THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Kerala Tourism has made its foray into the vast outbound tourism market of Japan, with a first-time road show in the capital Tokyo.
As many as 55 leading trade participants from the Japanese travel and tourism industry participated in the show held on October 19 at the landmark Hotel New Otani Tokyo, the venue of several G-7 summits.
The road show follows the assurance given by the Japanese government to support the state in promoting tourism, during the meeting between Kerala Tourism Secretary G Kamala Vardhana Rao and Japan’s Ambassador to India, Takeshi Yagi, in New Delhi on October 6.
It was the first time Kerala Tourism organised a road show in Japan though the state tourism department had taken part in the biggest travel and trade show in Japan, JATA Tourism Expo, in the last two years.
The Kerala Tourism delegation was led by Additional Director (General) Anupama T V, who made a detailed presentation about the tourism products at the road show.Tourist arrivals from Japan have witnessed a 25 per cent growth in the past five years. A total of 8,785 Japanese tourists visited Kerala last year.
The state delegation included trade partners Ayurveda Mana, Eastend Hotels and Resorts, Kairali Ayurvedic Village, Kumarakom Lake Resort and Thomas Hotel and Resorts, Travel Planners. The road show was partnered by Singapore Airlines and Air India.