they can satisfy whatever expectations they had for their experience then the trip is probably successful.

Economics is probably the biggest concern for Japan in promoting tourism. The economic impact that tourism can have for a country can be huge. Take France and Japan again. According to those WTO figures tourism generated $3.5 billion for Japan and $32 billion for France. There is a huge amount of money that Japan is potentially missing out on.

And the economic factors of tourism are more important now than they were before because Japan’s 15 year long period of economic stagnation. The money, jobs, and growth could be very beneficial to the nation.

]]> Comment on Japan’s tourism problem by: moira http://www.karai.com/archives/2005/04/10/japans-tourism-problem/#comment-379 Thu, 14 Apr 2005 23:22:48 +0000 http://www.karai.com/archives/2005/04/10/japans-tourism-problem/#comment-379 I tend to think of travelers, at least American travelers, as seeking not so much an actual authenticity, but something that meets their media-fueled image of what constitutes an authentic experience. For example, your average fellow traveling to Africa wants to have the delightful Rudyard Kipling style safari adventure, but would probably be happy avoiding the poverty and AIDS and guerrilla warfare. A focus on tourism can erode the authentic culture of a place in favor of the comfortable and stereotypical. Maybe I'm way off base, but I think it's admirable that Japan has been unconcerned with tourism up to this point. Are they now interested in promoting tourism due to economical concerns? Or is it something societal that is shifting the ideals here? I tend to think of travelers, at least American travelers, as seeking not so much an actual authenticity, but something that meets their media-fueled image of what constitutes an authentic experience. For example, your average fellow traveling to Africa wants to have the delightful Rudyard Kipling style safari adventure, but would probably be happy avoiding the poverty and AIDS and guerrilla warfare. A focus on tourism can erode the authentic culture of a place in favor of the comfortable and stereotypical. Maybe I’m way off base, but I think it’s admirable that Japan has been unconcerned with tourism up to this point. Are they now interested in promoting tourism due to economical concerns? Or is it something societal that is shifting the ideals here?

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